Global focus for Cardiff University’s innovation and research institutes

Cardiff University invests £5.4m in five innovation and research institutes to tackle biggest issues facing society, the economy and the environment.

Cardiff University has launched five innovation and research institutes dedicated to tackling some of the biggest challenges facing our world.

The interdisciplinary institutes were unveiled in an event at the prestigious Royal Institution in London on Thursday 9 March 2023.

Each institute will deliver research with global impact and bring together academics from a range of disciplines to tackle some of the biggest issues facing society, the economy and the environment.

• Digital Transformation Innovation Institute: This institute is driving digital transformation, with a focus on real-world solutions that have ethical, secure, and positive societal and economic changes at their heart.
• Net Zero Innovation Institute: This institute uses an interdisciplinary approach to provide the vital innovation needed to achieve net zero at both a technological and social level.
• Neuroscience and Mental Health Innovation Institute: This institute addresses one of the major societal challenges facing the world today – the increasing burden of mental ill health and neurodegenerative disorders.
• Security, Crime, and Intelligence Innovation Institute: This institute brings together world-leading interdisciplinary research units to develop innovative solutions to the problems of crime, global security, and social control.
• Systems Immunity Research Institute: This institute leads cutting-edge research that transforms the diagnosis, treatment, and quality-of-life for patients.

The institutes represent a significant additional investment of research funding of £5.4 million and are housed in some of Cardiff University’s most cutting-edge facilities. These include sbarc|spark which brings together researchers, entrepreneurs, student start-ups, and academic spinouts; the Translational Research Hub which gathers industry leaders and scientists together to find collaborative scientific solutions to achieving net zero; the Hadyn Ellis Building which brings together experts in conditions such as schizophrenia, Alzheimer's disease and stem cell cancer research; and the Heath Park Campus which is home to Cardiff University’s School of Medicine.

Professor Roger Whitaker, Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Innovation and Enterprise at Cardiff University, said: “Research and innovation go hand in hand. Outstanding innovation thrives on great research. Here at Cardiff University, collaboration is a real strength. We're bringing people together to work across disciplines, looking at the same problem from different perspectives. The institutes have already secured over £23m in new awards this academic year, reflecting the cutting edge work they are doing.”

The launch event in London showcased the internationally excellent research and innovation being undertaken by the institutes and provided an opportunity for representatives from key external organisations to meet with members of the institutes to learn more about their work and explore areas of potential collaboration. Guests included representatives from the UK and Welsh governments, Cancer Research UK, IBM, and BP.