Category / BU2025

‘Doing Diversity Better: Interrogating ethnic and gender equality among BAME academics in HE’ April 22 14.00-16.00

BU2025, Fusion, Women's Academic Network

The Women’s Academic Network (WAN) at BU are delighted to host this powerful and timely public engagement, open-to-all, Q&A Panel Discussion on one of the most important and urgent issues facing Higher Education (HE) in the UK today.

The Vice Chancellor, Professor John Vinney, will formally open the event which brings together four hugely eminent women academics of-colour, as well as a representative from the Bournemouth University Student Union (SUBU), who are all working within the broad areas of racialisation/ethnicisation and social inequalities. Each panellist will bring their own particular research expertise together with intellectual and experiential understandings to a grounded, candid and in-depth discussion of diversity in contemporary HE.

For more details and registration: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/womens-academic-network-bournemouth-university-doing-diversity-better-tickets-146743055429

The panel context

UK HE is characterised by a homogeneity that fails to reflect social diversity, particularly in terms of ethnicity, gender and social class. These issues need to be located within a complex terrain of interwoven, intersectional experiences. The handy portmanteau term: ‘BAME’ (Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic) can also unhelpfully work to subsume entire groups who are otherwise subject to different levels of discrimination that may thereby remain less visible and therefore neglected. For example, a UCU 2019 report recorded that of a total number of professors in the UK, those self-identifying as ‘Black’ numbered just 85 individuals, and of these a mere 25 were women (Rollock 2019). While recent HESA (2020) data confirms that less than 1% of UK professors self-identify as Black. Unsurprisingly, Mizra (2019, p. 39) refers with horror to the overwhelming ‘hideous’ whiteness of academia. This alarming lack of representation among minority ethnic groups in HE not only exemplifies a dereliction of social justice but is demonstrably counterproductive to the academy across every area of scholarly endeavour, including inclusive pedagogy. The Race Equality Charter under AdvanceHE offers a valuable tool towards remedial action, but without direct debate, will towards and strategies for root-and-branch sector change, such charters are unlikely to create the necessary traction.

Our Panellists:

Professor Kalwant Bhopal is Professor of Education and Social Justice Professor of Education and Social Justice Director of the Centre for Research on Race and Education, University of Birmingham

Professor Ann Phoenix is Professor of Psychosocial Studies, at the Thomas Coram Research Unit, UCL Institute of Education

Dr Samantha Iwowo is the Programme Leader of MA Directing, Film and TV at BU.

Professor Gargi Bhattacharyya is Professor of Sociology at the Centre for Migration, Refugees and Belonging, University of East London

Ms Chiko Bwalya is the Education Vice President of SUBU.

We in WAN look forward to welcoming you.

Colleagues – please share among your networks. Students welcome

Research in the time of COVID: Insights from IMSET and opportunities for collaboration  

BU2025, Strategic Investment Areas

In this blog post, Dr Fiona Coward explores the profound challenges faced in establishing a transformative research agenda when you lose two seasons of fieldwork, but reminds us of the importance of undertaking activities which are energising and inspiring. On behalf of the IMSET team, she also invites greater collaboration to accelerate our research contribution as we look towards the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) later this year.  

“Well, what a time to pick to launch a research institute! Back in early 2020, we were very excited to have recruited four great new colleagues to the brand new Institute for the Modelling of Socio-Environmental Transitions (IMSET) and anticipated great things… Little did we know. A year later, still in lockdown, we’ve learned a few things about doing research in the time of COVID. How do you do research in lockdown? As many have found, doing anything in lockdown can be tricky. The stress of life under lockdown during a global pandemic is enough to deal with on its own, and of course those of us with caring responsibilities have had other pressures. Add that to the extra time consumed by the frantic shift to online learning – the need to record and caption lectures and plan engaging interactive virtual sessions in lieu of face to face seminars, the additional time spent supporting struggling students… For many of us, research had to take a backseat simply because there were only 24 hours in a day and we were exhausted.  

There are more practical problems, too: some research simply can’t get done in lockdown. Computer modelling can in theory be done from home… but only if you have the data. Producing new data, however, is … well, tricky. To generate entirely new data on global ecology and human behaviour, there’s no getting around the fact that you need to get out around the globe. It’s impossible to understand past patterns of sea level rise in northern Vietnam without going out there and logging the coordinates of sea notches on the ground; likewise, understanding past environments around the long-drowned continent of Beringia which once connected eastern Russia and north-western America can’t be done without fieldwork to collect samples of ancient plants and animal species. And without access to labs and specialist equipment, it’s impossible to analyse samples and data collected previously. We valiantly battled this one: IMSET’s postdoc was faintly embarrassed to have a new fridge delivered to her house at the start of lockdown, worried she’d be accused of stockpiling food rather than needing space to keep temperature-sensitive samples that could – with difficulty – be studied at home. OK, well fieldwork could wait, yes? Well, no, not really … much of IMSET’s fieldwork is highly seasonal in nature. For fairly obvious reasons, it’s quite difficult to collect ecological samples from Alaska during the northern hemisphere’s winter. Likewise, tramping around Vietnam or Jordan in the heat of summer is definitely best avoided. So when the window of opportunity for one year expires, that’s it until the following year …. We assumed. Only to find ourselves still in lockdown a full year later: two field seasons down. Even with the vaccination programme rolling out relatively swiftly in the UK, travel to other countries will remain difficult; where vaccination rates are slower than the UK, ethically it will not be possible even for vaccinated British people to travel there and work with local teams for extended periods. Similar problems are faced by researchers in any field where data collection is time-sensitive. For those of us lucky enough to be on permanent contracts this is a blow; without data, associated schedules of processing and analysis, writing up, publications, dissemination and other impact activity have to remain on hold., pushed back indefinitely. For those on fixed term contracts – PGRs and post-doctoral researchers – it’s a massive problem. Extensions to funding from UKRI bodies seem unlikely, but future employment and careers hang on presentations, publications, collaborations. It remains unclear how these issues will be accounted for, going forward. 

Well, then perhaps we could use the time instead to plan future research projects, develop grant proposals? Well, maybe … The funding landscape changed dramatically during the pandemic, with available funding shunted towards COVID-related research. While to a certain extent that’s understandable, we do also need to keep focus on longer-term challenges – climate change, for example. That’s not going away, global pandemic or no! Grant proposals already under way slowed as we and our collaborators dealt with all the additional demands on our time and thinking; some proposals just couldn’t be progressed because they relied on pilot studies, originally planned for 2020, that had been put on hold; RKE, struggling valiantly with a raft of short-term COVID related projects with extremely short lead times, understandably had less time for support; uncertainties over HE funding in the short and medium term prompted more careful scrutiny of prospective bids, and put the kibosh on some which had been years in development. 

Grants already submitted now look out of date as they failed to foresee the coming global pandemic; ones being submitted now need careful consideration of the ways in which they can be adapted or modified in the event of ongoing global or local lockdowns and COVID mitigation measures. Reviewing and decisions about outcomes either way is also taking longer, as everyone deals with the same problems. The funding landscape of the future remains unclear, but post-Brexit and in the wake (hopefully!) of the pandemic ongoing economic concerns forcing difficult decisions (witness the recent withdrawal of the ODA money from already allocated projects!), we can expect big changes. 

The past year has been a difficult one for many. Time for research was squeezed or simply vanished as we tried to get our heads around phonics (yes – teachers are saints); remain sane as we watched the death count grow on a daily basis; worry about our loved ones and wonder when we might get to see them again.   And yet research remains important, even – dare I say it – fun. Energising. One thing I have learned is that just as the best response to feeling run down and exhausted is – counterintuitively – to do some exercise, the best response to despair in the face of the impossibility – surely? – of research, is to dive back in. Finding it difficult to think deeply about anything right now? Time-limited? (I know I’m both!) One answer might be to create short stints of time in the madness to just chat about your research interests. Maybe it will, ultimately, lead to a formal project, or collaboration, or grant proposal …. And maybe it won’t, but perhaps that’s OK. It will kickstart your grey matter and – dare I say it – give you a chance to think about something other than the day-to-day grind of life in a pandemic, to chat with friendly colleagues facing the same problems, and to explore research and fusion-related questions, issues and themes without any pressure. OK, so research in the time of COVID is difficult – but it’s difficult for everyone. It’s not just you, promise. So let’s work together to improve things. Remember when research was fun, not just another chore you had to squeeze into your overstuffed day? Let’s bring a little of that fun back again.  

Part of that joy – and growth from the adversity we encountered – comes in seeking out new collaborations and, with it, directions for future research, impact and engagement. Not least as the UK looks towards hosting COP26 and considering the impact of climate change once again. With that in mind, we would like to invite colleagues across BU and beyond to work with us. IMSET has a series of events in the pipeline which all are welcome to attend, and if you can’t make them then just drop us a line and we can catch up with a virtual coffee and chat. We’re interested in all things sustainability, from systems modelling to working with local communities across the globe to understand how people interact with their environments and to develop resilience and sustainability at the grass roots. If you work in any area relating to sustainability, human/environment relations, community engagement or beyond, drop us a line! Contact the core team, or email IMSET@bournemouth.ac.uk. 

The past year has taught a lot – one thing it’s made abundantly clear is the power and importance of research. Not all of us can directly work on preventing the next global pandemic, but COVID has also sparked a lively debate about the impact of human interactions with other animals and with the environment more generally; probably many of us can contribute in some way to this wider picture, so if you’re interested, get in touch and let’s help each other get through! 

Research seminar is on the Way! 😇Detox with nature: Communicating with the great outdoors, urban greenery and its history – 25th May 2021 From 10:00 –11:30 (ZOOM)

BU research, BU2025, ECR Network

We will have a seminar session with a guest lecturer, Professor Hiroko Ochiai (National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, Japan). This research seminar is conducted via ZOOM.
Professor Ochiai and Dr Oe will present the recent research outcome ‘Detox with nature: Communicating with the great outdoors, urban greenery and its history’.  Professor Ochiai is a Chief of Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, National Tokyo Medical Center and also a Certified physician of Forest Medicine.

Our research focuses on the the well-beings with forest bathing with medical evidence in the community context. This seminar is held in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as ‘Goal 3: Good Health and Well-being’and ‘Goal 17: Partnership for Goals’. This session also aligns with BU2025 strategic investment areas (SIAs), Medical Science.

The BU ECRs, PhD researchers, and MSc students are welcome to this session.
*For more details, please email to Hiroko Oe :hoe@brounemouth.ac.uk

SIA open call for game changing concepts: Hear from BU collaborator, Paul Brookes from Siemens, about the future R&D needs of industry

BU research, BU2025, Strategic Investment Areas

Bournemouth University is delighted that Paul Brookes, Head of Innovation, Siemens ITS at Siemens Mobility Ltd, will be providing an open briefing session to BU on Thursday 15th April at 12noon. He will explore current research priorities before an open Q&A session. This online event will be chaired by SIA Conveners, Professors Christos Gatzidis and Kate Welham.

Paul’s experience spans three industry sectors: computer systems, motion control and intelligent transport systems. He has specialties in broad and deep understanding of electronics, embedded software, cloud (AWS), people management, employee development, competency frameworks, networking, design thinking, innovation and business development. Paul is currently working on 5G, IoT, connected car, infrastructure as a service, cooperative perception and AI.

Paul works closely with BU, is an External Advisory Board member for Animation, Simulation & Visualisation SIA, and has kindly agreed to provide insight from his experience as to the future research needs of industry.

This is an opportunity to develop expressions of interest for the SIA open call for game-changing research concepts.

To register for this open session, please email sia@bournemouth.ac.uk to receive the diary invitation and video conference link.

 

 

Defining BU’s research future: what could you do?

BU research, BU2025, Strategic Investment Areas

If ever there was a year in which technology has transformed the ways in which we live our lives, it has been 2020-21. Gone are the meetings in formal committee rooms, and the casual chat with a colleague over a cup of coffee, and enter the plethora of video conference facilities that now shape our lives.

Perhaps one of the most fascinating aspects of this to me (as an entirely biased social scientist!) is how the challenge that society faces, combined with the technology at our fingertips, has led to profound (and I suspect long-lasting) shifts in our social practices. But how will technology change our lives in future?

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport have recently released a guide detailing their top 10 Tech Priorities, summarised as follows:

  1. Rolling out world-class digital infrastructure nationwide
  2. Unlocking the power of data
  3. Building a tech-savvy nation
  4. Keeping the UK safe and secure online
  5. Fuelling a new era of start-ups and scaleups
  6. Unleashing the transformational power of tech and AI
  7. Championing free and fair digital trade
  8. Leading the global conversation on tech
  9. Levelling up digital prosperity across the UK
  10. Using digital innovation to reach Net Zero

Arguably, whilst none of these are new/surprising thematic areas, they do – in themselves – embed challenging research questions in which academic research will be integral to secure and progress societal expectations.

Furthermore, although they are labelled as ‘tech’ priorities – for me, they are inherently interdisciplinary in their very nature. Effective leadership and engagement surely requires a multidisciplinary approach, achieving net zero won’t happen with technological solutions alone – we will also need profound social change. Barriers to start-ups and scaleups aren’t necessarily owing to a lack of innovation, but around how IP is protected, understood and shared.

As a community of researchers, it is important that we consider and challenge the technological imperative and draw upon our interdisciplinary strengths to contribute effectively to our future. What could you do to contribute to this agenda and progress academic research with it? Do you and your collaborators have fundamental research questions that could provide this insight, that as a University we can support you in developing? If so, could you consider developing an EoI for our next SIA open call for concepts?

BU is committed to nurturing the game-changing research concepts which will define our future, through our Strategic Investments Areas (SIAs). To learn more about the current SIA EoI call for transformative research concepts, sign-up now for one of our open briefing sessions or learn more on the staff intranet.

Can technology help to address the shocking health statistics of our homeless population?

BU research, BU2025, Research news

Bournemouth University is investigating potential technological solutions to assist those sleeping rough to access healthcare services and self-manage complex healthcare needs

Homelessness in the UK is on the increase (Open Government 2018). Health outcomes for those that are homeless are far poorer than of the general population with an mean age of death of 45 years (men) and 43 years (women) compared to 76 ( men) and 81 years (women) for those living in homes (Office for National Statistics 2019). The South West region had the third highest number of rough sleepers in 2018 (Homeless link 2017) and this project will take place in Bournemouth and the surrounding area.

Using technology to access healthcare is nothing new; accessing virtual consultations with your GP or using one of the wide range of apps to access information and advice on is increasingly common, particularly during the current pandemic. However, this does require access to appropriate technology and internet along with the knowledge of how to use it.

Although there is a growing use of technologies amongst homeless people (McInnes et al 2015) to connect with their peers, there is no current research exploring the role of technology in assisting people who sleep rough in locating and accessing appropriate local services.

In partnership with colleagues from the Providence surgery, Dorset Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, the Big Issue and Streetwise; Staff at Bournemouth University are conducting a research project with the aim of developing a freely available app enabling navigation and access to resources to self-manage complex health and social care needs.

The Research Team

Dr Vanessa Heaslip
Vanessa is an Associate Professor in the Department of Nursing Science at Bournemouth University and is the Principle Investigator for this project. Her research interests are in the field of vulnerability and vulnerable groups in society whose voices are not traditionally heard in the academic and professional discourse.

Dr Sue Green
A Registered Nurse with experience in acute and continuing care environments, Sue has been at the forefront of the development of clinical academic careers for nurses. Sue’s research programme focuses on aspects of clinical nutrition. She has a long standing interest in the process of nutritional screening and its effect on care.

Dr Huseyin Dogan
A Principal Lecturer in Computing at Bournemouth University (BU). Dr Dogan’s research focuses on Human Factors, Assistive Technology, Digital Health and Systems Engineering. He is the Co-Founder and Co-Chair of the Human Computer Interaction (HCI) research group.

Dr Bibha Simkhada
Bibha works at Huddersfield University in the School of Health and Human Sciences. Her research interest includes Technology in Healthcare, Ageing research mainly in Dementia, Health and Wellbeing of BAME population and women’s health. She has methodological expertise on narrative and systematic review and qualitative research.

Stephen Richer
Stephen is a part time PhD student and working part time as the project research assistant. His background is in Mental Health Nursing and he has worked in numerous roles within the NHS and for various mental health charities.

Rachel Bailey
Rachel is a Research Administrator at Bournemouth University. She also works as a Youth Advisor for a local charity and previously worked in FE delivering Careers Advice.

As the research project progresses, this blog will be updated on our methods, progress and results.

We are keen to hear from any local organisations working with the homeless that could assist with research. Please contact Stephen Richer sricher@bournemouth.ac.uk

 

 

 

The International Centre of Tourism and Hospitality Research [ICTHR] supports global tourism recovery from COVID. Professor Dimitrios Buhalis will deliver a range of keynotes, panels and interventions around the world. Please join us at these events.

BU research, BU2025, Business Engagement, conferences, COVID-19

The International Centre of Tourism and Hospitality Research supports global tourism recovery from COVID.
Professor Dimitrios Buhalis will deliver a range of keynotes, panels and interventions around the world.
Please join us at these events.

PHILIPPINES Wednesday 17 March 2021, 15:45 – 16:15 Manila time 07:45 – 8:15 am, London time.
Professor Dimitrios Buhalis,  Smart Tourism within Smart Cities
Department of Tourism, REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
Tourism Promotions Board: Tourism in the Philippines
Tourism and Technology Forum, Manila, The Philippines,
Register to attend the event at https://www.bit.ly/TravelTourismForum

 

 

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LONDON Wednesday 17 March 2021, 10:30 – 12:15 Association of British Travel Agencies (ABTA)
Business Resilience Webinar Series:  Managing Travel Workforces
Professor Dimitrios Buhalis, International Centre for Tourism and Hospitality Research (ICTHR)
Future Talent in Tourism
REGISTER https://www.abta.com/events/abta-webinar-managing-travel-workforces

 

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18-20 March 2021 INDIA Shillong, Meghalaya, India
Global Hospitality and Tourism Conference on Experiential Management and Marketing
GHTC 2020 Conference https://www.ghtconference.org/
Department of Tourism and Hotel Management, North -Eastern Hill University,  Shillong (India)

Thursday 18 March  2021, 14:00 AM to 15:00 (IST) – 9:30 AM to 10:00 AM (London Time).

Professor Dimitrios Buhalis, Smart Tourism and Restart of Tourism.

Friday 19, March 2021 14:30 to 16:00 (IST) – 09:00 AM to 10:30 AM (London Time).

Workshop on Publishing Tips in Top Tier Tourism and Hospitality Journals

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Getting Past the Pandemic – Working Together
TTI Spring Conference webinar – Thursday 18 Mar 10:00 – 13:00 (UK)

https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/getting-past-the-pandemic-working-together-tickets-140256217121

Detailed Agenda
10:00  Welcome & TTI Update Tim Wright, Chairman, TTI
10:10 Addressing the Tourism Industry Tom Jenkins, Director, European Tourism Association
10:35 Tourism Post COVID Professor Dimitrios Buhalis, Bournemouth University Business School
11:00 A Return to Hospitality Rob Paterson, CEO, Best Western Hotel Group GB
11:25 Coffee Break
11:45 Will  Airlines Take Off Again? Simon McNamara, Country Manager United Kingdom, IATA
12:10 Testing – Crucial to the New Normal Angus Urquhart, Sales Director, GeneMe UK
12:35 Leveraging Tech and Data Towards a Post-Pandemic World Richard Baker, Chief Commercial Officer, Inspiretec
13:00 Chairman’s Summary and Close Tim Wright, Chairman, TTI
Moderator: Paul Richer, Genesys Digital Transformation

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Wednesday 24 March 2021 – 13:45-14:45 South Africa time – 11:45-14:45 London time
Johannesburg Marriott Hotel Melrose Arch, Johannesburg, South Africa
Africa Business Tourism and MICE
Professor Dimitrios Buhalis – Digital Transformation – new reality for survival recovery and growth
Moderator: Natalia Bayona UNWTO
Register https://virtualproductions.flockplatform.com/ep/?event=2021-Africa-Business-Tourism-and-MICE-Masterclass

 

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Virtual Reality (VR) Innovations in Tourism & Destination Marketing
You are invited to attend this PATA Youth Webinar co-hosted by the Bournemouth University International Centre for Tourism and Hospitality Research
25 March 2021 – 09:00 London Time – 16:00 in Bangkok Time
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/3616158045802/WN_aLW3IMa3QN-Q-DCPVQ5hlQ
What is the impact of Virtual Reality (VR) on the Tourism industry? We know that it is immersive, engaging and opens up new ways for destinations to engage with travellers. We know that the technology is exciting and as youth, we want to be at the forefront of this upcoming trend.
Dive into the world of VR with our expert guest speakers from Hong Kong Tourism Board, Spherie and Teleport to learn about VR Trends within the industry, opportunities with new technology and the decision-making process that happens behind the scenes.Questions we’ll ask in the panel discussion:
– What’s the wildest dream you have for the future of VR technology within the space of tourism?
– To Hong Kong Tourism Board, as a destination, what are the factors that you have to take into consideration, before choosing VR as a tool/technology in your marketing strategy?
– To Spherie and Teleport, what advice would you give to youths interested in breaking into the VR space as an entrepreneur?

Call for game-changing research concepts in 2021

BU research, BU2025

What could you do to change the world? Call for expressions of interest to develop the Strategic Investment Areas is now open!

The University is now looking for amazing, game-changing research ideas to enable us to grow as an institution, enrich our education and have a demonstrable impact on society. To enable this to happen, we have four Strategic Investment Areas (SIAs), each with a broad scope that is inherently interdisciplinary in nature.

We now invite you to put forward your ideas and help bring these areas to life. These will be reviewed by our SIA Steering Groups and our SIA External Advisory Boards before the University Leadership Team endorses the strongest concepts for development.

If successful, you will then receive dedicated, tailored support to turn your research concept into a reality. This is your opportunity to grow an area of research for which you and BU will be known for in the years to come.

What is a game-changing research concept?

This is the big question and the answer is that we don’t know until we know! In order to ensure that our brightest and best minds have an equitable opportunity to put their ideas forward to become institutional priorities, each year, the University – facilitated by Research, Development & Support (RDS) – makes a call for ‘game-changing’ research concepts that will enable the growth of one or more SIA. This is open to all academic staff (including research staff).

Successful concepts are those which enable the growth of the SIAs (as defined by their scope), accelerate institutional research and knowledge exchange income, advance interdisciplinary research and deliver societal impact. EoIs are welcomed from all academic career stages and disciplines– especially from under-represented areas (as it is essential that our future research trajectory reflects the diversity of society).

It is intended that these concepts will be the legacy by which BU is known for post 2025, and the opportunity to develop the scope of the SIAs is a career enhancing opportunity.  Leaders of these strategic concepts for growth need to be committed to utilising the institutional support offered in order to make the concept a lived reality making a demonstrable difference to society through the acceleration of world class research.

To learn more, and to apply, please read the policy document and complete the EoI of interest form.

FAQs

What is the process and the timescale?
Applications for EoIs are now open, with a closing date of Friday 30th April 2021. SIA Steering Groups will then review the concepts and agree which are prioritised for review by our External Advisory Boards. Shortlisted applicants will then have the opportunity to revise their EoIs in light of any feedback, before the final concepts are selected for enhanced institutional support in August 2021.

Do I have to be a Professor to apply?
Absolutely not! (Although, of course, our professorial colleagues are very welcome to put forward brilliant concepts). We actively welcome EoIs from all career stages, especially early to mid-career researchers. We also actively encourage applications from colleagues with protected characteristics, in recognition of the importance of growing a diverse research community that reflects wider society.

The titles of the SIAs sound very science based, am I eligible to apply if I work in the arts, humanities or social sciences?
Of course. We strongly encourage input from all disciplines, but more crucially, interdisciplinary research collaborations.

What sort of institutional support is on offer at the end of the process?
It will depend on what you need to make the concept a reality. Read the policy document available on the staff intranet for further details.

I’m really interested, but I’d like to learn more, what can I do?
We have a number of virtual drop-in sessions which you can attend over the next few weeks. These include:

  • Briefing sessions for our external partners on their future research needs
  • Briefing sessions from our SIA Steering Groups
  • Drop in-support sessions from RDS

If you would like to receive details of any of these, please email sia@bournemouth.ac.uk

Can you give me some examples of ‘game-changing’ research ideas?
There are many sources of inspiration, you might like to ready more about research which started at the University of Oxford, the Made at Uni campaign, University of Loughborough’s game changers or search some of the REF 2014’s highest performing impact case studies.

BU Research Matters: ADRC adapt their approach in the time of COVID-19

BU research, BU2025, Featured academics

In today’s blog post, Dr Michelle Heward, explores how the fantastic work of the Ageing & Dementia Research Centre has adapted to enable community engagement during the pandemic. Our older population, especially those who are extremely clinically vulnerable, have risked not being able to participate in shaping our future research owing to the restrictions in place over the last year. This engagement aspect is so important for ensuring research benefits society, and offers the bonus of social interaction for those who are having to isolate! Here Michelle explains how it is done: 

Michelle Heward

“The COVID-19 pandemic has had a detrimental impact on face-to-face interaction. To meet UK Government guidance and stop the spread of the virus, we have been unable to meet up with family, friends, and colleagues in the ways that we are used to. For older people, people with dementia and family carers, this has exacerbated many existing difficulties and problems they face, whilst also further intrenching feelings of loneliness and isolation. Technology has been a saviour for many and has proved invaluable in connecting people with their loved ones. The team from the Ageing and Dementia Research Centre (ADRC) have overcome the barriers by using digital approaches to continue our engagement and expand our networks with members of the public, service users and carers.  We have achieved this by developing a new series of monthly virtual ‘coffee mornings’ hosted on ZOOM.

We have designed each coffee morning to have a different theme/topic that may be pitching new ideas for research or sharing new findings. The group are invited to share their ideas, thoughts and ask questions. Ensuring that older people, people with dementia and family carers remain at the heart of our research activities has been central to the coffee mornings. The sessions have been well attended and the group have really engaged with the research topics and attendees are starting to get to know one another socially – many are returning each month which is fantastic!

So far, the group have contributed to discussions about nutrition with Prof Jane Murphy and wayfinding with Prof Jan Wiener. In the next session they will discuss nursing training in response to COVID-19 with Dr Michele Board. The discussion and questions raised have offered ‘food for thought’ for the presenters and will no doubt help us to shape future study ideas and generate new ideas for research.  In fact, one of the key challenges has been keeping within the allocated time for the session as there has been so much discussion!

The sessions are facilitated by Dr Michelle Heward (Post-Doctoral Research Fellow and ADRC Service User and Carer Involvement Lead) and Caroline Jones (ADRC Administrator). On reflection it has been beneficial to have two facilitators; one to lead the session and the other to be on hand to help with IT issues and check the chat messages. We also offer support for people who have had little or no experience of using ZOOM beforehand to make sure they are comfortable using the technology and its functions prior to attending a session.

We acknowledge that the idea for the virtual coffee morning was drawn through our collaborative working with the Wessex Public Involvement Network (PIN), who shared their successes and experiences of developing a similar engagement model with us. This work has also been undertaken in consultation with BU Public Involvement in Education and Research partnership to ensure we are following current policy/procedures.

Although we recognise that not everyone is able to access the internet from home, we will continue to offer these sessions for the foreseeable future as they provide an alternative to those who may find it more difficult to travel or take part in our existing face- to-face approaches. Anyone interested in presenting their ideas or research in ageing or dementia that might be of interest to the group please contact Michelle to discuss.”

High Resolution 3D Digital Assets of Whole body Human Anatomy available for BU Research and Education

BU research, BU2025, Delicious links, HEIF, open access, Research communication, Research news

As one of the products from the HEIF6 Project, our team has developed a wide collection of digital assets to represent human anatomy. The understanding of human anatomy is vital to the delivery of healthcare. For medical students, this necessary awareness of anatomy and 3D spatial orientation is traditionally learned through cadaveric dissection. This is expensive and has practical as well as ethical constraints to available teaching time. The digital models can be used as assets for interdisciplinary research between the fields of Arts, Science and Healthcare. We welcome ideas from the BU community for proposals of novel use cases, research, grant applications and availability as teaching tools or base models for complex animation techniques.

Contact:

Learn more about the available assets and how to collaborate with the Neuravatar team by contacting Dr Xiaosong Yang (xyang@bournemouth.ac.uk) or Dr. Rupert Page (Rupert.Page@poole.nhs.uk).

👀 A glance at the 3D models available so far 👀

 

Authentibility Pass – Innovative Solution for People with Disabilities

Awarded & submitted bids, BU research, BU2025, Fusion themes, Research news

Dr Huseyin Dogan (Principal Investigator) and Co-Investigators: Dr Paul Whittington, Professor Keith Phalp, Dr Nan Jiang and Dr Benjamin Gorman from the Faculty of Science & Technology have recently completed a 9 month, £90,000 externally funded project to develop the Authentibility Pass Proof of Concept. Authentibility Pass (www.authentibility.com) is an Android application for people with disabilities to communicate their authentication and accessibility requirements to organisations, including higher education institutions, non-profit organisations and financial institutions. On 18th February, the team had the opportunity to demonstrate the solution to potential investors. Our team was one of the four teams to be selected for a 20 minutes discussion with Matt Warmen MP, Minister of Digital Infrastructure.

The funding was awarded through the Cyber Academic Startup Accelerator Programme (CyberASAP) from the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, in collaboration with Innovate UK and the Knowledge Transfer Network. The programme assists academics in UK Universities to commercialise cyber security ideas, by providing expertise knowledge and support. Lesley Hutchins (Research Commercialisation Manager, RDS) has provided us with valuable commercialisation support throughout the project.

During the initial 4 months, we developed our value proposition and conducted market validation. We identified that people with disabilities can encounter barriers due to web security and privacy technologies, preventing them from registering for services and leading to frustration. We also found that they often need to repeatedly inform organisations of their authentication and accessibility requirements.

Requirements only need to be entered once into the application, which can then be sent securely to multiple organisations via token-based authentication to an organisation’s database. Authentibility Pass also comprises a database system, web interface and an Application Programming Interface for organisations with existing databases. We believe that Authentibility Pass will assist organisations to comply with accessibility and equality regulations, whilst increasing the awareness of customer requirements.

Accessibility requirements can be entered and authentication methods selected using Authentibility Pass Application

A demonstration video is available at: https://vimeo.com/513400390/351c35f6c4 and further information about Authentibility can be found at: www.authentibility.com.

Authentibility Pass builds on the knowledge obtained during Dr Paul Whittington’s PhD and Postdoctoral Research (supervised by Dr Huseyin Dogan and Professor Keith Phalp) and the development of the SmartAbility Framework. This CyberASAP project supports the BU2025 Assistive Technology Strategic Investment Area. The CyberASAP events are usually held in London, but due to COVID-19 we have participated in Zoom bootcamps and workshops during the past 9 months, organised by the Knowledge Transfer Network.

We are planning to develop the Proof of Concept into a commercial product, customised to suit specific organisations. It will be a ‘Software as a Service’ with annual subscriptions for the application and API. In the future, we anticipate adopting volume licensing for financial institutions and forming a spin-out company from BU to disseminate Authentibility Pass.

The dissemination of Authentibility Pass and potential adoption by higher education institutions, schools, non-profit organisations, SMEs and financial institutions, will generate impact for our assistive technology research.

Early Career Researchers Network Meeting – BU and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals

BU research, BU2025, ECR Network, Guidance, Postgraduate Research

             Wednesday 24th February   15:00 – 16:00

All Early Career Researchers are welcome to join us for this month’s ECR network meeting. There will be short presentation and discussion on how BU uses the UN’s  Sustainable Development Goals. There will also be time for more general queries and networking.

See the staff intranet for more details and to book.

Missing out? The Early Career Researcher Network

BU research, BU2025, ECR Network, Research Concordat, Research Integritiy, Training, Uncategorized, Vitae, Women's Academic Network

I recently realised I had been missing out! Although I have worked at BU for 18 months there is so much about university life I still don’t understand. I find it hard to ask/disturb busy people and the temptation is to muddle through. Not being on campus – especially since the pandemic, makes it hard to get to know other researchers, potential collaborators, and share ideas or tips. Help is at hand though…

I have just discovered the Early Career Researcher Network. It is a relaxed, informal, safe place to ask questions and meet other researchers from across the university. (There are no demands!) Meetings are held once a month and run by two experienced academics Prof. Ann Hemingway and Dr. Sam Goodman who answer questions, discuss pertinent topics such as building your research profile, promotion and pay progression, networking, partnership and collaboration. You attend as you are able. There are no obligations, but a wealth of wisdom and support is on offer.

 

Dr. Rachel Arnold

Centre for Midwifery, Maternal & Perinatal Health (CMMPH)