Research Newsletter – Issue 57: Information and Updates
Professional Skills for Research Leaders (PSRL) 2020-2021
The PSRL is an ILM accredited programme and consists of a blended learning approach enabling researchers to identify a range of strategies to establish themselves as research leaders, from writing compelling and competitive funding applications to managing relationships with team members and collaborators.
The PSRL is targeted towards those at postdoctoral researcher level and early career academics. The programme had 18 graduates spanning the faculties this year. There is a €100 contribution per participant towards the cost of the accreditation. Register here
Introduction to the newly appointed Biological and General Safety Officer, Dr. Barry Byrne
My name is Dr. Barry Byrne, and I am delighted to join the Faculty of Science and Health as a Biological and General Safety Officer. My role will primarily be to ensure that, as a University, we remain compliant with biosafety-specific legislative guidelines issued by agencies such as the Health and Safety Authority (HSA) and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). I look forward to supporting principal investigators and research staff in identifying and monitoring biosafety risks - and to provide guidance on the processes to be adhered to for securing clearance from the DCU Biological Safety Committee (BSC) to undertake this work in a safe manner.
I hold a Ph.D. in molecular microbiology from University College Dublin, and previously have worked with a panel of biological agents and samples ranging from blood to mammalian cells to prions, the causative agents of transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSEs). I hold a Biosafety Practitioner Level 1 award from the Institute of Safety and Technology in Research (ISTR), and have extensive project management experience, based on the PMBOK framework, which has been applied in my recent positions as a project manager in the Fraunhofer Project Centre (FPC@DCU) and, prior to that, the Biomedical Diagnostics Institute (BDI). I can be contacted at barry.byrne@dcu.ie.
Online Research Integrity Training - staff update
DCU academic and research staff have engaged well with the online Research Integrity training module, with 92% drawdown of the account tokens available to DCU to date. However, as we approach the end of the national pilot programme, there are still a cohort of registered staff who have yet to activate their accounts. The target is for all registered staff to have completed their training by December 2020. We know that the last number of months have been extremely demanding on everybody’s time. We have informed schools of progress to date, and will follow up with staff members individually to assist them.
Any new academic and research staff should contact research@dcu.ie for further information or assistance in accessing this training.
In the words of the Vice-President for Research and Innovation:
"As someone who has completed the training, I can confirm that it is a very useful and informative exercise, which allows you to reflect upon your own research practice. For funded researchers, completion of the course will also assist you in fulfilling your research integrity training obligations under the terms of your funded research projects from our national agencies”.
New DCU Library research resources
Click here for the suite of new research-related resources which have been developed by the Library. These guides provide information for researchers on topics such as publishing and open access, bibliometrics, and managing research data.
Sustainable Food Systems Network - new networking platform
Sustainable Food Systems Network is a recently launched virtual platform in which different actors interested in the transformation of European food systems can connect, interact, and inspire each other. SFSN is interactive, transparent, and open for everyone. You can find and share different articles, events, and even job offers in the Network and it is easy to send a message to any of the members. You can register here to join the Sustainable Food Systems Network for free.
Launch of EC Horizon Results Platform
The Horizons Results Platform is an online portal which facilitates the dissemination and exploitation of EC-funded research results. The Horizon Results Platform is free and easy to use and allows the promotion of the Key Exploitable Results (KERs) of EU-funded projects. In addition, it provides access to various types of audiences such as politicians, investors, researchers, scientists, scholars, entrepreneurs, financing experts, IP specialists, and other stakeholders, as well as access to services such as alerts about relevant upcoming calls for proposals, pitching events with investors, possibilities for assistance with your dissemination plans, business development plans, innovation management, and IP management.
“How to avoid errors when claiming costs in H2020 grants” - new guidance document from the EC
The EC has prepared a new guidance document on how to avoid post-award financial errors on EU funded projects. The document was prepared on the basis of the ex-post audits of EU H2020 grants by the European Court of Auditors and the EC’s own auditors. The document also specifies the most common errors made by the beneficiaries since the beginning of the EU H2020 Programme and suggests ways and mechanisms of how to avoid these errors.