Research and Impact @ Manchester (Autumn 2024)

29 Oct 2024

A message from Professor Colette Fagan, Vice-President for Research

Dear colleagues,

Welcome to a very special edition of Research and Impact @ Manchester, in which we’re focusing on our research culture and environment. 

Good research culture – the way that we collaborate, communicate, and interact with each other – is an integral part of how we work together here at Manchester. It is embedded in our Research and Discovery strategy, agreed in our Statement of Research Contribution Expectations, delivered in our many support offerings and proven in our REF 2021 scores. 

And now we want to improve it even further. 

Associate Vice-President for Research, Professor Melissa Westwood will be taking a lead, on behalf of the Research Strategy Group, on initiatives to enhance our research culture and environment by collaborating with colleagues across the University to amplify the great work already taking place locally. 

We will focus on four themes: Supporting diverse and rewarding careers; Enabling open and impactful research; Upholding the highest levels of responsible and ethical research; and building collaboration and interdisciplinarity. 

And we’re providing more detail on this work and all the information, guidance and support you need on our new Research Culture and Environment Hub.

We all have an essential role to play in this. You as individuals, through your commitment to a conscientious, considerate way of working, and the University, faculties, and schools through our support and development provision. 

I know that Melissa will do a great job of bringing everyone together to make Manchester an even better place to do amazing and impactful research. So, do tell us what research culture means to you, what is working well and what needs to improve, in comments to Melissa’s Viewpoint blog or anonymously, if you prefer, through our Microsoft form.

Academic promotions as part of our Research Culture and Environment

One recent example of theme 1, supporting diverse and rewarding careers is that our academic promotions criteria have been revised and refreshed to provide clearer ways for colleagues to present their application, including their contributions to research leadership and the different aspects of our research culture and environment framework. The criteria and guidance for all the current domains have been updated and the changes will be implemented for the 2024/2025 academic promotions round to allow colleagues to benefit by presenting their application against these revised criteria. You can visit the Academic and Research Staff Promotions webpages for the full details.   

Manchester 2035

Research Culture and Environment will remain key to the development of Manchester 2035, our bold new strategy to identify and accelerate our strategic ambitions for the next decade. Together with Richard Jones, Vice-President for regional and civic engagement, I have co-authored a blog – Manchester 2035: Accelerating our research impact – explaining one of the strategy’s main themes, which promises an exciting future for our research community. This was published on Thursday, 24 October. Please visit the Manchester 2035 website to post your suggestions and sign-up to workshops.

Research Excellence Framework – REF2029

Research Culture and Environment will be a major focus of the next REF 2029 assessment, and the early stage of the preparation of our submission is underway. I am delighted that Professor Toni Haastrup has been appointed to the People and Diversity Advisory Panel (PDAP) of the Research Excellence Framework (REF). Toni, Chair and Professor in Global Politics, will help develop the sector strategies to advance equality, diversity, and inclusion throughout REF 2029. Congratulations, Toni! 

Celebrating our amazing work  

Melissa presented our Research Staff Excellence Awards, saying: “Your dedication, innovation, and tireless efforts are the backbone of the groundbreaking research that defines our institution.” Quite right! 

We also celebrated the 20th anniversary of the isolation of graphene here at Manchester, while our sustainability project with Massive Attack to decarbonise live music has now been put to the test, as reported in Nature. 

And there’s so much more to celebrate, here and in the Celebration section of this newsletter: 

• We now have 26 Nobel Prize winners associated with our University after economics alumnus, Professor Simon Johnson was honoured for his groundbreaking research into wealth disparities between nations, demonstrating that democracies have spurred greater economic activity over the last 500 years. 
• Our University is to play a key role in a new European collaboration that brings together world-class researchers and astronomical research infrastructure.
• Manchester Institute of Biotechnology researchers have been awarded £2 million as part of the Global Centre Bioeconomy grant, an $82 million initiative led by the National Science Foundation in the US.
• Professor Cecilia Wong has been appointed Chair of UK2070 Commission, an independent inquiry into city and regional inequalities in the United Kingdom. 
• Three of our research teams have been awarded European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grants to push forward their pioneering research, to revolutionise early detection of brain diseases, investigate gut microbiome interaction in cancer immunity and help to discover new chemistry and physics. 
• Other researchers, in collaboration with Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT), are launching a new Cystic Fibrosis Innovation Hub to accelerate the development of new tests and treatments. Cystic fibrosis (CF) is one of the UK's most common life-limiting inherited diseases, affecting over 11,000 people and nearly 200,000 people worldwide. 
• Professor of Criminology, Judith Aldridge has been awarded a Fellowship of Academy of Social Sciences – one of 45 leading social scientists chosen for highlighting the importance of social sciences to understanding and tackling challenges facing society today. 
• Dr Bovinille Anye Cho has been awarded a Royal Society Career Development Fellowship (CDF), one of eight outstanding researchers selected in the first cohort of a programme to develop underrepresentation in UK STEM academia. 
• And congratulations to Professors Nancy Rothwell, Deborah Symmons and Helen Worthington, all recognised in Research.com’s rankings of the top 100 Best Female Scientists in the UK 2024. Nancy will also become a member of the Council of the Royal Society from November 2024. 

It is all this – our positive and outstanding impact on the world – and, more importantly, how we do this together that makes Manchester an amazing place to do research. 

Please do let Melissa and I know about your experiences of our research culture and environment and your thoughts on what we might improve; and your ideas for how we should shape our new Manchester 2035 strategy.

Colette