NEWS
buzz
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December 2015/January 2016
Championing Change
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VICE-CHANCELLOR’S VIEW NEWS
Vice-Chancellor’s view It is a truism that we live in times of unusual challenge and change; although, as with all truisms, there is much truth in it. Within a period of three weeks the Green Paper on Higher Education has been published, the Chancellor will announce the results of the Comprehensive Spending Review, and Sir Paul Nurse’s report on the future of the Research Councils will have been delivered. These are but the tip of a very large iceberg. The Security and Counter Terrorism Act has placed new responsibilities on universities, as has a whole series of recent decisions by the Competition and Markets Authority.
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Edited by Matthew Collins internalcomms@contacts.bham.ac.uk Your details Please let us know if you want extra copies of buzz or if you think we need to amend your distribution details. Views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the University or a statement of University policy. All submissions may be subject to editing. The Editor’s decision is final.
Front cover image: Charlotte Wellington, Programme Leader for New Core
The settled architecture of higher education – which has included the Higher Education Funding Council and the Quality Assurance Agency – is in the process of now-rapid transition, and the dual-support system that has supported research in this country so effectively will have to be managed differently in future. The coming months will see a series of consultations around the regulatory structures of higher education, the ways in which dual funding and research are to be supported, the Teaching Excellence Framework, and the processes through which UCAS operates university admissions. I am sometimes asked why ministers and officials intervene so frequently in the higher education sector which, by international standards, is performing so well. One part of the answer, of course, is the political imperative to be seen to be doing things. This should not be underestimated. Nor, of course, should it be decried. Public investment in higher education is enormous, and even with the move towards fee loans, the up-front cash contribution of government to Higher Education continues to rise. For this, and much else, in a democracy ministers have accountability. We might, though, pause to reflect on the extent to which we within higher education create the preconditions for intervention and structural change. Rarely does a week go by in the THE when the REF has not been castigated, when the Higher Education Funding Council is not being criticised, and the impression given to the disinterested reader is of a sector which, in myriad ways, is failing or falling short. These criticisms of the sector – often internally-generated – are listened to, and, as the Green Paper makes clear, themselves come to constitute the critique that is the basis for the kind of interventions we are currently seeing. None of this, of course, is an argument against open and critical discussion. Universities would not be the places that they should be if we did not rigorously contest the ways in which we operate. Nevertheless, it is worth remembering that there is nothing in the Green Paper that has not been canvassed one way or another in the THE, and nothing in the current proposals for the restructuring of higher
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir David Eastwood
education which cannot be traced back to ideas generated by those working within universities. In the coming months, the proposals which are now on the table will need to be properly analysed, where appropriate contested, and fashioned into something which is both workable and consistent with the continuing success of a higher education system built around substantially autonomous institutions. For many of us, much time, thought, energy, and political capital will need to be expended in trying to move us to a better place. For our University we have already sketched the road map that should enable us to navigate the contours of this new environment. Making important things happen, our new strategic framework, has at its heart a shared ambition focused on making the University of Birmingham an outstanding place of education, research, and influence. Ours is thus a strategic framework which focuses on the essentials of being a great university. It has been embedded in a still more dynamic approach to communicating the achievements and potential of our University. This should be apparent through the redesigned website and the way in which the ambitions of the strategic framework are animated by communicating the achievements of our colleagues. Even more strikingly, the new Birmingham Heroes campaign is designed to communicate the quality and relevance of some of the University’s research in key venues across the country. The early indications are that this campaign will be even more successful than the original Heroes campaign. Charting the course of the University over the coming years will, of course, be challenging. The Comprehensive Spending Review will announce reductions in university funding both in real and absolute terms. Our financial forecasts have anticipated these reductions, and our strategy for expanding, for example, international student recruitment and industrial collaborations is designed to enable us to continue to grow income despite the reductions in public funding. Faced with these realities there will be
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Date for the diary Vice-Chancellor’s Open Forum Tuesday 9 February, 12.30–1.30pm Elgar Concert Hall, Bramall Music Building
some hard choices to make. Nevertheless, our firm intention is to ensure that the University is able to invest in its core strengths in the coming years, both to enable our students and staff to flourish and to continue to promote Birmingham as the destination for ambitious students, and outstanding faculty and professional services staff. Against this backdrop, I am sometimes asked why the University continues to invest in buildings. My response is that to fail to invest in our campus would represent a failure of vision, a failure of confidence, and a failure of responsibility. Take the next two major projects to which the University will commit: The Collaborative Teaching Laboratory is our response to the longstanding problem of teaching labs that are no longer fit for purpose. This is not simply desirable but essential to a major science university. As a result of the CTL we will not only have best-in-class facilities for our students but a transformed curriculum. The proposed Humanities and Social Sciences building adjacent to the Library will provide similar and urgently needed teaching capacity for CAL and CoSS. It will also enable us to address key issues around the accommodation of faculty colleagues who, in some areas, are having to share facilities in ways which are far from desirable. Viewed in this way, there is not a tension between investing in buildings and investing in people. Indeed, by investing in our buildings and our campus we are investing in the infrastructure that enables our students to learn and our staff to succeed. The Green Paper is, in many ways, the harbinger of a world that many of us would not choose. Some of us will work tirelessly to ensure that everything that can be done is done to promote the interests and values of higher education as they should be. Our primary responsibility, though, is to our own University, and in ways that will not be true for all universities; our future is in our own hands. We will, and we should, be judged by the realism with which we confront the future and by the values which we uphold. Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir David Eastwood
BIRMINGHAM GLOBAL
BRAZIL
Strengthening partnerships Brazil is a country of key strategic importance for the University, and where we are proud to be making significant investment to support partnership development and research collaboration. Recently, a senior-level delegation visit to Brazil was led by Saul Becker, PVC and Head of CoSS – along with Andréa Edwards (Director of International Development and Mobility) and Catherine Lemon (International Development Manager for the Americas) – in partnership with the University of Nottingham. The visit aimed to continue building relationships with key researchintensive institutions such as UNESP in Sao Paulo, and highlight the value of our partnership with UoN. Meanwhile, our railway expertise continues to make headway on the global stage. Felix Schmid, Professor of Railway Systems Engineering, has offered
Birmingham Centre for Railway Research and Education’s (BCRRE) support to act as the lead UK HEI for a major building project in Brazil, which is focused on the development of a special training course for the management and operation of cargo and passenger transport. The Birmingham International Academy has embarked on an exciting new collaborative project, aimed at promoting and structuring change in foreign language teaching at public universities in Brazil. They will be conducting workshops that will be attended by more than 100 Brazilian teachers and coordinators. The international relations team is delighted to announce that schemes and funding are now open: the Brazil Visiting Fellows Scheme and the Brazil Travel Fund offer possibilities for collaborative research and engagement.
For further information on the schemes, please contact Richard Brunt, International Partnerships Officer, at r.brunt@bham.ac.uk or visit the Brazil intranet page: intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/external/international-Relations/relations/Brazil/ CollaborationwithBrazil.aspx
World Shakespeare Congress 2016 The University of Birmingham is proud to be co-hosting the Tenth World Shakespeare Congress between 31 July and 6 August 2016, 400 years after the playwright’s death. The week-long event starts in Stratford-upon-Avon, hosted by The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, and the University of Birmingham’s Shakespeare Institute. The latter half will take place in London, hosted by Shakespeare’s Globe and the London Shakespeare Centre, King’s College London. The theme is ‘Creating and Recreating Shakespeare’, and features eminent Shakespeare scholars and enthusiasts from around the world, including the University’s own Professor Michael Dobson, Director of the Shakespeare Institute. There will be a series of plenaries focusing on unique approaches to Shakespeare’s work:
n Gregory Doran, Artistic Director of
the RSC and honorary Doctor of the University, will be talking about the history of filming and broadcasting live Shakespeare from Stratford, with stunning archive footage and personal appearances by actors. n Claire van Kampen, a renowned musical director, director, composer, and playwright will present a plenary on Shakespeare and Music with the musicians of Shakespeare’s Globe. n Tom Bird, Executive Producer and Globe to Globe Director, will chair a session on Global Shakespeare, taking place at The Globe itself. Further sessions will be announced in due course. Early bird registration is £325 until 1 February 2016. To find out more, visit: www.wsc2016.info or follow @WSCongress2016 on Twitter.
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the EXHIBITION ‘We were very excited when we received the results of the radiocarbon dating. It is remarkable to think that the parchment of the manuscript has been dated to a period roughly correlating to the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad. We welcomed visitors from all over the world to campus to visit the exhibition, including many family groups, individuals and school and community groups. It was a wonderful experience to witness first-hand how much the manuscript meant to so many people.’ Susan Worrall, Director of Special Collections
In July 2015 it was announced, to global media attention, that an early Qur’anic manuscript held in the Cadbury Research Library had been found to be one of the oldest in the world. Radiocarbon dating placed the parchment to the period 568–645 with a 95.4 percent degree of accuracy. The Prophet Muhammad is thought to have lived between 570 and 632; the Birmingham Qur’an would thus have been produced close to the time the Prophet was alive, making it one of the earliest examples of the Islamic holy book in existence. The initial announcement saw the University trend on Twitter, reaching more than 450 million people and generating more than £3.5 million worth of media coverage in one day. The story was the most-read story on the BBC website, and featured on every BBC outlet. It was covered by every major national and international publication, including making the front page of the New York Times. In October the manuscript went on public display in the Bramall Music Building. Over the course of a three-week period, nearly 9,000 people visited campus to see the Qur’an – many coming from as far away as China, New Zealand, Zimbabwe, Sweden and Malaysia.
Visitors were invited to leave comments about their experiences. Some comments included:
‘Seeing the Qur’an manuscript has been inspiring. It is lovely to see that a piece of history can bring so many people together, of different ethnicities, from different religions and social backgrounds. The Qur’an is making a difference to people even today!’ Ravat
‘It was a privilege and an honour to see possibly the earliest Qur’an. It has been a rewarding, moving and intellectually inspiring experience. Many thanks to Birmingham University for this unique opportunity and its dedication to research and preservation of early documents’. S. Kashun
‘MashaAllah! What a beautiful experience. It is amazing to see we are blessed with this opportunity to have something as beautiful as the Birmingham Qur’an manuscript before our very own eyes.’ Humena
NEWS
Royal Visit Her Majesty The Queen, accompanied by His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, recently paid an official visit to the new Birmingham Dental Hospital and School of Dentistry to meet the people who will be working in this fantastic state-of-the-art facility at Pebble Mill.
Famelab UK is back! Calling all scientists, mathematicians and engineers with a passion for public engagement to participate in FameLab UK 2016! You are invited to take part in its flagship science communications competition. The Midlands regional heats will be held at the University of Birmingham campus on 7 January 2016. Contestants have just three minutes to convey a scientific concept of their choice in an engaging way to non-scientists. The UK winner receives cash prizes and goes on to compete against more than 25 contestants from around the world at The Times Cheltenham Science Festival in June 2016. For more information go to www.FameLab.org/uk
Call for nominations of
Honorary Graduates Do you know someone who has made a major contribution to academic, regional or national life? Have you considered nominating them for an honorary doctorate of the University? Recent honorary graduates include: the Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company, Gregory Doran; former Chief Mathematician at GCHQ, Dr Clifford Cocks; and the Managing Director of John Lewis, Andy Street. Nominations can be made by anyone who is an employee, student, alumnus, member of honorary staff or lay member of Court or Council of the University. The next deadline for nominations is 19 January 2016. Nomination forms can be downloaded from the University website (www.birmingham.ac.uk/ university/governance/senate/ nominations-committee), or alternatively please contact Chris Campbell-Kelly (c.j.campbell-kelly@ bham.ac.uk, 0121 414 8111).
University Carol Service Birmingham University Singers Simon Halsey conductor A traditional service of carols and readings led by the University Chaplaincy, with seasonal music performed by Birmingham University Singers. Date/time: 7 December, 6.15pm Venue: Great Hall, Aston Webb Building Admission: FREE
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FEATURE: CAMPUS DEVELOPMENTS
transforming
our campus
‘A technologyrich, 21st century space’
Library spaces taking shape Although the new University library is still nine months away from opening, anyone taking a tour of the building site now should be able to see what a dramatically different building it will be to the existing facility. With the glazing going in around the building, and stunning views of campus from the south-east corner, the overwhelming impression is one of light. What’s more, when the shelving does begin to be fitted in the main building, it will not hide the windows, as is the case in the current building. Light will stream in from the atrium, down the central feature staircase, which is already being fitted, reaching all floors. The entire building has been designed to ensure that it is the people using the building, rather
than the rows of books, who will benefit from the light and the views, resulting in a completely different feeling to the existing library. The use of windows and light will not be the only way in which this building physically differs. The new library is a technology-rich, 21st century space that will make full use of new ways of studying and accessing information. It will provide a contemporary, attractive space in which to work and think, reflecting changing approaches to education in the digital age. State-of-the-art technology will dramatically improve access to the wealth of knowledge in the University’s archives, enhancing both academic research and the quality of student learning. This will include investment into
digital resources to allow students and staff to work in ways that suit them and their timetables. This was exemplified last year when University alumni Professor Kok Khoo Phua and Doreen Liu, founders of World Scientific Publishing Company, donated e-books worth £1 million to the new library. Donations such as this, and investment into digital resources by the University will mean that students will be able to access the information they need at times, and using methods, that suit them.
FEATURE: CAMPUS DEVELOPMENTS
Helicopters come to BIFoR Work on the Birmingham Institute of Forest Research (BIFoR) site in Norbury, Staffordshire is due to take a dramatic turn this month, as helicopters are drafted in to help assemble the Free Air Carbon Dioxide Enrichment (FACE) facility. BIFoR FACE is the Institute’s landmark initiative to understand how forests react to climate change, and will see six rings, each composed of 17 masts, each 25m tall, erected in the Mill Haft woodland. In order to assemble these masts with the minimal amount of disruption to the woodland, the masts, which make up rings of 30m diameter, need to be installed using a forestry equivalent of
keyhole surgery. The main contractors, Shaylor Group, have decided that helicopters are the answer to the dilemma. The masts have been delivered in pieces to site, and assembled in a nearby field. Over four days, helicopters will fly in, pick up the masts and drop them on pre-prepared bases in the woodland where they will be guided, by hand, into place. This dramatic manoeuvre will be closely monitored by BIFoR researchers to ensure that the woodland is disturbed substantially less than if conventional ground-based construction was used.
Minister visits new facilities Two of the University’s newest facilities were paid a visit by the Minister for Life Sciences as part of a tour of campus in November. George Freeman, whose portfolio includes fields such as medicines and industry, research and development, and the uptake of new drugs and med tech, toured both the newly opened Biohub Birmingham and the Institute of Translational Medicine (ITM), which held its first clinics this summer. The Biohub, on the Research Park, is a £7 million biomedical laboratory and innovation office offering affordable space to biomedical entrepreneurs and start-up firms, where they can research, complete proof of concept work, and bring their innovative medical developments to market. Just a few minutes’ walk away, the ITM, housed in the old Queen Elizabeth
Hospital, has undergone a dramatic transformation and is now home to state-of-the-art laboratories and clinics. A project delivered by Birmingham Health Partners, the ITM will help progress the very latest scientific research findings from the University into enhanced treatments for patients across a range of major health issues including cancer and liver disease. Building on Birmingham’s excellent track record in clinical research, it will increase the city’s capacity to deliver potentially life-saving trials by bringing patients, clinicians and researchers together under one roof. This will drastically speed up the time it takes to develop new treatments for patients and will also make it easier for companies to work closely with clinicians and academics, bringing additional investment into Birmingham.
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FEATURE: STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
MAKING IMPORTANT THINGS HAPPEN
86.7% OF OUR GRA DUA T ES ENT ER GRA DUA T E JOB ROLES WIT HIN S IX MONT HS
The University has launched its ambitious new Strategic Framework – and its exciting new way of showcasing it: sector-leading web content that is both informative and visually engaging. The October unveiling of Strategic Framework 2015–2020: Making Important Things Happen caused a buzz on campus and beyond. The launch event prompted the highest-ever staff attendance at such an occasion, with the Bramall filled to capacity, while the new web content attracted more than 3,500 unique visits in the first eight days; more than 2,300 of which were from University employees. This compares with the 75 unique views of the webpage that launched Shaping Our Future 2010–15. Strategy 2020 lays out bold plans for Birmingham’s continued success on the local, national, and international stages in terms of research, education, resources, and influence. It helps to inform staff, students, and external audiences about our priorities for the next half-decade, and involve them in the journey. Traditionally, our five-year plans have been produced in document form only and sent out to stakeholders. In the digital age, and with the University’s profile rising each year, it was decided to also create an online ‘snapshot’ version, providing an at-a-glance view of where we are and, more importantly, where we are going. The dedicated web content is populated with 30 news articles and videos highlighting Birmingham’s ability to make important things happen – from deepening our understanding of how the world works to improving people’s lives across the globe. The content celebrates our long-held values: the pursuit of excellence, leadership, a pioneering spirit, purposefulness and pragmatism.
EDUCATION Our students and graduates of today are the sought-after employees and intellectual leaders of tomorrow. Over the next five years, we aim to attract outstanding students – removing, where necessary, any barriers to them studying at Birmingham (such as making unconditional offers to a targeted group of high-performing applicants). Once they are here, we will support them as they travel on a rewarding personal journey through their education. Our teaching is already excellent, so we want to build on that – as well as value our educators – while at the same time increasing the innovation of our curriculum, drawing on our research and disciplinary strengths.
FEATURE: STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK
81% 300,000 WE HAVE
MO RE THAN OF RE SE ARC H I S IN TE RN ATI O N AL L Y E X C E L L E N T OR WO RL D L E AD I N G
A L U M NI IN MORE T HA N 1 5 0 C OUNT RIES
INFLUENCE
RESEARCH World-leading research carried out by brilliant, collaborative minds aided by state-of-the-art facilities is the bedrock of Birmingham’s success. Our research strengths include a global network of partnerships focusing on Europe, Brazil, China, India and the US. We also benefit hugely from having strong links with industry, such as Rolls-Royce, and the health and public sectors. Strategy 2020 details our intention to further invest in creating an environment that allows researchers to flourish. REF 2014 proved many of our disciplines to be world-leading, and our ambitions now are to enhance and expand the quality and impact of our research. One way we will do this is by attracting increasing numbers of postgraduate students – becoming, no less, the destination of choice for ambitious PhD candidates. We will also continue to stretch our research award targets and improve on our internal REF targets.
Our goal is to use our strengths in research and education to increase the wellbeing of our city, our region, our country and our planet. We have an impressive track record to build on. Locally, we contribute more than £1 billion annually to the economy and are creating a regional life sciences campus to be a magnet for new ideas and innovation, as well as a home to centres of excellence in healthcare and treatment. Nationally, we influence government legislation, policy and service delivery through Policy Commissions and the Birmingham Brief. Our voice is regularly heard in media and public discourse. Internationally, we have developed multi-faceted, productive collaborations with Guangzhou in China and the University of Illinois in UrbanaChampaign in the US. In partnership with the University of Nottingham, we have an influential presence in Brazil and our academics are working in Africa to help rebuild societies torn apart by war. Over the next five years we will work to raise our public presence and influence further, develop our links with industry, strengthen existing international partnerships and forge new ones, and work within higher education to increase the reach of our influence and the extent of its impact.
RESOURCES To attract first-rate students and staff, you need top-class resources to create a vibrant intellectual environment. Campus is abuzz with the building of exceptional new facilities and the creation of new resources – new student places and residences, library, sports centre, and University School. We will continue to develop our campus, investing more than £300 million to create pioneering teaching facilities and next-generation research space. Highly-successful initiatives such as the Circles of Influence alumni campaign, which has raised £193 million since 2009, and the Global Professors and Birmingham Fellows scheme will continue, as will sector-leading programmes, including the Aurora development programme for women and Senior Leadership Programme.
W E A R E INV ES T ING OV ER
£500M
I N E ST A T ES A ND I N F R A S T RUCT URE
Strategy 2020 will ensure the University continues its upward trajectory – and carries on making important things happen.
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FEATURE: LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES
LIBERAL ARTS AND SCIENCES FOR RADICAL MINDS: A unique Birmingham degree ‘It’s the programme I wish I could have done as a student,’ says Professor Diana Spencer, Dean of Liberal Arts and Natural Sciences (LANS). ‘At that stage I was only in the foothills of knowing what it was to be part of my discipline, so with this programme we don’t expect our 18-yearolds to nail their colours to the mast.’ The programme – one of the first in the UK – is a radical new approach to learning that gives undergraduates an unprecedented opportunity to combine interests spanning the Arts, Social Sciences and Sciences in a single honours degree. ‘This allows us to offer students with a zest for knowledge and personal development a way of designing their own degree, drawing on modules from across the University. Indeed, students retain the flexibility to define their portfolio and degree title in the final year.’ Diana, who is Professor of Classics, was formerly Head of the College of Arts and Law Graduate School, ‘but when the opportunity presented itself to lead such a unique team and student body, I couldn’t resist the intellectual challenge’. In the past 20 years, Diana has observed a rapid change in the way knowledge is transmitted, developed and exchanged, and how people conceptualise what it is to learn. ‘I don’t think universities have fully caught up with the fact that for many of the brightest and most adventurous students, it’s not sufficiently challenging to do a joint honours programme or, conversely,
disciplinary pick-and-mix: typically, other Liberal Arts programmes have a prescriptive approach and put students on thematic tracks; or provide a subject assortment, but without the structural support.’ Natural Sciences joined LAS because of its shared disciplinary agenda. 2016 sees the first cohort entering as part of this new strand. ‘We’ve gone back to the drawing board for Natural Sciences to reimagine it as an interdisciplinary programme in which Sciences genuinely have a conversation with Humanities,’ says Diana. ‘It’s about having Liberal Sciences as well as Liberal Arts.’ LANS, which describes itself as ‘leading a renaissance in intellectual thinking’, aims – like the liberal arts agenda of the classical era – to produce the leaders of tomorrow. ‘These are people who are empowered to know what they want to say and how to say it in a way that makes a genuine difference, globally and nationally, and the way modes of communication have changed makes this possible,’ Diana comments. ‘More than ever, an individual now can mobilise as powerfully as a formal group or a traditional leader.’ LANS targets top A-level students and recruits strongly from International Baccalaureate schools and continental Europe. The bespoke, four-year programme suite has students studying at partner institutions across the globe, from Hong Kong to Melbourne, Sweden to California. One of the things that makes LANS different is that it doesn’t shy away from failure as a learning experience. ‘There is a tendency to put people and things into boxes, but they are often artificial,’ says Diana. ‘It may be that doing Drama when you’re majoring in Geography or Biology is really helpful because it improves your understanding of performance and humanity, or it might not prove helpful. But it’s a question you can say that you posed and that you answered. Employers these days
are looking for people who are able to analyse why they took a decision and learn from that.’ Diana says she is proud of the ‘quirkiness’ of LANS. ‘There’s a collective sense of students engaging in a project unique to the University and being on an individual and distinctive path. There is a real sense of them learning what independent leadership means and how they can build on their peers’ successes and disappointments – as they create learning narratives to underpin their bespoke programmes.’ Diana thinks that for LANS there are many benefits to being outside the University’s college structure, but developing a recognised identity, especially for students, is crucial. ‘We have physically given students space in which to socialise and work collaboratively, and in order to enhance a sense of belonging we have an intensive personal tutoring model, and regularly pilot initiatives to support and develop the programme’s risk-friendly ethos and our students’ curiosity and resilience.’ LANS is keen to foster University-wide conversations and student initiatives: a new Distinguished Lecture Series focusing on where Science and Humanities intersect began in November, while collaboration with the Royal Shakespeare Company – tackling corporate versus cultural tensions – is set for 2016. Diana is confident that the ‘liberal’ model will become a permanent and distinguishing feature of the University curriculum. ‘At the moment it’s very much a work-inprogress, but like our students I enjoy moving outside my comfort zone,’ she says. ‘Applications are growing rapidly, as is the interest we’re getting at open days. Already people have a sense of what we are. I’m getting the sense that this is becoming a phenomenon that is more than an experiment.’
FEATURE: IAS
Enabling Birmingham’s interdisciplinary research Mike Hannon is the Director of the University’s Institute of Advanced Studies (IAS). Buzz spoke to him about the work of the Institute and the support it offers to academics. The IAS launched in 2013 to promote interdisciplinary research by combining expertise from across the breadth of the University and exploring new conversations, shifting paradigms and pushing back the boundaries of knowledge. Spanning the University’s five Colleges, the IAS offers networking events, hosts Distinguished Visiting Fellows and organises workshops to nurture new thinking and solve challenging problems. Networking events provide academic colleagues with an opportunity to share their research focus and discuss potential for collaborations. The IAS has welcomed Distinguished Visiting Fellows from across the globe, such as contemporary historian Professor Geoff Eley (Michigan), geographer Professor Becky Loo (Hong Kong) and genome biologist Professor Jeff Boore (Berkeley). The Fellows enhance our intellectual environment and open up avenues for cross-institutional research partnerships. Since its inception, the IAS has also delivered more than 150 workshops and events involving academics, alumni and policymakers, on topics as diverse as arts and science, big data, climate change and women in holocaust history. Professor Hannon has been at the University’s School of Chemistry for the last decade. Prior to joining us, he spent time in
More information on the IAS can be found at: www.birmingham.ac.uk/research/activity/ias/index.aspx Cambridge and Warwick, as well as in Strasbourg with Nobel Prize winner Professor Jean-Marie Lehn. At Birmingham he established the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) Research & Training Centre in Physical Sciences for Health, which is a PhD training centre at the interface between physical and medical sciences. He extended his portfolio at the University when he was asked to lead the IAS in early 2015. Mike said: ‘We are currently at a really exciting point in time for IAS: We are expanding the team with five Associate Directors from across the Colleges who will act as advisors and college champions. We have also just launched internal IAS Fellowships that will allow academics time devoted to developing research collaborations with Visiting Fellows. ‘The ideas for IAS come from Birmingham academics; we encourage all colleagues to propose workshops and potential Visiting Fellows and we are keen to hear about new ideas and how we can support them.
‘Some projects can only work when we pull together different skill sets and the IAS is here to facilitate this. For me the pleasure in this job is seeing the wide range of benefits to individual academics and the wider community whether that be new research directions, public debates, exhibitions, outstanding publications or international collaborations coming to fruition. ‘I think a key measure of our success will be seen in the mark of our Visiting Fellows and the quality of the outputs from the network events. The IAS would not be able to achieve this without the experience and imagination of IAS’s Deputy Director Sue Gilligan and excellent support from Sarah Jeffery, our IAS Administrator, who push the Institute forward from behind the scenes.’
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FEATURE: BIRMINGHAM HEROES
RESEARCH
THATMATTERS AT BIRMINGHAM WE HAVE A TRADITION OF INNOVATION. WE ARE A CAMPUS WITHIN A CITY, BUT OUR RESEARCH EXTENDS BEYOND BORDERS AND WE’VE MADE AN IMPACT ON THE WORLD FOR MORE THAN A CENTURY.
To celebrate our impact, our award-winning Heroes campaign was re-launched in November, with a striking new feel. The campaign is part of our research communications strategy, and supports our Strategic Framework 2015–2020: Making important things happen. Heroes showcases our determination to make important things happen, and make a tangible difference to people’s lives locally, nationally and internationally. It is this transnational impact that makes Birmingham a truly global university, and enhances our public profile and reputation at home and abroad. We are committed to world-leading and original research in areas that are of strategic importance not just for us as a university, but for the UK and governments across the world. Behind these areas of significant importance are our leading academics; our Birmingham Heroes. Here’s how they are rising to societal, health and environmental challenges by doing Research That Matters:
Energy Crisis
Mental Illness
Professor Yulong Ding, Professor Martin Freer, Professor Toby Peters
Dr Michael Larkin, Professor Lisa Bortolotti, Dr Ema Sullivan-Bissett
By 2060 it is predicted that global demand for cooling and refrigeration will overtake heating, at a greater environmental cost. In tackling the energy crisis we are – through the Birmingham Energy Institute – supporting the Birmingham Policy Commission: Doing Cold Smarter, and championing UK investment in smarter clean-cold technology. The University is also leading on Thermal Energy in the Energy Research Accelerator (ERA), which will deliver a step change in energy research in critical areas such as thermal energy and energy storage.
Breaking down barriers towards mental illness and removing its stubborn social stigma remains a challenge. Here at Birmingham, we’re undertaking a project of significant public interest: Pragmatic and Epistemic Role of Factually Erroneous Cognitions and Thoughts. Project PERFECT explores how we can break down this stigma by promoting a better understanding of how the mind works. The team is showing that the so-called ‘marks of madness’ is not different in kind from everyday irrational thought, with no sharp divide between the mentally distressed and the mentally well.
FEATURE: BIRMINGHAM HEROES
Silent Killers
Character Matters
Medical Heroes
Dr Thomas Solomon, Professor Philip Newsome, Dr Patricia Lalor
Professor Kristján Kristjánsson, Professor James Arthur, Dr Sandra Cooke, Dr Tom Harrison
Professor Kate Thomas, Dr Rima Dhillon, Dr Joe Alderman, Dr Shayen Ahmed
Some of the biggest global health challenges are posed by chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease and their associated co-morbidities. Work at Birmingham is identifying how healthy diets, normal weight and optimal use of physical exercise can dramatically reduce the likelihood of developing these non-symptomatic silent killers. This work strengthens Birmingham’s reputation as a major global player in Life Sciences, and encourages increased inward investment to the region’s developing sector.
The Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues is a leading informant on theory, policy, and practice, and, through its extensive range of projects, contributes to a renewal of character virtues in both individuals and societies. The big questions that the Centre aims to address in its current phase of work revolve around the transformative power of character in shaping the future, together with the virtues of personal life and public service. Our brand new University of Birmingham School has a bespoke programme of character education developed by the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues, demonstrating how seriously we take secondary education and ensuring that our children excel in life, not just in exams.
The high calibre of our graduates in medical, biochemistry and related fields is of significant value to the region and contributes to Birmingham’s reputation as one of the most important sites for Life Sciences within the UK. University of Birmingham partnerships link academic excellence across the University with innovation in addressing the healthcare requirements of a diverse regional population of five million. It is our ability to deliver the full circle of translational medicine that allows us to address major global health problems including ageing, chronic and rare diseases, cancer, trauma and antibiotic resistance.
CAMPAIGN ROUND UP Our Birmingham Heroes campaign featured across the country, including on the London Underground, across the London Midlands train network and at the brand new Grand Central in Birmingham. Here is how a few people have engaged with the campaign so far. The campaign has reached more than 500,000 people and has received a tremendous response on social media. To find out more about our Heroes, watch their videos and read their Birmingham Brief visit www.birmingham. ac.uk/heroes Tell us on social media why our research matters to you, using the hashtag #thismatters Keep an eye out for the next phase of the campaign, coming Spring 2016.
BIRMINGHAM
HEROES
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CAMPUS CURIOSITIES AND CHANCELLOR’S COLUMN
CAMPUS CURIOSIT?ES
Chancellor’s column
Portrait of Sir Oliver Lodge by Sir George Reid (1841–1913), c1910, Campus Collection of Fine and Decorative Art, Research and Cultural Collections
Where is it? On display as part of the exhibition Terms of Engagement: Portraits from the University of Birmingham, Barber Institute of Fine Arts until 17 January 2016 One of the earliest commissioned portraits in the collection is of the University’s first principal, the internationally renowned physicist Sir Oliver Lodge. Lodge was a pioneer in the study of electromagnetic compatibility, radioactivity and X-rays. As Principal, he believed passionately that the University should encourage fair play and free speech. The alcoves of the Great Hall and the corridors of the Aston Webb building are home to portraits of University figureheads. Currently, this portrait and a number of others are being exhibited in the Barber Institute of Fine Arts. Filling the temporarily vacated spaces, artist David Rowan has created an intriguing series of alternative portraits inspired by the absent sitters and their lives. Titled Phantom Walls, Rowan’s portraits employ photography, video and sculpture to create phantom versions of the originals. Learn more Please see http://rcc-redmarley.tumblr.com for an expanded blog post by the artist about the project
The BUAFTA Raffle is back and there are some fantastic prizes lined up. Visit intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/BUAFTAs to buy tickets or speak to your BUAFTA Champion. This year’s raffle is supporting Childhood Cancer Research at the University of Birmingham. Donations can be made in lieu of buying a ticket. The draw takes place on 19 February 2016 at the BUAFTA ceremony. Raffle tickets will be on sale online until noon on Friday 12 February.
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BUAFTA Raffle tickets now on sale!
HEIGHTS ARE A CHI REAT EVE KG R O
2 016 PER ARDUA AD
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What is it?
As the world rankings reaffirmed this September, the UK is one of the best places to study. I am the third generation of my family to be educated here, travelling across the continents from India to enjoy the privilege. We have all benefited a great deal from it. So I have continued lobbying the Chancellor of the Exchequer to protect public expenditure on education and encourage support for research and innovation – Higher Education’s key contributions to the economy. Innovation and Higher Education are the foundations on which to build a productive nation, with sustainable jobs for young people of all backgrounds and the skills to pay our way. Students here have a formidable future and that doesn’t solely depend on Westminster – rather it depends on students’ own determination and the talent of their teachers and mentors. Seeing the strength of our capabilities, from the University’s newly-launched Dental School to the Innovation Birmingham Campus, makes me all the more convinced that our University has so many strengths to build on and of which to be proud.
THROUGH HAR DW
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NEWS AND VIEWS
news views Our regular feature gives Buzz readers a quick tour of the latest University news hitting the headlines and activity among our online community.
If you would like to wo rk with the press office, or fin d out more about how they can he lp you promote your research , email pressoffice@contacts .bham.ac.uk or call 0121 414 6029
in the news…
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Many articles about Birmingham research and expertise appear in local, national and international press every day. Here are just a few examples of our recent highlights.
Follow us on Twitter at @unibirmingham. If you use social media at work and would like to increase your visibility, find out more at: intranet.birmingham.ac.uk/socialmediaguidelines
In September the University was selected as the University of the Year for Graduate Employment by The Times and The Sunday Times. The University’s investment and innovation in graduate employability was the major focus of a feature in The Times and received extensive coverage in regional media. Dr Michael Grey featured on an episode of the BBC’s Panorama about brain injuries incurred during sport. Dr Grey also featured across several media outlets – including Sky News and the Guardian – in response to the United States Soccer Federation’s plans to stop children aged ten and under heading footballs. Dr Rosa Freedman was interviewed by BBC Radio 4’s The World Tonight about the United Nation’s Security Council’s capability to respond to present challenges. During Freshers’ Week, ITV’s This Morning broadcast live from campus, talking to students about their experiences of living away from home for the first time. Professor Charlie Craddock was interviewed by the Financial Times about the recently opened Institute for Translational Medicine. BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme hosted a discussion on the new University of Birmingham School. An accompanying piece on the BBC website featured interviews with School Principal Michael Roden, and the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Sir David Eastwood. The Qur’an manuscript once again gained global media attention – including a major feature in the Guardian, coverage on ITV National News, BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme, BBC Midlands Today, and international channels such as Globo, Egyptian State TV, Reuters, Al Araby, and channels across the Middle East. Dr Dan Tennant was widely featured in the UK and Indian media explaining how incurable types of blood cancer develop from a symptomless blood disorder. Research into how some patients in vegetative states can retain awareness, led by Dr Davinia Fernández-Espejo, appeared in El Mundo, El Pais, La Scienze, BBC Science and The Birmingham Post.
feeling social... For our final Undergraduate Open Day of the year, during October, we ran a campaign designed to engage potential students and be a useful information hub to our audience. The campaign ran across our three main social media channels – Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. We gave all the channels a consistent look with the same banners and messaging, and we also created a new Facebook event page for visitors where we could share lots of relevant information, tips and advice. In the run-up to the event we ran two Facebook competitions to win Amazon vouchers with the aim of driving awareness of the Open Day. During the Open Day itself our digital team chatted with visitors, shared useful information, and answered questions about the event. Post-event, all of this content was shared across the social channels and added to digital storyboards to share online and via emails to prospective students.
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Charlotte Wellington is the Programme Leader for the New Core Project. I am an alumna of the University, graduating with Combined Honours in Geography and History in 1977. My career was initially based in research management, including managing a research unit for the Social Science Research Council (now the Economic and Social Research Council) and a 14-year spell at the University of Warwick finishing as Centre Manager for the Centre for Education and Industry. My working life at Birmingham began with a finance role in the then Institute of Cancer Studies, which eventually led to the role of Secretary to the School of Medicine, a position I held for eight years. When colleges were introduced in 2008, I was appointed as the Director of Operations in the College of Social Sciences (CoSS). As Director of Operations for CoSS, my portfolio was incredibly broad, managing professional services within the College to maximise effectiveness and efficiency, but also to support the academic mission to contribute to the institution’s strategic aims. It was quite different from my current position, which focuses on a single programme of activity. It was a real privilege to be asked to lead New Core. I am working with a really talented set of expert staff from across campus and I am genuinely excited to be driving the project forward. New Core is a three-year programme to replace the University’s core HR, payroll and finance systems that have been in place for nearly two decades and are increasingly unable to meet current requirements. It is part of the University’s commitment to develop a wide programme of ambitious, long-term investments that will create a more sustainable and flexible campus, ready for the future. The programme is not being seen just as an IT project, but more a massive change-management project providing an opportunity to redesign core business processes, create efficient business systems and promote a single view of the truth, delivered via remote and mobile technologies as well as via the desktop.
New Core will eventually impact on every member of staff across the University – both professional services staff and academics; colleagues will see more streamlined and consistent business processes and work flows with easier-to-use, more intuitive user interfaces. The fully-integrated software will encourage self-service, with staff able to update their own details and download their own payslips, review training records and book on training courses, for example. Managers will be able to access new software locally, in real time, to track relevant financial and HR data. We will be looking for the new software to offer a high level of management information and business intelligence capability too, so that it can be used as a really powerful analysis tool for staff. Currently we are in the middle of the competitive dialogue stage of the year-long procurement process, which is designed to ensure that the solution procured is fit for purpose and comprises a series of intense discussions to help narrow down the number of potential suppliers going through to final tender. The options for implementation are still emerging and, in that context, it is difficult to be exact about the timeline, but we are hopeful that a phased implementation will be possible, with final completion scheduled for some time in 2018/19. New Core presents a significant change for staff at the University, but it will be a positive one. It will change the way we work and provide benefits for colleagues right across campus. When I’ve not got my New Core hat on I have a volunteer role at Bromsgrove Rugby Club and attend as many matches as I can, home and away. Rugby is a way of life for me and I was thrilled that the Rugby World Cup was so close to home this autumn. I also like to visit Wales and walk our dog, Ruby, along the beautiful Pembrokeshire coastal path.
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Charlotte Wellington… in my own words