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N8 Research Partnership May Newsletter

May 2017

Brexit - how the North can survive, and Thrive

Director's Update

Welcome to the May issue of the N8 Research Partnership Newsletter.

In this issue, we consider the challenges for the university sector brought on by Brexit; and the opportunities that new programmes like Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund provide for the North to play a leading role in sectors like Robotics, and AgriFood.

Also, as I enter the last few weeks of my time as N8’s Director, I want to thank the many people who have welcomed and supported me in the last couple of years. It has been a huge amount of fun.

I continue to believe passionately in the opportunity the North has to reinvent the regional economy through innovation and a focus on sustainability and resilience. A blog from me in this issue provides a few reflections.

N8’s programmes of collaboration and innovation continue to progress well, and we highlight this month a blog from Jonathan Oxley on the exciting progress made the N8 AgriFood programme in building a research programme with international reach.

N8 has a great portfolio of collaborations but we are hungry for more. I welcome those who want to work with us to build a successful future for the economy of the Northern region, to contact us for more information, or to get involved

Dr Peter Simpson
Director, N8 Research Partnership

Dr Peter Simpson

Change of leadership at N8 Research Partnership

The N8 Research Partnership is on the hunt for a new director.

N8 has announced that current incumbent Dr Peter Simpson, who has led the organisation since 2015, will depart next month.

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Dr Peter Simspon

N8 Reflections - a blog by Dr Peter Simpson

Dr Peter Simpson shares his thoughts on Northern Innovation, the Northern Powerhouse and his hopes for the future of the N8 universities, as he reflects upon his time as Director of the N8 Research Partnership.

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Houses of Parliament

N8 Director helps advise government on limiting Brexit’s impact on UK Universities

Dr Peter Simpson, Director of N8, has played a key role in advising the government on how to limit the effects of Brexit on UK Universities.

Dr Simpson was part of an advisory panel to the House of Commons Education Committee which has published a new report into the challenges facing universities in post-Brexit Britain.

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N8 Equipment Sharing Database

Unique N8 university equipment database will help boost Northern research and industry

A HUGE efficiency drive among eight of the North’s top universities has resulted in a list of key research assets with the potential to save each university significant sums of money.

The N8 Equipment Sharing Database can be accessed online and has been created to encourage the sharing of equipment across the N8 Research Partnership.

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Professor Alan Langlands

N8 leaders address Brexit’s impact on universities

THREE members of the N8 board have recently expressed their views on how Brexit may impact on UK universities following the vote to leave the European Union in June 2016.

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Jonathan Oxley

Feeding and Sustaining the World - A blog by Jonathan Oxley

Jonathan Oxley discusses N8 AgriFood's growing reputation in the international arena and a renewed focus on key areas of overseas collaboration.

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Professor Tony Prescott

N8 expert talks to BBC about robots as human companions

A leading N8 academic expert has spoken about inventing robots that can be companions for a range of purposes, at a conference in Edinburgh.

Professor Tony Prescott of University of Sheffield, who leads N8’s Robotics and Autonomous Systems community, was interviewed by BBC World Service’s Tech Talk about his research into creating robots to be human companions.

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