Researcher Engagement Cluster Report May 2019 – May 2020 Key Activities 2019-2020 Research Collaboration Group Meeting The Research Collaboration Group (RCG) met in May 2019 at Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile bringing together 17 delegates from 14 member institutions. Xavier Rodde (University of Birmingham) led his first meeting as Chair of the group. The 2019 meeting adopted a new format and comprised 2 days’ of training on research funding (with a focus on third country participation in EU funding programmes), followed by 3 days of meeting sessions focused on international research funding landscapes. The meeting also saw the launch of the RCG Chair’s Competition that offered an award of US$3000 to a collaborative project undertaken by group members. The funding was awarded to a joint project between University of Birmingham, University of Zurich and University of Melbourne, to generate an international research funding matrix resource. The next RCG meeting was due to take place at Waseda University 1-5 June 2020, incorporating a 2- day international funding workshop exploring research funding in Japan. However, due to the impact of COVID-19, some sessions will be moved online where possible. Thank you to Waseda for the meeting arrangements to date so far; the group anticipates visiting in 2021 instead. U21 Three Minute Thesis Competition Cody Frear from the University of Queensland won the 2019 U21 Three Minute Thesis competition with a presentation of his PhD thesis Negative Pressure Wound Therapy in Paediatric Burns; No No or Noo Noo? which looks into the treatment of paediatric burns using negative pressure wound therapy. The Highly Commended winner for 2019 was Emma Elliott from the University of Glasgow with her presentation Draw me a clock… in which she describes how different cognitive tests and assessments can be used to detect memory and thinking problems, and whether the tests used early on are suited to busy stroke units. Chidinma Raymond from the University of Nottingham was the winner of the People’s Choice Award with her presentation The Thief with many Faces; Investigating Hepatitis B Virus which received nearly half of total votes collected. The competition received 19 exceptional entries and the people’s choice award received over 9000 votes via the U21 website, beating the 2018 record of 6800. U21 Early Career Researcher Workshop 2019 “The U21 ECR workshop offered a variety of interactive sessions and topics. Panel members selected came from diverse backgrounds, making the water conversation more interesting. This is the first workshop that I have attended which included professionals from around the world. The workshop was intimate and provided and a friendly and conversational atmosphere. It was brilliant to see and hear about what colleagues are doing in the water sector for the betterment of society.” (Participant feedback) Download the full workshop programme here. Feedback survey results can be viewed here. Following on from the 2018 workshop theme of sustainability and the United Nation Sustainable Development Goals, the 2019 U21 Early Career Researcher workshop explored the theme of Water and Society. The workshop showcased the world-class research taking place among U21’s community of ECRs. The workshop was hosted by Lund University and brought together 35 delegates from 13 U21 member institutions. With concern that we are heading towards a global water crisis, the workshop brings together innovative researchers from cross-disciplines to share their knowledge and expertise. Water and Society aimed to tackle important challenges such as alleviating water poverty and increasing access to sanitation, while developing international cooperation and support capacity-building for water and sanitation-related activities in developing countries. Through a variety of interactive presentations and research poster sessions on international and interdisciplinary perspectives, participants were able to share the impact of their research with each other. Professional development sessions focused on grant writing and developing research funding bids, commercialising research and building research networks. As always, the Lightning Talks were a particular highlight. The workshop ended with a cross-disciplinary challenge: Game of Floods. Workshop participants worked in groups to crisis-manage a flood on a hypothetical island. With a set of limited resources, they had to decide where best to allocate their budget and justify their rationale through group presentations. Graduate Collaborative Research Awards The GCRA programme enables doctoral candidates to develop and implement international research collaborations within the U21 network. Awards of up to US$5000 are available for projects, with a total of US$30,000 available for release each year. In 2019, U21 allocated a total of $29,868 to six funded projects across 12 member universities. In light of COVID-19, the 2020 round of funding will go ahead and encourage applicants to think creatively about virtual collaborations instead of face- to-face interactions. U21/PwC Innovation Challenge The 2019-2020 round of the U21/PwC Innovation Challenge saw the three group rounds condensed into one with all 27 member universities working towards the deadline of 14 February 2020. The competition enables graduate students to communicate their skills and knowledge to PwC and their clients, in the hope of winning a trip to PwC Middle East offices. Graduate students were asked to respond to the following question: How can universities help individuals gain a broader perspective on the long-term impact and consequences of their day-to-day actions on people, society and the environment? What types of jobs will an environmentally-sensitive economy need, and what is the best way to prepare students for them? The three winners of the U21/PwC Innovation Challenge competition 2019/20 were James Tait from the University of Melbourne, Daniel Student from the University of California, Davis and Christopher Girardi also from the University of Melbourne. The three winners will each be given an expenses- paid week-long trip to PwC Middle East (or another PwC office if they wish) along with career development coaching sessions with the PwC Academy. The competition attracted 44 entries from 17 universities in the U21 network; all 44 entrants have been awarded online careers training from PwC and the ten entries shortlisted as finalists will be given both online careers training and mentoring. Researcher Engagement Cluster Meeting 2020 Researcher Engagement continues to support the network’s diverse community of researchers which is particularly pertinent during these trying times. COVID-19 has brought a suite of new challenges to the cluster, including the cancellation of the annual Researcher Engagement Cluster meeting (that was due to take place in April) at University of Connecticut. Thank you to UConn for their efforts in putting the events together and although the groups will not be meeting this year, it is anticipated that the 2021 meeting will take place as usual. Virtual Collaboration Platform It is timely that Researcher Engagement has been building on U21’s digital capacity. Totara, an e- learning management system, will be launched this summer to create a virtual collaboration space for researchers to meet and communicate. It will also act as a digital learning platform and host training and workshops for relevant U21 working groups. It is anticipated that all Senior Leaders will have access to Totara in due course. The beginning of 2020 saw the departure of Professor Andy Hor (University of Hong Kong) as Co- Chair of Researcher Engagement and Chair of the Research Leaders group. The Research Leaders are currently in the position of seeking a candidate for the role. The next 12 months will remain focused on building researcher capacity within network. Through Totora and an additional new U21 researcher funding scheme, Researcher Engagement will be supporting the development of researcher resilience during uncertain times. The funding, which will be announced in May, will support training and infrastructure (outside of what is already provided by universities) required in adapting to work in collaborative digital/virtual environments. Associate Professor Caroline Daley Co-Chair of the Researcher Engagement Cluster Connie Wan Researcher Engagement Manager, U21 April 2020 .