Research Culture Uncovered

In this episode of the Research Culture Uncovered podcast, host Dr Taryn Bell talks with Dr Sara Shinton and Dr Katie Nicoll Baines from the Future Leaders Fellows Development Network . Together, they discuss how the FLFDN enables future research leaders, supports institutions across the UK and helps shape a more collaborative and collegiate research culture. Key highlights: 1️⃣ Enabling, rather t...

🎙️ The Research Culture Uncovered podcast team is thrilled to present our latest episode featuring Vicky Williams, Chief Executive Officer of Emerald Publishing. Join hosts Ged Hall, Head of Researcher Development at the University of Leeds, and Nick Sheppard, Open Research Advisor in the University’s Library, as they delve into the insights and experiences of Vicky in shaping research culture. 🔹...

In this episode, Ruth Winden, Careers with Research Consultant at the University of Leeds, speaks to Dr Elizabeth Faulkner and Dr Cathal Rogers about the UK's Higher Education sector and its systemic inequalities for researchers who return to their research careers after maternity leave. Following a nation-wide Freedom of Information request to 130 Higher Education institutions in the UK, Elizabet...

In this insightful episode, Dr. Emily Goodall speaks with Dr. James Greenwood-Reeves about how research can be radically reimagined when it’s creative, collaborative, and community-led. Together, they explore how working with drag artists through the “Laws a Drag” network is challenging traditional academic norms and reshaping what research culture can look like. Key highlights: 1️⃣ Co-production...

Show Notes Episode Summary: In Beyond the Pain Scale: Embodied Research , host Dr Heledd Jarosz-Griffiths speaks with Dr Neko Mellor about how chronic pain, disability, and neurodiversity shape both research and writing. Drawing on her PhD in English at the University of Leeds, Neko explores how twenty-first-century women authors represent pain, reflecting on the limits of medical pain scales, the...

In this episode of the 'Research Culture Uncovered' podcast, Emma Spary, Associate Director for Researcher Development and Research Culture at the University of Leeds, is joined by guests Nik Ogryzko, from UKRI's Central Talent Team, and Kelly Vere, Director of Technical Strategy at the University of Nottingham. The discussion explores the need for a shift from a culture that's merely nice to one...

Research Culture Uncovered: Navigating Career and Parenthood as a Scientist Host Ruth Winden (Careers with Research Consultant) and guest Dr. Hema Viswambharan (Senior Scientist, LICAMM, University of Leeds) “Building a career after a break is like a marathon and not a sprint.” (Dr. Hema Viswambharan) Episode Overview: In this highly personal episode, Ruth Winden speaks with Dr. Hema Viswambharan...

University of Leeds Libraries is proud to partner with Wikimedia UK to promote open knowledge across campus and beyond. Wikimedia UK is the national chapter of the global Wikimedia movement and in this episode Nick is joined by Dr. Lucy Hinnie and Dr. Richard Nevell to explore the role of Wikimedians in Residence, particularly at universities. Lucy and Richard discuss the importance of Wikipedia i...

In this episode ‘ Sparking Impact: The People, Values, and Vibe of the UK Knowledge Mobilisation Forum with Dr Vicky Ward’ Ged Hall talks to Dr. Vicky Ward (Reader in Management at the University of St. Andrews) about the UK Knowledge Mobilisation Forum and her period as its Chair. They discuss the unique world of knowledge mobilisation and what makes the UK Knowledge Mobilisation Forum so special...

It's time to talk about failure again! In this episode, Taryn Bell chats with Ireen Litvak-Zur, Senior Consultant at Advance HE. Ireen discusses her experiences of failure both in and out of academia, and shares her thoughts on how to fail well. Key takeaways: "Failure now is a step in a process, rather than an outcome": there's still an ingrained stigma against failure in academia, but Ireen's ow...

What started as a bold idea has made a real, lasting impact on supporting Early Career Researchers (ECRs) at the University of Leeds.  A team of exceptional postdocs, Jessica Swanson , Laurin McDowall and James Warren led a collaborative project that tackled some of the biggest challenges ECRs face: fragmented information on professional development, the need for greater awareness of opportun...

This week Nick speaks with his Library colleague Kikachukwu Oluonye about the UKRN Train the Trainer programme. Like Nick, Kikachukwu is an Open Research Adviser based in the Library and also has a role with the UK Reproducibility Network (UKRN) as Open Research Coordinators and Administrator (ORCA) . As a member institution of UKRN, Kikachukwu would like to invite University of Leeds colleag...

🎙️ Dive into the world of research technical professionals, or RTPs, in our latest episode on the Research Culture Uncovered podcast. Join Ged Hall as he welcomes Marie Daniels , Programme Manager of the UK Robotics and Autonomous Systems Strategic Technical Platform or UK RAS STEPS , to discuss how they are working with Research Technical Professionals to cultivate a thriving, dynamic and vibrant...

In this episode, Taryn Bell speaks to Dr Ireen Litvak-Zur about her reflections on the June 2025 AdvanceHE symposium, 'Barriers and Enablers to Thriving Research Cultures'. Ireen discusses her role at Advance HE, their programs aimed at fostering a sustainable research ecosystem, and the impact of limited resources on research culture. Key takeaways: The incentive to shift from focusing on barrier...

In this solo episode, Ruth Winden, the Careers with Research Consultant at the University of Leeds, shares her insights of designing, facilitating and expanding the range of group-based career development programmes for the university's researcher community. Over the last decade, Leeds has built a strong track record of creating impactful cohort-based career courses, from "Career Architect", "Care...

Research Culture Uncovered are excited to share the second in a new series of podcast episodes called Research Impact Heroes. In this series Ged Hall will be talking to people who have inspired him and helped him in his research impact journey. In this episode Ged gets to sit down with the brilliant Dr. Julie Bayley —Director of Research Impact and Culture and Associate Professor at Northeastern U...

In this episode, host Dr Emily Goodall welcomes Professor Judith Hanks , Professor of Applied Linguistics in the School of Education at the University of Leeds and Chair of the cross-faculty research ethics committee. They delved into the essential, yet often overlooked, role of research ethics review in shaping positive culture. 🔑 Key Takeaways:   🧱 Ethics as integral to research Culture,...

In this episode of the 'Research Culture Uncovered' podcast, Emma Spary, now the Associate Director for Researcher Development and Research Culture at the University of Leeds, hosts a reflective conversation with Professor Cat Davies. As Cat steps down from her groundbreaking role as Dean for Research Culture at Leeds, they discuss her achievements, challenges and contributions over the past four...

This week Nick talks to Simon Hettrick about the importance of recognising research outputs beyond the traditional academic publications of journal articles and books. These include software, data, exhibitions, compositions, performances...the diverse range of research materials across different disciplines. Simon is Director of Strategy at the Software Sustainability Institute . He led a campaign...

Career mobility in academia has traditionally been seen as a one-way street. You're either in academia, or you leave - never to return! But is this true? In this episode of the Research Culture Uncovered podcast, hosts Taryn Bell and Ruth Winden discuss career mobility with Danni Croucher, Policy Lead at the National Centre for Universities and Businesses (NCUB). We also hear from researchers at L...

📋 Content Note In this episode, we explore the practice of coaching in academia, including how it can support leadership, career development, and wellbeing. The conversation touches on emotionally sensitive topics such as personal and professional transitions, experiences of low confidence, navigating vulnerability, neurodiversity, and challenges related to academic culture and job security. Whil...

Shownotes: Further Together (as mentioned by Nick Plant) Further Together Ged Hall: LinkedIn link Ged Hall Ruth Winden: LinkedIn link Ruth Winden

Content note: In this episode we focus on a new project to engage and celebrate postdocs at the University of Leeds: Pathfinder 🚩 What Is Pathfinder? Pathfinder isn’t just an email in your inbox – it’s a project built on co-creation. Produced by Ruth Winden (Careers with Research Consultant) and Dr. Susan Donkin (Project Officer) from the Researcher Development and Research Culture Team in (OD&am...

Content note: In this episode we will explore the practice of coaching in academia, including how we can support leadership, career development and wellbeing. The conversation touches on emotionally sensitive topics such as personal barriers, distress in coaching sessions, and challenges related to job insecurity and academic culture. While these are discussed in a supportive and professional cont...

In our latest episode on the Research Culture Uncovered podcast Ged Hall talks to Dr. Wade Kelly, who has moved between professional staff roles and academic roles a number of times in his career. This episode dives deep into Wade’s career journey, spanning continents and sectors and how he has embraced change and stayed open to new identities and possibilities. Here are the top 3 takeaways: Don’t...