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ECR Newsletter - April 2026
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Spotlight On ... GW4 Open Research Week 2026
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The Annual GW4 Open Research Week is back: 20-24 April 2026
Lead by University of Cardiff this year, this week-long celebration will showcase the many ways open research practices make scholarship more accessible, transparent, reproducible and visible.
Whether you are new to open research, already embedding open practices in your work, or simply curious to learn more, GW4 Open Research Week 2026 is open to everyone and offers opportunities to connect, learn and contribute to a more open and inclusive research culture.
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Research Staff Development Programme
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'Focus Space' - Improve Your Productivity!
We would like to give you a warm welcome to our regular 'Focus Space' online sessions which run from 10 am - 12.30 pm Mondays and Thursdays - Click here for dates and details of how to join this group. Participants do not have to stay for the whole session - you can dip in and out as you please! To make things easy, these sessions, open to research-active staff, can be accessed via the same Teams link.
We are looking to expand our team of facilitators so if you would like to find out more about becoming a facilitator please contact ResearcherDevelopment@exeter.ac.uk. Facilitating is considered part of 'teaching practice' for Fellowship levels of the Higher Education Academy!
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Doors to Business and Industry: Opportunities for Researchers
At the January and February ECR Town Halls on St Luke's and Penryn campuses senior academics and colleagues offered advice to the ECR community about how and why they should engage with business and industry. Read about the panellists' thoughts and recommendations (4 min read) on the Researcher Development & Research Culture (RDRC) ECR SharePoint Resource Hub which is designed to support personal and professional development, featuring:
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Comprehensive resources to help you develop key skills;
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Insightful blogs written by fellow ECRs;
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Quick access to useful tools and links.
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Other Learning and Development Opportunities: University of Exeter and Beyond
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Coding for Reproducible Research Training Initiative - Summer Term Workshops Out Now!
These free-to-access programming training courses are for staff. Places for each workshop series will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.
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Knowledge Exchange Awards - Bright Future Award: Early Career Research Impact
Deadline for nominations : Wednesday 8 April 2026 (11.59 pm)
The University of Exeter’s Knowledge Exchange Awards 2026 celebrate outstanding collaborations between University researchers and external organisations locally, nationally, and globally. These awards highlight how research and expertise create real-world impact, benefiting communities, businesses, and society.
There are eight award categories (with Bright Future Award: Early Career Research Impact being one of them), including Sustainable Futures, Health and Life Sciences, Community Impact, Commercialisation Project of the Year, and Bright Future Awards recognising early career research impact.
Projects will be reviewed by a panel of senior University staff and external experts, with three shortlisted entries per category. All shortlisted nominees and their partners will be invited to the awards ceremony on 15 October 2026 at the Great Hall, Streatham Campus.
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Creating a Healthy Community: Matchmaking for Researchers and VCSE Sector
Tuesday 28 April 2026 (12 noon - 3 pm)
Streatham Campus, Reed Hall - FREE!
This is a collaboration with Devon Community Foundation, and invites researchers and members of the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise (VCSE) sector with a shared interest in health and wellbeing to network over lunch, and through a series of interactive activities, stands, and introductory talks. If you have any questions, contact regionalteam@exeter.ac.uk.
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New Hub for Established Researchers
The White Rose University Consortium has launched a new hub for established researchers, built on original research into what this group actually needs. It is free to access and open to all.
The hub has three core sections:
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Curated resources organised around five researcher personas, so you can find what is most relevant to your situation. At the heart of the hub is the Juggler, capturing the shared experience of competing demands that almost every established researcher recognises, alongside four distinct personas reflecting different research leadership models: the Lab Builder, the Independent Scholar, the Project Architect, and the Boundary Spanner.
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Peer discussion guides, designed for small self-organised groups to explore common challenges together.
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Career stories, offering honest, grounded reflections from established researchers on their own academic pathways.
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Prosper: a free portal of resources and careers guidance for postdocs
Prosper is a free portal of resources and careers guidance for postdocs with advice on working in and beyond academia. The content is informed by postdocs, institutions, employers and research managers. Postdocs at Exeter are encouraged to register via the Prosper portal as an institutional user (using Exeter email address) for the best functionality of the site.
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Launch of the ICoRSA Ukraine International Research Collaboration Hub on LinkedIn
This initiative aims to provide an effective platform for fostering international collaboration with Ukrainian researchers and institutions, with a strong focus on concrete, results-oriented cooperation.
This group is designed as a space to share funding opportunities, identify complementary expertise, initiate project ideas, and transform dialogue into tangible initiatives. When joining the group, you are also encouraged to share relevant news, including open calls, conference opportunities, and other initiatives of interest to Ukrainian researchers.
To become a member, you simply need to click the link below and request to join the group.
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Research Grants, Funding & Competitions
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Opportunity for Early Career Researchers - Policy Engagement with Government Departments – DEFRA
Biodiversity and Nature Recovery Research Priority Areas
Application deadline : Tuesday 21 April 2026.
The University has a small budget to engage with DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and the DEFRA family of agencies on research questions that they have indicated are key priorities regarding biodiversity and nature recovery policies.
Key points:
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£2,000 is available to ECRs (who must have a contract with the University and be working less than full-time)
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Topics include: international trade; policy integration within land management; systems thinking; ecological indicators of healthy ecosystems; social barriers to nature positive action; and the economics of harmful subsidies
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The work must be completed by the Tuesday 30 June 2026.
It is important that you read the information provided via the button below before contacting Dan Bloomfield with your proposals.
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Dr Andrew Cunliffe has created this Funding Finder platform which signposts hundreds of funding opportunities that will be of interest to current community members looking to undertake research, fieldwork, conference visits or exchanges with our partner organisations worldwide. It has easily searchable listings and awards ranging from £100 to £10,000,000.
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New Pivot-RP Searches for the ECR Community
As part of ongoing work to develop our university-wide support for fellowship applicants and active fellows, we have established two curated Pivot-RP searches targeted at this ECR community that can be readily accessed and tailored to individual’s needs. Guidance on how to do this can be found on the button below.
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Assessing Research Responsibly - balancing peer judgement and metrics
Wednesday 29 April 2026 (2 pm - 3.30 pm) Online
Universities, research teams, and individual researchers all want their research contributions and achievements and capabilities to be recognised fairly, but historically, this has not always been the case.
Proxy measures, often based on metric indicators, are sometimes used to judge, but metrics can also misrepresent and disadvantage researchers, distorting what work they choose to do, or where they choose to publish it, and holding back careers - or even whole disciplines.
Learn about how Responsible Research Assessment, of which the responsible use of metrics is part, is seen as increasingly important to ensure research contributions are judged fairly on quality, impact, and merit rather than on narrow, misleading proxies.
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Research & Researcher Networks
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Emotionally Demanding Health Research Network
Friday 10 Apri 2026 (11 am - 12.30 pm)
Streatham Campus, Queen's Building, Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health (with the option to join remotely)
Join us for the second meeting of the Emotionally Demanding Health Research PGR/ECR Network! PGRs and ECRs working on health related research from all disciplines and faculties welcome!
If you are a PGR or ECR at the University of Exeter working on emotionally demanding or sensitive health related research, and would like a chance to chat with peers from across the University over a cup of tea and cake, join us!
Note: there is no need to have attended previous meetings to join, and there is no expectation to contribute to sessions. If you have any questions please feel free to email Hayley (hlrr202@exeter.ac.uk) or Ellie (eh728@exeter.ac.uk).
This activity is a Researcher-led Initiative that has been funded by the University of Exeter Researcher Development and Research Culture team.
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Measuring and Evaluating Research
Monday 13 April 2026 (see here for your local session time).
The webinar series is free of charge for WUN member university early career researchers and invited participants from ARUA or AUN. A WUN member university email address or an ARUA/AUN university email address is required for your registration to be confirmed. The University of Exeter is a WUN member. Please register as soon as possible, as the session is expected to fill up quickly.
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Exeter HASS Health, Medicine and Bodies Early Career Research Network Conference - Call for Papers
Wednesday 3 June 2026
Centre for Cultures and Environments of Health
Call for Papers: Deadline : Friday 17 April 2026 (5 pm)
This Conference is a friendly and supportive knowledge sharing and networking event. We are a new Early Careers Research Network and plan to use this event as the basis for future network development.
Abstract submissions are welcomed from ECRs (broadly defined) for 15-minute talks on current, future or past research taking humanities and social science approaches to health, medicine and bodies. Please send a 250-word abstract and a 100-word bio to N.Surawy-Stepney@exeter.ac.uk by 17 April 2026. Talks will be hybrid and all are welcome to attend online. Booking details will be circulated in due course.
This activity is part of an ECRN Enhancement Award that has been funded by the University of Exeter Researcher Development and Research Culture team.
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Connecting Social & Computer Sciences: a half-day workshop to establish an ECR Network
Wednesday 17 June 2026 (12.30 pm - 3.30 pm)
Streatham Campus, Innovation Centre, Second Floor, IC2 - 02-02f - Boardroom (in-person only)
This half-day exploratory workshop invites Early Career Researchers (ECRs) working across computer data sciences and the social sciences to explore the creation of a new interdisciplinary ECR Network.
The event responds to growing recognition that tackling planetary challenges - particularly the intersections between climate and health - requires closer dialogue, collaboration, and critical engagement with data across computational and social research.
Support for travel from Penryn Campus to Streatham is available (limited).
If you would like to contribute a short presentation (5-minute pitch), please contact Mayra (m.rodriguez3@exeter.ac.uk), Charlotte (c.hawkins3@exeter.ac.uk), or Monika (m.walia@exeter.ac.uk).
The workshop committee:-
Dr Mayra Rodriguez, Dr Charlotte Hawkins, Dr Monika Walia.
This event is funded by the ECR Network Enhancement Awards, by the Researcher Development and Research Culture Team at the University of Exeter.
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ECR Community on Viva Engage
Have you noticed the University community for ECRs on Viva Engage? Lots of ECRs have already been added and if you are not on there, you can join. This is a collaborative online space to share and discuss ideas, ask questions and keep up to date with the latest activities, events and opportunities.
Have your voice heard and shape our community and ECR culture. Join the conversation now by sharing your first post!
This page is maintained and moderated by the Researcher Development and Research Culture team.
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Health, Wellbeing & Support
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Support for Colleagues affected by events in the Middle East
The University understands that this will be a particularly difficult and uncertain time for colleagues with loved ones in the Middle East and surrounding areas.
Please remember that wellbeing support is available to you if you need it. Our Employee Assistance Programme, Spectrum Life, is accessible 24/7, offering free and confidential support, advice, and counselling to all colleagues and their dependants over 16. You will also find a range of useful resources for support on our Colleague Wellbeing webpages.
The University's Global Incidents webpage will be updated with further advice for colleagues as appropriate.
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Organised by the HASS Sustainability Nature Cluster, join them on a series of walks through Streatham Campus. Everybody welcome, please let them know if we can support your access in any way!
‘Wild Wednesdays’ are a collaborative, inclusive HASS-led initiative to support and inspire creative and community engagement with the natural environment of the Streatham Campus. In a series of walks up until September, we will explore the campus together from diverse perspectives, gathering impressions, notes, words, leaves and photos. These will be made into illustration-maps by two artists, Sam Godfrey and Rebecca Lockyear, which can be shared, leaving a trace of our paths and encounters.
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Volleyball Players Needed!
The Wellbeing Network is looking for players to join their volleyball squad, The Wellbeing Wolverines. After winning Division 3 of the Coaver Club League last year, the squad is expanding to field two teams this season – one in Division 2 and one in Division 3. This means there are opportunities for both competitive and social players. The league starts at the end of May on Thursday evenings at Devon County Council, where there is also a bar and food truck. If you would like to join, please fill in the members form and you will be
added to the WhatsApp group. For any questions, please email wellbeing-network@exeter.ac.uk.
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All Staff Choir at Penryn Campus
All Staff Choir at Penryn Campus, Tuesdays 1.10 pm - 1.55 pm
A relaxed, informal singing group to promote positive wellbeing and a sense of community and connection across our lovely campus. No experience necessary! Open to all staff and postgraduate students from Exeter, Falmouth, FX Plus, the SU, and any other organisation that is based on Penryn campus. If you know someone who might like to join, please encourage them to fill out this interest form.
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Find out how the University can support Early Career Researchers. The page includes support from the University, Spectrum.Life as well as a list of networks to support staff wellbeing.
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