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About the Conference

Leeds-HKU Conference: Moving Beyond Research to Engagement and Impact

Every researcher who is passionate about his or her research wants to change the world in some way and knowledge exchange (KE) is the way for them to do this.

Public engagement and the articulation of research impact to society have been moving up university agendas in the UK. In the UK Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014, "Impact" beyond academia carried a weighting of 20%. In Hong Kong, with the support of the University Grants Committee since 2009, higher education institutions have recognized the importance of knowledge exchange / knowledge transfer alongside teaching and research.

Jointly organized by the University of Leeds and The University of Hong Kong, this conference seeks to discuss and analyze the complexities of shaping an impact agenda in higher education. Overseas experts will join academics in Hong Kong who are experienced in engaging with industries and the community to discuss issues focusing on the processes involved in achieving impact beyond academia; how to overcome barriers; and how to take KE to the next level.

The conference will be of interest to any researchers who believe their research can make a difference on society, senior management responsible for KE policies in their institutions, professionals and administrators responsible for implementing KE or technology transfer-related initiatives within their institutions, support staff for public engagement, industries and community organisations wishing to develop partnerships with institutions, funding agencies that wish to encourage institutions to become more engaged with society in their funded research projects, and students enthusiastic in making use of their knowledge learned at the university to contribute to society.

This conference is supported by the HKU Knowledge Exchange Fund granted by the University Grants Committee and the funding support under the Innovation and Technology Fund to dedicated technology transfer offices.