Funding and partners

Finding funding can be one of the most rewarding – and the most stressful – elements of carrying out research. The pressure to source funding to move your research forward means that security considerations risk being deprioritised.

UK research attracts collaboration, funding and investment from partners across the globe. Whilst this is hugely beneficial to UK research, there are also risks, especially when funding and collaboration partners are from countries with different ethical and democratic values to the UK.

When looking for funding for your research, there are a wide variety of issues that need to be taken into consideration, including:

• Are you carrying out the right due diligence on the source?
• Are there ethical or legal issues related to the funding?
• Who will own the IP when your work is done?
• Could your research be used to support activities in other countries with ethical standards different from our own, such as internal surveillance and repression?
• Does working with this partner create a conflict of interest for existing funding and collaboration projects?

Created in partnership with academic and industry specialists, Trusted Research outlines all of the questions STEM researchers should be asking and provides the information needed to make informed decisions when working with international collaborators. The advice is designed to help protect research from theft and exploitation, ensuring that work is kept safe and your reputation remains intact.

To find out more about how to protect your research please visit
https://www.cpni.gov.uk/trusted-research-guidance-academia