Lund University (LU)

Basic facts

Lund University (LU) applied for sixteen SRAs and received nine. Furthermore, LU receives funding as co-applicant from three other funded SRAs.

In total, LU was allocated approximately 715 million Swedish Crowns by the government for the SRAs (2010–2014).

During 2014, the SRA funding corresponded to 5% of the basic funding for education and research given to LU from the government.

General comments

Lund University is a comprehensive research university encompassing science and engineering, medicine, humanities, social sciences and law, economics and management, theology, fine art, music and drama. In recent years LU has carried out a comprehensive research assessment exercise (2008), implemented the tenure track career system for faculty and is investing heavily in international scale infrastructures such as the MAXIV electron accelerator laboratory and the European Spallation Source (ESS). LU has created well-established leadership training programmes for researchers and managers, which seem to be highly appreciated. It currently has identified 29 priority areas for research which also encompass the nine SRAs.

Strategic management and use of the SRA funding – Good/inadequate

While one aim of the SRA initiative seemed to be to improve research quality by generating competition between Swedish universities, the chosen strategy of LU was to bring together resources in key areas by cooperating with either Gothenburg or Uppsala universities in six out of its nine SRAs. By avoiding

unnecessary overlaps and by generating synergies they hope to strengthen the Swedish research base. The LU management states that ‘you don’t have to be the best but you must be able to interact with the absolute top’

and they see collaboration as one path toward excellence. The management prefers to support strong groups rather than individuals and believe that such groups help create a culture of excellence by their example.

The concrete means by which the university is supporting the SRAs include a continuous dialogue between LU management and the SRA coordinators, a leadership program, provision of administrative support e.g. for

The SRAs do receive resources from the university but there are no apparent incentive systems linking excellent performance with university support. How the university tackles the challenge of research areas with lesser quality, whether SRAs or others, was not clear in the materials provided nor the interviews. Compared to other excellence funding in the strong research environments at LU, the SRA funding seems to be an add-on without additional strategic relevance or added value. A stronger strategy will be needed which prioritise and focuses resources to areas of excellence and relevance in order to improve the overall performance of the university in an international perspective.

University outcomes and excellence – Good

According to our assessment, LU gets the highest overall grading for its SRA in nanoscience (NanoLU), and excellent grades for diabetes research with Uppsala University (DiabetesLU), neuroscience with University of Gothenburg (NeuroLU), and climate research with University of Gothenburg (EffnatLU). These are established research environments that seem to have further improved their competitiveness through collaboration with their SRA partner universities. With the exception of NanoLU, such collaborative synergy seems to be the most tangible benefit for these RSA’s. Five of the nine SRAs do not appear in the top 30% of the national SRAs, and it is difficult to predict whether the SRA funding will help them to improve in the long run. It was not clear how the university management is planning to support these SRAs toward excellence. It was also not clear whether the university intends to redirect any of the SRA funding between the top SRAs and those with lesser performance in the long run, which however, would be necessary to reap the maximum benefit from the initiative.

Added value of the SRA funding instrument – Good

The added value for the four best SRAs of Lund University was productive collaboration with either Uppsala or Gothenburg. There was limited evidence for major effects on the university strategy, organisation or modes of operation due to the SRA initiative. It seems that the university considers it as yet another competitive grant for research groups. However there was excellent strategic leadership in some of the individual SRAs which created significant added value beyond in the general at the university level.

Summaries of the individual SRAs

CancerLU

Performance: Inadequate Strategy: Inadequate Added value: Inadequate

This is a collaborative SRA between LU (70%) and University of Gothenburg (30%) that focuses on translational research to utilise biomarkers in cancer medicine to improve health care, education and innovation. Research output is high in terms of publication numbers but publication quality as measured by citation impact is not yet above international average. CancerLU has a potential competitive edge in the availability of biobanking materials and has formed strategic alliances, mainly with the health-care sector but also, increasingly, with industrial partners. There is evidence of integration with education at the University of Gothenburg. The main added value of the SRA funding is the establishment of a joint Research School which organises biannual symposia with invitations to health-care and industrial collaborators to stimulate exchange.

Two new cancer centres have been established to develop necessary infrastructure and to help recruit younger scientists. The spectrum of themes in this SRA is very diverse, and improved strategic thinking is needed to help focus research towards reaching excellence at the highest international level.

DiabetesLU

Performance: Excellent/good Strategy: Excellent

Added value: Excellent/good

This SRA is an example of excellent integration between Lund (70%) and Uppsala (30%) Universities, and includes key industrial partners who provide complementary and crucial expertise and resources. One example is the preparation of high quality human islets in Uppsala for use in advanced omics studies in Lund. Research quality is at the highest international level, and the consortium is prepared to take risks and constantly challenge its own views. There are many breakthrough articles in this field, some leading to new treatment options in the hospitals. Large pharmaceutical companies approach the SRA, there is a high degree of international

collaboration and they have received several international awards and increasing invitations to deliver keynote lectures in international meetings. The SRA funding has changed the culture of the research environment that and they are proud of their success in translation. There is apparent collaboration with Karolinska institute for innovation and collaboration with EpiKI. The added value is described as effective utilisation of the tissue bank for ground-breaking research and financial strength so they can continue recruit high quality researchers

EffnatLU

Performance: Excellent/good Strategy: Excellent/good Added value: Good

This is an SRA which focus on the effects of climate change on natural resources, ecosystem services and biodiversity that utilises genuine collaboration between LU (78%) and University of Gothenburg (22%). The number and quality of their publications is impressive, with a high percentage of their papers in the top 10%

and top 1% most cited papers in the World of Science. These papers address the needs of society in Sweden and internationally. The SRA funding has been used to create a common research environment that can contribute to important research questions. The SRA has a board that supports their development by ensuring a strategic allocation of the funding. There is also a stakeholder panel which oversees and guide the research programme and a communication office that has helped facilitate the translation of the science for the public.

There are excellent networks establishedwith agriculturalists and foresters, science and technology in the industry, government policymakers and relevant international bodies. There is a good integration of the research with education at Masters, PhD and Post-doctoral levels and a joint graduate training programme. The programme is well organized with a strong strategy and solid management framework and infrastructure for effective development.

EpiLU

Performance: Good Strategy: Good

Added value: Good/inadequate

This is an SRA between LU (60%) and Uppsala University (40%) which focus on basic-translational and applied epidemiological research. The two host universities are pooling their resources in epidemiology, but how this is done is unclear. The publication profile is on the frontline. Theere are joint publications of large consortia in the top journals but difficult to pinpoint the contribution of individual scientists or groups to the work. Even with the broad nature of epidemiology research, there is evident risk with very widespread interests including obesity, functional food products, diabetes type 2 and cardiovascular disease. SRA funding was used to start the Epi-Health cohort which includs bio-banking, building infrastructure and recruitment. There are widespread national collaboration and contacts with AstraZeneca, the food industry, local biotech SMEs and

KlimLU

Performance: Good Strategy: Good Added value: Good

This SRA, which focus on modeling regional and global earth systems is led by LU and involves four other universities (CTH, KTH, GU and Linnaeus University) and the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute (SMHI). Through increasing recruitment this SRA is building the critical mass in Earth system science. The added value is obvious through synergistic interactions and interdisciplinary work between the partners. There are an impressive number of publications that are reaching international standards in quality.

Stakeholder engagement is a strong point, and impact is emerging through global and regional climate models for mitigation of and adaptation to climate change. A Swedish climate adaptation portal uses information from this SRA. Doctoral training within KlimLU attracts students from all over Sweden and internationally, adding an element of much needed mobility. The research school is innovative and foster trans-disciplinary

knowledge.  

NanoLU

Performance: Excellent Strategy: Excellent Added value: Excellent

Research within NanoLU is organised into six major research areas including materials science, quantum physics, nanoelectronics and nanophotonics, nanoenergy, nanobiology and nanoneuroscience as well as nanosafety. The quality of publications is very high with 20% of publications in the top-ten percentile.

Innovation in entirely new ways of making nanowires was immediately picked up by an industrial partner as a start-up activity. Applications in solar cells and for medicine is under development, and the nanolab facility is shared with industry. There is good integration with education with BSc and MSc level courses in nanoscience.

There is also good national collaboration; they organise a joint summer school with the Chalmers Nanoscience SRA and share facilities with MatLiu As well as being well connected internationally. In spite of their excellent performance, co-publishing outside of academia is relatively scarce. Strategic collaboration with stakeholders is, however, evident in terms of shared infrastructure.

NeuroLU

Performance: Excellent Strategy: Excellent/good Added value: Excellent

NeuroLU consists predominantly of research teams in Lund with one group working in Gothenburg on drug development aspects. The SRA focuses on a translational pathway for Parkinson’s disease and related

disorders, spanning from basic research to patient based research. This SRA enjoys a long-standing world class reputation in neuroscience; the publication profile and scientific impact of the research environment are at the forefront. Some of their published work is pioneering, e.g. in pre-clinical and clinical research on Parkinsons.

Multiple links to partner companies are clear, and the SRA appears committed to bringing their discoveries to the marketplace. Integration in education concentrated to MSc and PhD levels but many PI’s teach at the undergraduate level. They are a core partner in a national graduate school for ageing and health. There is good national networking and collaboration with four other SRAs including, StemTherapy, BioCare, EXODIAB and EpiHealth. There is a clear management plan and excellent leadership is in place. This is strong and steadily well-funded group, although some questions remain on the strategic use and added value of this particular form of funding.

PolregLU

Performance: Excellent/good Strategy: Excellent/good Added value: Excellent

An SRA focusing on Middle Eastern studies and comprising of staff from five different faculties at LU, PolregLU has grown substantially due to both recruitment and transferring staff to the SRA. They have excellent publication performance, international and cross-disciplinary collaboration and expertise in

combining their knowledge in politics, industry and community in the Middle East. There is good integration with education at the MSc level with students involved in research, and they provide training courses for ABB that operates in the Middle East. There is a strong media presence concerning Middle Eastern issues and with the current turbulence in the Middle East and their broad scope and excellence, this SRA brings genuine added value.

StamLU

Performance: Good Strategy: Good

Added value: Excellent/good

This is a strong interdependent collaboration between LU (80%) and Uppsala University (20%), which focus on regenerative therapy. Their publication record is at good international level, but there has been no significant improvement despite a 50% increase in personnel over the past five years. They have maintained international networks and collaboration with top universities and institutes. There is excellent recruitment of young PI’s who have attracted significant external funding at least doubling the SRA investment, and there is a mentorship programme for junior faculty. There is a plan for increased collaboration with KI. There is apparently good integration with education at all levels, with PhD scholarships granted for PI’s to distribute from the Master programme. SRA funding is used strategically for recruitment, new technology platforms and new technology development. Most of the potential clinical applications are still on an experimental stage, although one advanced protocol has converted to a commercial product in collaboration with Primotigin Biosciences in Wisconsin, U.S.A. There is a strong focus on translation, but so far few investment of new initiatives into stakeholder programmes or end user groups.