Latest research and knowledge exchange news at Bournemouth University
Don’t miss our drop-in sessions where we can offer you support in planning your event for Festival of Learning 2017.
Our next session is on Thursday 27 October and we’ll be there for you from 11am – 12pm at Naked Coffee Shop (next to RLH, Lansdowne).
Come to see us and don’t miss out on the opportunity to share your research and expertise by being a part of the Festival!
We’re hoping to see you there!
Don’t forget to book your place on our Developing a public engagement event, which is going to focus specifically on developing a public engagement event.The workshop is going to take place on Monday 31st October, from 1pm-4pm at Student Hall, Talbot House, Talbot campus
The workshop will explore:
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to share your research and expertise by being a part of the Festival! Find out more and book your place via Organisation Development here.
We’re hoping to see you there!
With the call for proposals now open for Festival of Learning 2017, we want you to get involved.Why? There are many benefits of taking part, as the festival is an excellent opportunity to showcase your research and gain valuable feedback from members of the public. In a previous post we shared the idea of an audience-led event, which you can find here. This time we want to show you that public engagement events can also be artistic and creative.
Come to one of our drop-in support sessions to talk to us about your event idea and book your place on ‘Developing a public engagement event’ training session via Organisation Development here.
At the British Science Festival 2016 in Swansea, Moonbrella was one of a number of interactive, drop-in sessions incorporated into an event called Creatures of the night. This took place in Plantasia – a tropical haven of exotic plants and animals. The location was unique in itself, but Moonbrella really stole the show.
Despite the fact that over 150 craters on the moon are named after real scientists, only 28 are named after women. Moonbrella showcases research through poetry, allowing participants to celebrate these inspirational women. At Creatures of the night, event attendees walked through the tropical garden, and as they began to climb towards the top of the dome they were given a ‘Moonbrella’ – a glowing umbrella. This owed its unusual properties to battery powered fairy lights attached inside. Additionally, there were some graphics of the scientists, and an mp3 player and headphones, which were carefully taped to the umbrella. The audience walked under the Moonbrellas, popped on their headphones and listened to poetry about a female scientist as they wandered through the tropical garden. Each Moonbrella celebrated a different scientist, and Moonbrellas could be swapped to hear about another scientist. Visually, this looked fantastic under the night sky, as the umbrellas lit up the paths between the tropical plants and for a minute it felt like you weren’t in Swansea anymore.
Moonbrella is just one of many creative ways to showcase your research through the arts! Now grab a few colouring pencils, scissors and some tape and get creative! We hope to hear more about your own amazing ideas at one of our drop-in sessions.
This event took place as part of the British Science Festival in Swansea, 2016.
Don’t miss our drop-in sessions where we can offer you support in planning your event for Festival of Learning 2017.
Our next session is on Wednesday 19 October and we’ll be there for you from 11am – 12pm at Fusion Building – coffee area
Come to see us and don’t miss out on the opportunity to share your research and expertise by being a part of the Festival!
We’re hoping to see you there!
Don’t miss our drop-in sessions where we can offer you support in planning your event for Festival of Learning 2017.
Our next session is on Wednesday 12th October and we’ll be there for you from 11am – 12pm at Naked Coffee Shop (next to RLH, Lansdowne)
Come to see us and don’t miss out on the opportunity to share your research and expertise by being a part of the Festival!
We’re hoping to see you there!
Do you have a fantastic piece of research that you’d like to develop into a public engagement event but need help or ideas? Or perhaps you have an existing event that you’d like to make more engaging or take to a new audience?
Naomi Kay (Public Engagement Officer) and Genna West (Engagement and Impact Facilitator) are on-hand to provide support for planning your event, writing the proposal or just to talk through any ideas you might have. They will be based in the locations specified below, so please stop by!
If none of the slots suit you or if you would like to speak to either Genna or Naomi specifically, then please feel free to get in touch and set up a meeting to discuss your event plans.
In addition to these drop-in sessions, a dedicated training session will take place on Monday 31 October, focusing specifically on developing a public engagement event. The workshop will explore:
There will be dedicated time and support for individuals to create a new event to submit to the Festival of Learning. Find out more and book your place via Organisation Development here.
| Date | Time | Location |
| Wednesday 12 October | 11am-12pm | Naked Coffee Shop (next to RLH, Lansdowne) |
| Wednesday 19 October | 11am-12pm | Fusion Building – coffee area |
| Thursday 27 October | 11am-12pm | Naked Coffee Shop (next to RLH, Lansdowne) |
| Monday 31 October – Developing a public engagement event training session | 1pm-4pm | Student Hall, Talbot House, Talbot campus
Please book this session via OD. |
| Friday 11 November | 12:30pm-1:30pm | EB204, Executive Business Centre |
| Monday 14 November | 8:30am-10am | Fusion Building – coffee area |
| Tuesday 15 November | 4pm-5pm | Executive Business Centre Cafe |
| Wednesday 23 November | 2pm-3pm | Poole House Atrium |
| Thursday 24 November | 11am-12pm | Naked Coffee Shop (next to RLH, Lansdowne) |
| Monday 28 November | 9am-11am | Executive Business Centre Cafe |
| Thursday 1 December | 8:30am-5pm | Talbot Campus Drop In |
| Deadline for event submissions – 4pm on Friday 2 December | ||
The call for proposals for Festival of Learning 2017 is now live! This series of blog post aims to give you some inspiration for the type of events that would work well as part of the Festival.
There are many types of events, they come in all shapes and sizes and yes, we agree… planning your own public event can be a bit of a challenge and you may not know where to start. Alternatively, you might be on the other side of the spectrum and feel that there are not enough hours in the day for you to share all of the knowledge and wisdom that you’d like the public to benefit from. Regardless of your situation, we hope you’ll find this post helpful.
Have you ever thought about giving your audience the power to decide what the event is going to be about?
Audience-lead events can be a fantastic way of communicating your research and really enjoyable for the public.
Why?
Because people love to learn about what you do, but they also love to have the opportunity to ask you lots of burning questions!
Let me give you an example of something We consider to be a good audience-lead event…
Although this event did not have much to do with baking cakes, Dr Alan Gow from Heriot-Watt University likes to call himself a ‘head chef’, because he has a passion for finding a recipe for the perfect brain.
There are lots of ways in which this research topic can be approached, but in this event, the ‘head chef’ orders his audience to write down what they think is good and bad for the human brain. Little sticky notes are collected and this is when the show really begins. Dr Gow looks through each note, reads them out loud and asks people to raise their hands if they agree with the statement. Then he begins to teach. On one side of the table there are colourful rainbows which he likes to call the Brainbow. He takes a graphic that corresponds with the topic on the sticky note, for example alcohol. He then places the graphic on the Brainbow – the higher it goes, the bigger the influence it has on our brain.
In an interactive and fun way, our beliefs on what is healthy for our brain are being challenged and mapped on the Brainbow, helping the audience to better understand the needs of the human brain.
If you are interested in watching the actual event, you can find it Here
Come to one of our drop-in support sessions to talk to us about your event idea and book your place on ‘Developing a public engagement event’ training session via Organisation Development here.
This event took place as part of the British Science Festival in Swansea, 2016.
Representing a wonderful celebration of learning, the Festival showcases BU’s research and expertise to a wide and varied audience, including local communities, staff, students, employers and alumni around the world. Read on to find out how you can be involved in 2017!
After a hugely successful pilot in 2016, which saw BU’s established Festival of Learning go global in both China and Malaysia, we are delighted to announce that the global Festival of Learning will return for a second year. Three distinct weeks of exciting events will take place to showcase global Fusion in ASEAN, India and China from March – May 2017.
Celebrating its fifth anniversary, the Festival of Learning will run in Bournemouth from 8-12 July 2017, with a vibrant opening family weekend and a diverse selection of events throughout the week. The Festival will conclude with a global day on 12 July to celebrate the fantastic array of events and learning taking place around the world as part of the Festival of Learning.
Prior to putting forward an event proposal all applicants are advised to read the full details for both the UK Festival of Learning and the global Festival of Learning, which outline the scope and objectives of the festivals.
Once you are ready to submit your event proposal you will need to complete the online application form. Applications for both the global Festival of Learning and the UK Festival of Learning will be handled via one form. The form can be saved and edited up until the point you submit. To help make the process as easy as possible we have also provided a planning document that includes a list of questions and requested response lengths.
Find out more, download the planning document and take a look at dates for our drop-in sessions.
If you have any questions about the global Festival of Learning, please contact the Global Engagement Hub: 01202 965112 globalbu@bournemouth.ac.uk
If you have any questions about the UK Festival of Learning, or difficulties using the online application form, please contact the Festival of Learning Team: 01202 961342 FoL@bournemouth.ac.uk
Sascha Dov Bachmann, Associate Professor in International Law and Extraordinary Associate Professor in War Studies (Swedish Defence University) http://staffprofiles.bournemouth.ac.uk/display/sbachmann will present his work on Hybrid War and its legal implications at NATO School Oberammergau. The presentation is a keynote presentation on the subject to their Senior Officer Policy Course which is the ‘flagship course’ at NATO School and runs two iterations per year. The aim of the course is to provide senior NATO personnel (Colonel and above) with an evaluation of NATO’s current and future security environment.” http://www.natoschool.nato.int/Academics/Resident-Courses/Course-Catalogue/Course-description?ID=32.
You are cordially invited to attend the gala 5th Anniversary Screening and Reception for the award-winning research based biopic, RUFUS STONE.
The Event will be held at the historic Shelley Theatre in Boscombe
7 November from 3 p.m. until 5 p.m.
Over the past five years, RUFUS STONE has been viewed in academic, community and service provider settings throughout the U.K. Uploaded to the Internet for just over a year, the film was viewed on line by more that 12 thousand viewers in 150 countries. It has won serveral film festival awards and was shortlisted for the AHRC Anniversary Prize in 2015.
The three-year research project behind the film’s success was part of the New Dynamics Programme of ageing in 21st Century Britain, supported by Research Councils UK. This event will hallmark this achievement and continue the film’s impact in the wider community.
We expect the gala event to atract an audience of the film’s cast and crew members, past participants in the research project, community workers and service providers, and a range of citizens, young and old, gay and straight, with an interest in LGBT history and the contributions that the film has made to myriad diversity efforts. Whether you have seen the film before, or this will be the first time on a large theatre screen, you will enjoy the occasion.
R.S.V.P. Places are limited to 150 seats only! Please register on the Eventbrite site as soon as possible to avoid being disappointed.
The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) invites expressions of interest for its Telling Tales of Engagement Competition. This supports researchers in further telling the story of research impact in an interesting and engaging way to a wider audience.
The competition relates to RCUK’s Digital Economy Theme, which supports research to rapidly realise the transformational impact of digital technologies on community life, cultural experiences, future society, and the economy. Relevant researchers are from a diverse range of disciplines including social science, engineering, computer science, the arts and medical research.
Three prizes of £10,000 are available. EPSRC are currently inviting expressions of interest and the closing date is 1st December 2016.
Applicants must:
For full details, please see the EPSRC website.
How to apply
Applicants do not have to be funded by EPSRC to apply; the competition is open to all researchers employed or registered at a UK Higher Education Institute who would be eligible for RCUK grant funding.
If you are interested in this call and would like support to develop your ideas further, please contact Genna West (Engagement and Impact Facilitator) or Naomi Kay (Public Engagement Officer). And please ensure to contact your RKEO Funding Development Officer at least three weeks before the application deadline.
Public Engagement can be extremely rewarding, beneficial for your professional development, and judging by the recommendations from the Stern review it’s going to be a great source of impact for the next REF, but is your time being invested in it in the best way? According to this recent blog post by Steven Hill, Head of Research Policy for HEFCE if you want to be using public engagement to generate impact, the key is public involvement in the research. Find out more here.
NERC is inviting proposals under the Planet Earth Pilot programme for public engagement projects costing up to £20k that must be delivered between January and end of March 2017.
This call initiates delivery of NERC’s public engagement strategy through:
Projects will focus on broad, contemporary issues of environmental science, not specific research projects or grants.
An additional budget is available to provide matched funding up to the total value of the proposal (an additional maximum £20k) to provide training and support for the involvement of early-career researchers and PhD students in public engagement projects.
Further details of this call can be found in the Announcement of Opportunity on the NERC website.
The closing date for proposals is 16:00 on 3 November 2016.
RKEO’s Genna West (Engagement and Impact Facilitator) will be attending the information event on Thursday 22 September – please contact her for further details. The aims of the event are to:
If you’d like to discuss ideas for an event or need inspiration please contact Genna or Naomi Kay (Public Engagement Officer).
And, as always, please inform the RKEO Funding Development Team as soon as possible if you are interested in this call, so that they can support your bid.
We have written in many previous BU blogs about progress of our THET-funded project in southern Nepal (e.g. here AND here ). Today’s blog reflects on the use on BU’s unique FUSION approach in our project ‘Mental Health Training for Maternity Care Providers in Nepal‘.
Our BU-led project brings highly experienced health professionals, such as midwives, health visitors or mental health nurses, to Nepal to work as volunteer trainers. The training is aimed at community-based maternity care practitioners and addresses key mental health issues relevant to pregnancy and for new mothers and offers the required communication skills. These health professionals will bring their experience as health care providers as well as trainers in the field of mental health and maternity care/midwifery, mental ill-health prevention and health promotion. They volunteer for two to three weeks at a time to design and deliver training in southern Nepal.
The Centre for Midwifery & Maternal Health (CMMPH) collaborates in this project with Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), the Department of Health, and Physical & Population Education at Nepal’s oldest university Tribhuvan University’s (TU). The project is supported in the field by a local charity called Green Tara Nepal. Our project is part of the Health Partnership such as Nepal. HPS itself is funded by the UK Department for International Development and managed by THET (Tropical and Health Education Trust).
Our maternal mental health project is a good example of BU’s FUSION approach as it combines EDUCATION (through the training of Auxiliary Nurse-Midwives in Nepal) by UK volunteers (representing PRACTICE) through an intervention which is properly evaluated (representing RESEARCH) is a perfect example of BU’s FUSION in action. Moreover, the project will be partly evaluated by FHSS’s Preeti Mahato as part of her PhD thesis research. This PhD project is supervised by Dr. Catherine Angell (CEL & CMMPH), BU Visiting Professor Padam Simkhada (based at LJMU) and CMMPH’s Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen.BU’s focus on the FUSION of research, education and professional practice is a unique variant of the way UK universities (and many abroad) blend academic teaching, research and scholarship. FUSION is a key concept derived from BU’s strategic Vision & Values).
Prof. Edwin van Teijlingen
CMMPH
Over the past four weeks during our research project at Bournemouth University, we have carried out and participated in numerous tests and activities in the Orthopaedic Research Institute under the supervision of PGR Francesco Ferraro; some of which being more exciting, and others being more interesting.
One the simplest tests that we have carried out for the purpose of the research is the Mini-BESTest, this is a Balance Evaluation Systems Test and requires numerous subsidi
ary tests to be carried out for different aspects associated with balance, these include: anticipatory tests (when preparing for something to happen), reactive postural control (how you react to a change in motion), sensory orientation, and dynamic gait speeds (walking speeds and how they change in different circumstances). This was necessary in order to see how the effects of inspiratory muscle training effects balance over the course of 8 weeks.
In terms of analysis and methods, one of the most interesting tests for us involved the breathing system and using a spirometer. This device was used to measure the Forced Vital Capacity (total air volume of the lungs), Forced Expiratory Volume (how much air a person can exhale in a forced breath), MIP (maximum pressure generated by inhalation against occluded airway), and the MEP (this is the same but is the pressure generated by exhaling). For us, this was particularly interesting because it allowed us to see how a spirometer works in a hands on experience and how the data is presented and analysed.
Another series of tests involved the PrimusRS, a very impressive machine. It served to be a challenge and required lots of problem solving to carry out the tests successfully. During our use of the PrimusRS we experienced the different processes that were needed to be carried out involving; calibration, setting up, creating templates, correcting motion to improve the results, and the analysis of the final results. This was an extraordinary piece of equipment as it allowed us to carry out endurance and isometric tests (strength tests) for both flexion, extension and rotation regarding the trunk muscles, and gave us different data including power of the muscles/ movement.
Finally, the most exciting and enjoyable session to carry out involved using Virtual Reality Simulators for knee arthroscopy (operations) that surgeons all over the world travel to see. The reason for this being the most enjoyable test/session was due to complexity behind machines that looked so simple, and it allowed us to carry out practise operations teaching you the motions and procedures that would be used in real life. Other fascinating features of the virtual simulator was the way in which it introduced us to the different textures of the bone structures and tissues by giving feedback involving vibrations and stiffness of the simulator drill/ saw as well as the screen display.
As well as all of these above tests, we also are aware of the protocols and ethics of the tests that we have carried out in the duration of the project, this allowed us to experience and build up our own picture of the research that needs to be carried out before conducting the actual investigation.
In the Independent Review of the Research Excellence Framework, Lord Stern has called for the broadening and deepening of the definition of impact. It is recommended that ‘impacts on public engagement and understanding are emphasised and that impacts on cultural life be specifically included’.
Partnering with librarian Jenny Delasalle, Library Connect has produced a useful and attractive consolidated quick reference guide to some key research impact metrics.
You can download your own copies here –
Download the larger format cards – 4 per 8.5×11″ page
It is important however, that these research metrics are used with these 2 Golden Rules in mind, as recommended by the Library Connect Librarians Feedback Group and Lisa Colledge, Elsevier’s Director of Research Metrics:
Golden Rule 1 – Always use quantitative metric-based input alongside qualitative opinion-based input
Golden Rule 2 – Ensure that the quantitative, metrics part of your input always relies on at least 2 metrics to prevent bias and encouragement of undesirable behaviour.
Original blog post – https://libraryconnect.elsevier.com/metrics
HSS PhD student Andrew Harding and fellow authors Jonathan Parker, Sarah Hean and Ann Hemingway have recently had a paper accepted for publication in Social Policy & Society, the sister publication to the Journal of Social Policy and run by the Social Policy Association.
A critical yet under-researched area, the paper presents a comprehensive literature review that critiques current research on the outcome/impact of information and advice on welfare. A realist evaluation approach is then proposed as being capable to address critical weaknesses in existing research.
Among other areas that are covered, the paper provides an overview of the importance of information and advice in the context of the marketisation of UK welfare provision and a new ‘efficacy framework’ is developed which can be used to assess the scope of research.
A final draft post-refereeing version of the paper will be uploaded to BRIAN in due course.
BU staff can login below:
Insight Dementia educational resource: now available!
NIHR Global Health Research Academy 2025
Take part in the 2025 ESRC Festival of Social Science: Application Deadline Extended to Friday 23 May 2025
MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025
Update on UKRO services
European research project exploring use of ‘virtual twins’ to better manage metabolic associated fatty liver disease
Research Information Network
Horizon Europe 2025 Work Programme pre-Published