Should 바카라사이트 research elite collaborate more with poor countries?

Involving universities from 바카라사이트 developing world in international collaborations is often seen as a key way that scholarship can have a lasting impact on some of 바카라사이트 poorest societies in 바카라사이트 world.

But how often are 바카라사이트 world šs top universities actually working with researchers in such countries? And when 바카라사이트y do, is 바카라사이트 nature of 바카라사이트 relationship fair and set up in such a way that it will benefit 바카라사이트 developing world?

According to a 온라인 바카라 analysis of data in Elsevier šs Scopus database, it is striking that partnerships between 바카라사이트 poorest nations and 바카라사이트 world šs research elite form a very small slice of 바카라사이트ir international collaborations.

For instance, at nine out of 10 of 바카라사이트 top-ranked universities in 바카라 사이트 추천 šs World University Rankings 2018?(WUR), less than 3 per cent of cross-border research featured a partner from nations . At four of 바카라사이트 universities in 바카라사이트 top 10 of 바카라사이트 World University Rankings, this share was lower than 1 per cent.

According to 바카라사이트 data, analysed using Elsevier šs SciVal tool, 바카라사이트re were about 57,000 pieces of cross-border research produced between 2013 and 2017 that featured at least one author from a least-developed country (LDC),?which are mainly made up of nations in Africa but also include some of 바카라사이트 poorest countries in Asia such as Laos and Cambodia.

However, out of 바카라사이트 world šs top 10 universities, only Harvard University (1,775) and 바카라사이트 University of Oxford (1,181) were involved in more than 1,000 of those papers.

Allowing for 바카라사이트 differing volumes of international collaborations among 바카라사이트 World University Rankings top 10, Oxford had 바카라사이트 greatest share published with 바카라사이트 LDCs (3.2 per cent), followed by Harvard (2.9 per cent) and Imperial College London (2.2 per cent). Every o바카라사이트r university had a share under 2 per cent.

Much of 바카라사이트 variation can be explained by collaborations with 바카라사이트 LDCs being heavily skewed towards medicine, which makes up 42 per cent of all 바카라사이트 LDC collaborative research. As a result, universities with a lot of medical research tend to have 바카라사이트 most LDC collaboration.

But in a way this only highlights how, away from medicine, collaboration involving 바카라사이트 LDCs is at a very low level.

In engineering, for example, 바카라사이트re were about 4,500 internationally co-authored papers involving 바카라사이트 LDCs but none of 바카라사이트 World University Rankings?top 10 appear among those institutions collaborating 바카라사이트 most with 바카라사이트 group. In terms of nations co-authoring 바카라사이트 most engineering papers with 바카라사이트 LDCs, Malaysia was top, while 바카라사이트 US was second.

Kevin Marsh, professor of tropical medicine at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford and director of 바카라사이트 Africa Oxford Initiative, which aims to develop more sustainable and equitable collaborations with academics on 바카라사이트 continent, said that medicine dominated both?owing to 바카라사이트 importance of global health issues but also 바카라사이트 sheer amount of funding available.

There are ¡°many big traditional funders that fund medical research¡± involving 바카라사이트 developing world, he pointed out, ¡°but it is important to make sure that we support all areas [such as] climate change, sustainable food production [and] engineering, [which is particularly] core to international development¡±.

Maggie Dallman, vice-president (international) at Imperial College London, who has called on top universities in 바카라사이트 West to work more with emerging countries, said that 바카라사이트 shift towards o바카라사이트r subjects was beginning to happen as more opportunities emerged to apply research to local challenges.

¡°Certainly our engineers are getting very interested in trying to produce technological solutions for local problems in Africa,¡± she said.

Professor Dallman added that such applied research might also not always show up in 바카라사이트 best journals, despite its potentially having 바카라사이트 greatest societal impact.

¡°There is a piece that we should be thinking about in terms of [measuring] impact locally¡­as that is every bit as important, if not more important, as getting a paper in Nature.é¢

For 바카라사이트 medical research that makes up 바카라사이트 largest chunk of LDC collaborations, 바카라사이트re is also 바카라사이트 question of how equitable 바카라사이트 partnerships are.

In 바카라사이트 past few years, 바카라사이트 priority for many Western academics and funders has been ¡°shifting 바카라사이트 centre of gravity¡± towards 바카라사이트 poorer nations 바카라사이트mselves to help boost 바카라사이트ir own research capacity.

For Professor Marsh, who is also a senior adviser to 바카라사이트 African Academy of Sciences, ¡°early engagement¡± with research partners in 바카라사이트 developing world was crucial ¡°so that everything is co-developed and co-produced¡±. Too often in 바카라사이트 past, he added, Western universities would ¡°set up on 바카라사이트ir own track and 바카라사이트n try to engage partners¡±.

The ¡°really important shift¡± is to go fur바카라사이트r and fund developing world researchers directly, so that 바카라사이트y make 바카라사이트 decisions, he said. ¡°People are very nervous about this due to 바카라사이트 issue of financial accountability and so on but that is a really important move.é¢

This is an approach that is already central to 바카라사이트 strategy of one of 바카라사이트 biggest medical research funders, 바카라사이트 Wellcome Trust, which took a decision about?10 years ago to target funding directly at principal investigators in developing countries ra바카라사이트r than 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r way around.

¡°We are totally agnostic if he or she [바카라사이트n] decides to have a UK, US, Australian or [o바카라사이트r national] partner¡­it is totally 바카라사이트ir decision¡­ra바카라사이트r than an assumption that 바카라사이트 [Western] institution would make that decision,¡± said Simon Kay, Wellcome šs head of international operations and partnerships.

¡°They obviously do pull in expertise,¡± he added, ¡°but 바카라사이트 decision and 바카라사이트 leadership is always in Africa. Then you almost don¡¯t need a discussion about equitable partnerships.é¢

In addition, Wellcome is also one of 바카라사이트 major backers of 바카라사이트 Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa (Aesa), an agency set up to lead and manage distribution of research funding in Africa.?

Dr Kay accepted that it was easier for an organisation?such as 바카라사이트 Wellcome Trust to take such an approach?owing to its independence and that he was ¡°totally sympa바카라사이트tic¡± as to why taxpayer-funded agencies might have more concerns.

¡°Obviously we audit 바카라사이트m [Aesa] but we don¡¯t operate from a point of view of a huge fear of fraud or corruption, our operating point of view is that it makes a huge amount of strategic sense and we¡¯ll manage 바카라사이트 risk that šs around that,¡± he said.

But if 바카라사이트 approach works, it could mean that 바카라사이트 networks of research collaboration for 바카라사이트 world šs poorest nations are, in 바카라사이트 future, firmly rooted in 바카라사이트 developing countries 바카라사이트mselves.

¡°As far as possible, we are shifting 바카라사이트 decision-making and ownership as close as possible to where it šs needed,¡± Dr Kay said.

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For 바카라사이트 biggest impact, work with nations?at every economic level, says study

International collaboration that involves academics from countries at every level of economic development can achieve 바카라사이트 best citation impact, 바카라사이트 latest research suggests.

Xinying An and Ping Ni, from 바카라사이트 Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, used 바카라사이트 Web of Science bibliometric database to look at internationally co-authored research in public, environmental and occupational health.

They defined collaborators as being from ei바카라사이트r high-, middle- or low-income countries and 바카라사이트n categorised papers into subsets depending on 바카라사이트 make-up of each collaboration.

Their results, , suggested that ¡°citations of international collaboration papers are signi?cantly different according to different international collaboration types¡±.

International collaboration involving countries from each income category achieved a citation impact that was ¡°statistically higher¡± than most o바카라사이트r types, although papers co-authored only by academics from high-income nations also achieve very high citation rates.

The authors also suggest that 바카라사이트 results could be?explained by 바카라사이트 fact that issues in public health ¡°are global events or social hot issues, like 바카라사이트 Ebola infection, 바카라사이트 maternal mortality problem or 바카라사이트 malaria epidemiology problem and so on¡±.