The majority of the Arab world gained independence from western colonization during the second half of the 20th century. While Western states were building their research base then, most Arab states were focused on education. Now, the Arab world is trying to catch up. The two main challenges we face today are improving scientific training, and engaging more women in science. Read more
Earth is destabilizing rapidly. Terrorism, conflict, genocide, human displacement, socio-economic disruption, rapid global environmental change, slow emergencies and natural disasters are more common than at any point in history. Consequently, opportunities exist for researchers to investigate the causes, consequences and potential management solutions arising from this instability. For this to happen, we need a well-trained workforce equipped with the skills and capabilities to work with ‘traumatic’ research content, people and places. Read more
It is crucial to your professional success to have one or more strong and knowledgeable advocates and guides in your court. And you can’t leave this up to chance or a random meet. Read more
Should you try to avoid conflict at all costs, or confront an uncomfortable situation head-on? It depends – but when your scientific reputation is on the line, it may help to head it off. If that’s not possible, you’ll need to tread lightly when you do address it. Have a look at how others have handled gnarly situations and what experts recommend. Read more
Becoming a new faculty member is, as we’ve discussed in this series, hard. You have to demonstrate a cornucopia of scientific, interpersonal, organisational and management skills, and plan out high-level research regularly. Good science is the ultimate goal of this, and for your lab to produce good science, you have to make sure that all of the cogs in your research machine are turning smoothly. Read more
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