Research: a collective endeavor
Director of the Leverhulme Trust
Research is never a solitary endeavour: behind every discovery lies a community of researchers, technicians, support staff and institutions. Supporting people, collaboration and intellectual freedom is what ultimately makes great research possible.
- Research is a collective endeavour, relying not only on academics but also on technicians, librarians, junior researchers and support staff.
- Funding people can be as important as funding projects, giving talented researchers the freedom to pursue ideas whose outcomes cannot be predicted.
- Long-term funding builds research communities, supporting discoveries while developing PhD students, early-career researchers and future research leaders.
- International collaboration accelerates progress, with many major discoveries now emerging from research teams working across national borders.
- Trust and simplicity matter in research funding: reducing bureaucracy allows researchers to spend more time doing research and pursuing ambitious ideas.
Research: a collective endeavor
Research is often portrayed as the work of exceptional individuals, but every achievement depends on a much wider community. Funding therefore needs to support not only projects, but people and careers over time. Long-term grants can create environments where researchers, PhD students, technicians and support staff collectively thrive. International collaboration further expands this ecosystem, with many major discoveries emerging from teams working across borders. The story of graphene illustrates the power of investing in talented people before knowing exactly where their research will lead. Ultimately, great research depends on trust, collaboration, long-term support and the freedom to pursue new ideas.
