Collaboration In Training and Innovation for Growing, Evolving and Networked Societies

Project Information

CITI-GENS

Grant agreement ID: 945231

DOI

10.3030/945231

Project closed

EC signature date 24 March 2020

Start date 1 April 2020

End date 31 March 2025

Funded under

• EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Total cost

€ 3 254 400,00

EU contribution

€ 1 627 200,00

Coordinated by

THE QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY OF BELFAST
United Kingdom

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - CITI-GENS (Collaboration In Training and Innovation for Growing, Evolving and Networked Societies)

Reporting period: 2022-04-01 to 2025-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

Collaboration in Training and Innovation for Growing, Evolving and Networked Societies (CITI-GENS) was a Horizon2020 co-funded Marie Skłodowska-Curie doctoral training programme that supported 20 interdisciplinary PhD students at Queen’s University Belfast. PhD students funded within Marie Skłodowska-Curie programmes have the title of Early Stage Researcher (ESR). We welcomed all 20 ESRs to QUB in Feb-March 2021 as Covid restrictions on travel were lifted.

The CITI-GENS programme of research and training at QUB capitalises on the unique opportunity provided by the Belfast Region City Deal (BRCD) announced in October 2018 (http://www.belfastcity.gov.uk/buildingcontrol-environment/regeneration/city-growth-deal.aspx).

The BRCD is a ten-year £350 million investment package for Northern Ireland, providing funding for capital infrastructure within the Belfast region. It has five development objectives: infrastructure, innovation, digital, skills for inclusion and skills for growth.

QUB has a pivotal role in the delivery of the BRCD. The University is committed to building upon the new BRCD objectives through the development of new research and training opportunities for our rapidly changing society, and in so doing to prepare a new generation of citizens for the challenges ahead. Specifically, QUB is to lead the ‘Innovation’ objective of the City Deal through the development of a new innovation ecosystem involving four themes and associated new research centres, as set out in the table below. The latest development was the recent opening of the Digital Twin Centre (https://belfastregioncitydeal.co.uk/news-events/uk-digital-twin-centre-opens-in-belfast-to-drive-nationwide-industrial-innovation).

CITI-GENS directly addressed the ambition envisaged in the BRCD “Innovation & Digital” strand. We successfully recruited 20 international researchers who were employed as members of staff on 36 month contracts during which they were supported in their journey to become a skilled cohort addressing research to tackle global challenges. The ESRs combined their advanced disciplinary excellence with capacity for genuinely interdisciplinary, inter-sectoral and international quality research involving the capacities of QUB and non-HEI partners.

The CITI-GENS Doctoral Programme provided a step change from traditional doctoral training programmes it was developed on the basis that future societal challenges will emerge across rather than within economic and social sectors, requiring new technologies that are emerging or not yet developed, and which outpace developments in social structures and conventions.

The key objectives we achieved were:
• To attract 20 highly talented international researchers to QUB
• To embark on projects connected to the Belfast Region City Deal ambitions, and in particular to its ‘Innovation’ strand
• To follow the EU Principles on Innovative Doctoral Training by providing a tailored programme in research training including transferable skills.
• To engage in truly cross-disciplinary projects, with multiple non-HEI partners
• To allow researchers to network across disciplines and create synergies through student-led ‘conclaves’ and other group initiatives
• To provide high quality supervision, mentoring and career guidance through various leadership and mentoring opportunities.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

In the second half of the CITI-GENS project emphasis was placed on the ESRs completing their research and moving toward graduation to complete the objectives of the project. This would include a period of writing up, dissemination of results, and consideration of the next steps in the ESRs’ careers:


• All 20 ESRs completed their 36 months contracts.

• The successfully completed projects were interdisciplinary; spanning all three Faculties of the University and 11 academic schools. Each project was also truly “3i” in nature with an interdisciplinary element to the project, an interdisciplinary supervision team, an external partner and opportunities to travel internationally to attend conferences.

• CITI-GENS cohort training and development concluded - in all the CITI-GENS provided 18 separate activities including core research skills such as Data Management, Ethics and Blog writing skills, convlaves, a writing retreat, and a final Research Showcase which was attended by 85 participants. They have also benefitted from a tailored Personal Development Planning facilitated by the Careers Development team from the Graduate School.
• CITIGENS ESRs participated in (and recorded as such) 5560 hours of development training, delivered by a combination of teachers, tutors, and facilitators in the Graduate School and the QUB Faculties and Schools

• Conclaves are student-led - they are given agency to suggest the development ativities to accompany the Research in Progress presentations attended by supervisors and any partners who are able. At each Conclave two student representatives are elected for 6 months who provide a link and route for communication between the project Operations Team and the ESRs.

• 19 of the cohort have submitted their thesis for examination, 16 have been successfuly defended to date

• CITI-GENS ESRs took part in 66 International conferences, 39 local dissemination activities and 33 other dissemination or engagement acitivities

• CITI-GENS has resulted in the publication of 37 Journal articles, 5 book chapters, 8 papers in conference proceedings, 6 'other' article types (book review, policy briefings, commentaries, lay guides) and eventually 20 theses

• On the basis of their residency in the UK for the required period, 19 of the 20 ESRs applied for, and were granted, "settled" status in the UK, allowing them to live, work and study in the UK without limit and apply for benefits (dependent on eligibility).

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

The 20 CITI-GENS projects are all pushing the boundaries of their respective disciplines, and seeking to connect disciplines in a truly innovative manner. In so doing, the CITI-GENS doctoral training programme has further embedded QUB’s profile in developing inter-disciplinary research and postgraduate cohort development. It has also led to an increase in the international student research profile at QUB by attracting top students from across the globe and facilitating international mobility

The programme has also supported the development of the Belfast Region City Deal, by leveraging infrastructural developments (such as the new Global Innovation Institute) to create the opportunity leading doctoral-level research. We expect to build on the success of CITI-GENS to develop even more cross-disciplinary research programmes at QUB.

Engaging in training with researchers from other disciplines has enhanced the leaning experience of CITI-GENS ESRs, and being part of a cohort has provided them with a valuable network outside their own field of research. They have also reported on the value of the 3i dimension of their projects particularly the value of having an external partner (intersectoral) and the positive impact they expect this to have on their future career. It is expected that these partnerships will continue after research projects have been completed.

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