What is INSTITUTIONAL INFORMATION & GOVERNANCE all about?

Founding documents

IREC aims to strengthen institutional ties with the energy and climate policies of the Government of Catalonia and, specifically, to actively participate in the fight against climate change and contribute, within its capacity, to the objectives established in the Paris Agreement. The adherence to this Agreement was submitted to IREC’s Board of Trustees in June 2022.

IREC is organised into research groups and departments. It is led by a Director who reports to the board of trustees and is advised by the scientific advisory board. Learn more about the organization of IREC here.

The institute provides access to a range of services and resources, such as specialised facilities and equipment, together with highly qualified technical assistance. The objective is to contribute to the development of projects of interest for the industrial sector or the scientific community.

All the available information regarding the Services offered by IREC can be found here.

Institutional participation in organisations

IREC is an active member of the following organizations:

Anti-fraud measures plan

In order to comply with the obligations established in Article 22 of Regulation (EU) 2021/241 of the European Parliament and the Council, 12th February 2021, which establishes the Recovery and Resilience Facility, the Catalonia Institute for Energy Research Foundation (IREC), as an instrumental executing entity of subprojects funded under the Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan (PRTR), adopts an “Anti-Fraud Measures Plan” as a strategic approach to protect the financial interests of the Union and ensure the proper use of the funds that finance the aforementioned Recovery, Transformation, and Resilience Plan, as well as to declare and guarantee that, within the entity’s scope of action, these funds have been used in accordance with the applicable regulations.

The IREC Anti-Fraud Measures Plan applies to all personnel of the entity and includes a set of measures and procedures related to the prevention, detection, correction, and prosecution of fraud and corruption. It constitutes an essential document for establishing IREC as a benchmark in ethics and public integrity.

Ethical Codes & best practices

At the Catalonia Institute for Energy Research (IREC), scientific knowledge is developed for the benefit of society. In this context, the Board of Trustees of the Fundació Institut de Recerca en Energia de Catalunya (IREC) approved an Open Science Policy on 24 January 2025, establishing openness as a guiding principle across all our research activities.

The policy underlines IREC’s commitment to making research more transparent, reproducible and accessible. It is aligned with the Spanish Science, Technology and Innovation Law (14/2011), the Catalan Science Law (9/2022) and with European best practices in open scholarship.

What our Open Science Policy covers

• Open access to publications. Peer‑reviewed articles must be deposited in our institutional repository (Zenodo IREC Community) and made openly available. Metadata are licensed under CC0, and full texts under standard open licences (CC BY or equivalent), following both green and gold open access routes.
• FAIR research data. Research data should be Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable, in line with the principle “as open as possible, as closed as necessary”. Researchers receive support to prepare Data Management Plans (DMPs) and to deposit data in the CORA RDR repository.
• Citizen science and public engagement. The policy encourages participatory approaches that involve society in the research process and promote genuine two‑way dialogue.
• Reforming research assessment. IREC adheres to the DORA declaration and the CoARA principles, seeking to evaluate research quality beyond traditional metrics and to recognise diverse outputs and practices.
• Training and infrastructure. Researchers are provided with the skills, tools and support they need, including a Research Data Management structure and an Open Science Working Group, to embed open practices in their daily work.

The policy applies to all active researchers at IREC and expresses a shared commitment to a more sustainable, equitable and inclusive research culture. The full policy document is available bellow:

IREC Internal Information System

In compliance with Law 2/2023, of 20 February, regulating the protection of people who report regulatory breaches and the fight against corruption, the Fundació Institut de Recerca en Energia de Catalunya (IREC) has implemented its Internal Information System made up of:

• The Internal Information Channel (Whistleblowing Channel) which is the secure online tool for reporting violations. It is managed through an external platform designed to guarantee the confidentiality of the information and the protection of the identity of the informant.
• The Head of the Internal Information System, which is the collegiate body in charge of managing and processing communications independently and confidentially.
• The Management Procedure is the rules that regulate the reception, investigation and resolution of the communications received.
• The Internal Information System Policy, which is the document that defines the general principles, guarantees and framework for action of the entire system.
• Complementary documentation.

The Internal Information Channel is the preferential, confidential and secure channel available to anyone who maintains or has maintained an employment or professional relationship with IREC, among others:

• Staff, managers and members of the IREC Board of Trustees.
• Candidates in selection processes.
• Staff in training, volunteers, interns and trainees.
• Personnel of contractor companies, subcontractors and suppliers.
• People who assist the informant or their entourage who may suffer reprisals.

They can report, even anonymously, possible actions or omissions that may constitute serious or very serious regulatory infringements, such as:

• Infringements of European Union law, especially those affecting the EU’s financial interests (fraud in European funds, irregular public procurement, etc.).
• Actions or omissions that may constitute a crime, such as corruption, bribery, embezzlement or influence peddling.
• Serious or very serious administrative offences, including undeclared conflicts of interest, misuse of public resources or occupational health and safety offences.
• Serious breaches of IREC’s internal regulations.

The purpose of the Internal Information System is to reinforce the culture of integrity and responsible communication, guaranteeing maximum protection to the whistleblower. In this regard, IREC guarantees that:

• Communications can be made completely anonymously. In the event of identification, the identity will be treated with strict confidentiality and may only be disclosed by legal obligation within the framework of legal proceedings.
• Measures shall be taken to protect the whistleblower from any retaliation or attempted retaliation when acting in good faith.
• All communications will be analysed with rigour, objectivity and impartiality, respecting at all times the presumption of innocence and the rights to honour and defence of the people affected.
• The channel ensures the security of personal data and communications.

IREC’s internal information channel is the preferred channel for reporting potential violations. However, the informants also have the right to go directly to the external channels enabled by the regulations in force.

For more details on how the system works, please refer to the documentation below:

Relevant Policies and Procedures

Information on the main institutional agreements signed by IREC.

The health & safety committee oversees compliance with occupational risk prevention policies. It identifies potential risks, monitors workplace safety measures and ensures that preventive actions are properly applied to protect staff health and wellbeing.

Works council

IREC recognises staff representation as a key part of its internal governance and social dialogue framework. Through the works council and other representative bodies, staff participation is channelled in an organised way on matters affecting working conditions, workplace wellbeing and the day-to-day life of the organisation. Staff representation is currently affiliated with UGT [LINK: https://www.ugt.cat/]. The most recent union elections were held in May 2022, with the next ones scheduled for 2026, and a single list was put forward by UGT.

Participation committees

Staff representation at IREC also extends to a number of participation committees and representative bodies. Through these spaces, employee representatives contribute to the monitoring of key policies on working conditions, equality, health and safety, and other areas of organisational life.