The Creating Knowledge update from the November 2017 Leadership Bulletin
Creating Knowledge – Professor Roger Eccleston
The Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) represents an opportunity to address two of our strategic priorities: enhancing our research, and becoming more engaged and connected globally. The GCRF is something of a new departure for government in its intent to deliver some of the UK’s Official Development Assistance (ODA) commitment via research programmes. ODA-funded activity focuses on outcomes that promote the long-term sustainable growth of countries on the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) list. The fund aims to ensure that UK research takes a leading role in addressing the problems faced by developing countries through: challenge-led disciplinary and interdisciplinary research; strengthening capacity for research and innovation within both the UK and developing countries, and providing an agile response to emergencies where there is an urgent research need.
This is an approach that is already being followed by the Australian Government and I was fortunate to recently visit the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to learn from their experience. Critical success factors appear to be: a clear articulation of the challenge to be addressed; a multi-disciplinary approach and, assembling the most appropriate consortia.
Across the University we have excellent examples of research that has a global impact, we are able to work across disciplines to focus on addressing challenges, and we share a desire to be making a positive impact. The GCRF represents a great opportunity to develop research and do good in the world. Over the next few weeks I will be working with the Assistant Deans for Research (ADRs), and colleagues in RIO and GED, to determine how we can develop strong proposals.
The principles of a revised Creating Knowledge Implementation Plan (CKIP) were presented and discussed at the last meeting of the Creating Knowledge Pillar Board and they are now being developed into a detailed plan to be reviewed at the CK Board later this month.
Excerpt from the November 2017 Leadership Bulletin
