Making the most of Research Endowment Fund

The Research Endowment Trust Fund (RETF) supports the strategic development of promising and ambitious research ideas and emerging initiatives in the University.

One of the projects recently completed examined how common air pollutants impact on pest regulation services and was led by Dr Robert Girling in the School of Agriculture and Policy Development.

This project enabled the team to test and establish the Free-Air Diesel and Ozone Enrichment research platform (FADOE), which has been funded by capital investment from NERC to provide new knowledge about the environmental and economic costs of air pollution to key public goods. These include, for example, those insect-mediated ecosystem services that are important for sustainable food production, such as pollination and pest regulation.

Professor Parveen Yaqoob, Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Research & Innovation), said:

“The project was original, rigorous in its planning and strong in its delivery. The University Committee for Research and Innovation particularly seeks to fund projects which maximise opportunity for future research and this project demonstrates excellent promise in that sense.

“The opportunity for leadership development for Dr James Lyalls enabled him to begin to develop an independent research profile and allowed him time to develop an application for a major Fellowship.”

The RETF Open Fund supports projects of up to two years’ duration that align with the strategic priorities of the University or their respective Research Themes.

The next round of applications will be in March 2022 and will be announced on the staff portal.