Global Challenges Research Fund: A Primer

Introduction

The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) was announced in last year’s spending review (December 2015), and came as something of a surprise to the sector. The previous spending review (2010) had protected the research budget from the worst ravages of austerity, but it was still a flat settlement, and funding was looking a little threadbare five years in.

George Osborne, the Chancellor at the time, sought to remedy this somewhat, and announced that the research budget would rise from £4.7bn to £5.2bn by the end of the parliament (2020).

Source: THE

However, there was a catch. The extra £1.5bn would come from a different pot. It would not come from the budget of the Dept for Business, Innovation and Skills, but rather from International Development, and would aim ‘to develop new solutions to the complex multidimensional problems faced by developing countries.’ Note how the Science budget stagnates in the chart on the right, and GCRF rises.

Nick Robinson Takes over at BA

Amidst all the resignations and reshuffles following the EU Referendum, some of you might not have noticed that top BBC politico Nick Robinson has been sworn in as the new head of the British Academy. And not before time. After all those hours standing in front of Downing Street, and then getting up at 3am to present the Today programme, it's about time he had a job that included civilised working conditions. And nowhere is more civilised than 10-11 Carlton House Terrace.

Any resemblance to eminent historian Prof Sir David Cannadine is, of course, entirely coincidental.

Robinson

Cannadine

Empathy for Impact

Maddy Bell.
Or possibly Carrie Bradshaw

Maddy Bell joined the University of Kent in December 2015 in the new role of Impact & Engagement Officer in Research Services, after 6 years supporting academic clinicians at the Royal College of Anaesthetists in London.

In this debut blog post, she reflects on the past 7 months in her role and considers the important role of empathy in achieving impact in research, and in her own role at Kent.

When I first considered the idea of blogging, it took me back to the ponderings of Sex and the City's Carrie Bradshaw and her infamous column philosophising over relationships. Head balanced on my fist, gazing out of my window onto some cosmopolitan hustle and bustle, swish laptop open and contemplative pout at the ready. 

As it goes in reality, if I turn my head to an uncomfortable 90 degrees, my glance is met with the breeze block mass that is Cornwallis, and on the grass in-between, the remains of a furry animal apparently having met a dramatic end. My keyboard is scattered with mystery crumbs and the odd green tea splash.

That aside, the University of Kent in summer is the perfect place for pondering and contemplation. In the relative quiet and calm on campus following the end of term, I find myself reflecting on the last 7 months since my appointment as Impact & Engagement Officer in Research Services. Reflection, I believe, is how we learn and get better at being our best. My overarching aim at Kent is to add value; to have my own impact here and to engage colleagues in these agendas.

Vanilla Strategies

Just a little bit 'meh'

Last month I mentioned that the University of Kent had been going through the process of drafting a new Institutional Plan, with an associated Research and Innovation Strategy. The strategy’s vision is for the university to be “clearly recognised worldwide for the quality of its research...[to undertake] radical and innovative research [with] broader impact...to be exploited through partnership with those in industry, government, charity or the cultural sector...[and] embedding research-led teaching.”

Excellent research, impact, partnership, and research-led teaching. Sounds familiar? If it does, it’s no surprise. Almost every university has something similar: essentially they all want to host the best researchers undertaking the best research with the best partners, which will result in the best impact and best teaching. Sometimes interdisciplinarity is thrown in, sometimes mention is made of specific disciplinary priorities.

Brexit and the Suffocating Dog of Research

After the storm, the clear up. Or rather, after the storm, the running for cover. As the UK political infrastructure goes into meltdown, and politicians shake their heads sadly and claim that it was nothing to do with them - it's the 'will of the people' - a number of colleagues have asked about how Brexit will affect the UK’s ability to access European research funding, Horizon 2020.