Key points
- National Occupational Research Agenda (NORA) councils promote collaboration to address occupational health and safety issues.
- NORA meetings are virtual or in-person and include a range of topics and activities.
- The NORA sector and cross-sector councils cover many industries.
NIOSH Council List
How the Councils Work
About
NORA councils are venues for individuals and organizations with common interests in occupational safety and health topics to come together. Although NIOSH is the steward of NORA, it is just one of many partners that make NORA possible. Councils are not an opportunity to give consensus advice to NIOSH, but instead a way to maximize resources towards improved occupational safety and health nationwide.
Third decade of NORA
Councils started in the third decade of NORA (2016-2026) by identifying broad occupational safety and health research objectives for the nation. These research objectives built upon advances in knowledge in the last decade, addressed emerging issues, and were based on council member and public input. Councils are spending the remainder of the decade working together to address the agenda through information exchange, collaboration, and enhanced dissemination and implementation of solutions that work.
Membership
Councils are open to anyone with an interest in occupational safety and health. Members benefit by hearing about cutting-edge research findings, learning about evidence-based ways to improve safety and health efforts in their organization, and forming new partnerships. In turn, members share their knowledge and experiences with others and reciprocate partnerships.
Councils are platforms that help build close partnerships among members and broader collaborations between councils and other organizations. The resulting information sharing and leveraging efforts promote widespread adoption of improved workplace practices based on research results.
Meetings
Councils meet at least once per year, but some choose to meet more frequently. Most meetings are held virtually, but some are in-person. Meeting agendas are set by the co-chairs (a NIOSH sector or cross-sector program leader and another volunteer), with input from council members. Meetings often include presentations from members or guest speakers, open discussion periods, and/or small group breakout sessions.
Accomplishments
NORA councils have achieved a lot since the start of the third decade of NORA in 2016. All 17 councils published research agendas and made strides in information sharing, partnership building, and promoting evidence-based solutions. Learn more in the reports:
Evaluation
Using a council member survey, administrative records, and annual reports, this process evaluation sought to understand how well councils were achieving their stated purposes of information sharing, networking, and disseminating/implementing evidence-based solutions, as well as assessing council member satisfaction. The evaluation offered solutions to increasing engagement and fully achieving all three purposes of NORA councils. Learn more in the National Occupational Research Agenda Councils: 2019 Evaluation Findings report.