Founded in 1583, the University of Edinburgh is one of the world’s top universities. It is globally recognised for its research, development and high-quality teaching, attracting some of the world’s leading thinkers to work and study. The University is one of the UK’s top five universities for research and its academics’ research achievements have global implications. Its scientists created Dolly the Sheep, the first mammal to be genetically cloned from an adult cell. The University developed the first genetically engineered hepatitis B vaccine, pioneered the first automated industrial assembly robot, and devised technology used in today’s smartphones. It is working towards many more historic firsts. With one of the most diverse populations of any Scottish University, two thirds of the world’s nationalities are represented in a student body of more than 31,000.
Insects such as ants and beetles use ingenious processes in their brains to work out how far they’ve travelled and in what direction - we’ve now discovered how they remember their way home.
Whereas digital work can bring freedom and flexibility into the lives of workers in Africa, it can also contribute towards their precarity and vulnerability.
Vaccine hesitancy may be a waiting game. Even those who said they would never get the COVID-19 vaccine if it were available immediately became more likely to do so when it was available in the future.
The creation of a Research Excellence Barometer for Africa would contribute to retaining talent and expertise and ensure that Africans benefited from their own research efforts.
Despite having comparatively poor health infrastructure, African public health practitioners have amassed a wealth of experience of managing epidemics.
Relying on donor funding means that the funder ultimately determines the health priorities. This is one reason why many programmes in Africa focus on a single disease such as HIV.
What we want from our working environment in future needs to be explored now so that the needs of employees and employers are equally and fairly considered.