Teesside launches five new research institutes

The Director of the Leverhulme Trust, Professor Sir Richard Brook, will be the keynote speaker at the official launch of Teesside University’s five new research institutes.

The launch will take place on Wednesday 16 September.

Teesside University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Graham Henderson says: 'The five new research institutes will provide a clearer focus for research development at the University and a platform upon which to build Teesside’s growing reputation for research excellence in a number of key areas.' He is delighted that Sir Richard is supporting the launch, which coincides with publication of the first edition of the University’s Annual Research Report.

The new research institutes are: >Digital Futures Institute >Health and Social Care Institute >Institute of Design, Culture and the Arts >Social Futures Institute >Technology Futures Institute

As well as hearing from Sir Richard Brook, the event which takes place in the Stephenson building (formerly the Innovation Building) from 10.30am to 1.30pm, will highlight examples of the innovative research being undertaken at Teesside by researchers in the five institutes.

Research that is of value to industry Professor Cliff Hardcastle, Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research and Enterprise) says: 'As a University, Teesside seeks to carry out research that is of value to industry, the public sector and society as a whole. We’re looking forward to highlighting the collaborations and partnerships that many of our researchers are engaged in and demonstrating how the University can act as a knowledge creator and conduit to bring valuable research to the North East.' The event is being organised by the University’s Graduate Research School, whose Dean, Dr Elizabeth Robertson, said: 'We look forward to sharing with our external stakeholders our research achievements and vision for the development of research at the University.’

Richard John Brook, Director, The Leverhulme Trust Professor Brook graduated from the University of Leeds in 1962 with a degree in Ceramics prior to undertaking doctoral studies at MIT. He then went to the University of Southern California in Los Angeles as Assistant Professor of Materials Science before returning in 1970 to the UK Atomic Energy Research Establishment at Harwell. In 1974 Professor Brook became Professor and Head of the Department of Ceramics at the University of Leeds.

In 1988, Professor Brook moved to Germany to become a scientific member of the Max-Planck-Society and Director at the Institute of Metals Research in Stuttgart. He is Honorary Professor at the University of Stuttgart.

In 1991, he returned to the UK as Professor and later Head of the Department of Materials Science at the University of Oxford. Since 1994, he has taken leave of absence from the University of Oxford to hold first the position of Chief Executive at the UK Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (1994-2001) and subsequently that of Director at the Leverhulme Trust, the largest all-subject research support agency in the UK.

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