Research in the UK has changed dramatically in recent years, and the need to address today’s big societal issues is a strategic focus for universities, government, research councils, business and industry.
In order to tackle these issues, we must develop innovative approaches that bridge conventional boundaries between research disciplines.
We have responded to this challenge by establishing Strategic Research Themes to develop cross-Faculty, multi-disciplinary initiatives. Focusing on themes that build on our current areas of expertise, the themes address key national and international priority research areas, including climate change, energy, the ageing population, high-tech crime and lifestyle diseases.
Each theme draws together researchers from across the University, combining our research in engineering, humanities, social sciences, biological and physical sciences, medicine and health technologies, as well as law, management and art.
By joining up our exciting and diverse areas of research and by partnering with external organisations in industry, charities, the public sector and other higher education establishments, we can make a significant contribution towards understanding and alleviating some of society's major challenges.
