Call for BBSRC Strategy (Advisory) Panels, Pool of Experts and Follow-on Fund Committee

The BBSRC are looking to appoint committed individuals from academia, industry and other BBSRC user communities to fill a number of vacancies on their Strategy (Advisory) Panels, the Pool of Experts and Follow-on Fund Committee. The Panels play leading roles in the development and implementation of the Council's strategies, policies and priorities.
Expertise is sought in the following areas:

Bioscience for Health Strategy Advisory Panel

• Immunology, particularly relating to healthy ageing across the life course
• Regenerative biology
• Integrative biology approaches to understanding the healthy human system

Food Security Strategy Advisory Panel
Broad expertise in one or more of the following areas:

•  agricultural systems/agri-ecology
•  animal health/food safety/animal welfare
•  plant science/breeding/crop protection
•  post-harvest biology

Bioscience for Industry Strategy Panel

• Agriculture
• Animal breeding
• Biotech SMEs
• Knowledge Transfer

Bioscience Skills and Careers Strategy Panel

• Applicants with interests spanning one or more areas of the Bioscience Skills and Careers Strategy Panel's remit (see its Terms of Reference by following the link below)

Bioscience for Society Strategy Panel

• Science communication, particularly communication with the public through the media. Expertise in public attitudes towards science would be valuable.
• Science education in schools, particularly experience of the links between science education and scientific research and researchers
• In addition, the BBSRC are looking for a panel Chair. Applicants should have expertise relevant to the work of the Bioscience for Society Strategy Panel (this could be wider than the expertise outlined above, see Panel Terms of Reference by following the link below), as well as an ability to chair senior advisory panels including:
• leadership skills at a senior level
• ability and experience to exercise judgement across a broad spectrum of strategic and policy issues
• knowledge and experience of BBSRC policies and BBSRC policy making procedures
• recognition and respect within the wider bioscience stakeholder community

Pool of Experts

• the BBSRC has identified a number of vacancies within the Pool of Experts which are outlined on the Committee/Pool membership page. In addition they would particularly welcome expressions of interest from technology developers, practitioners and from those with expertise in the following areas:

• Agricultural engineering
• Anti-microbial resistance (in particular novel biological approaches and mechanisms of resistance)
• Bioinformatics
• Food, nutrition and health
• Reduction of waste in food chains
• Synthetic biology
• Systems biology
• Virology

They are also looking for members to serve on  Research Committee E who can mentor and support fellows, interview candidates and also carry out peer review.  Please note that they are happy to receive expressions of interest from both UK and non-UK based applicants.

Follow-on Fund Committee

• Food security
• Bioenergy and industrial biotechnology
• Basic bioscience underpinning health / pharmaceutical
• Exploiting new ways of working / tools and technologies

Also expertise to make an assessment against the main criteria for the initiative. These include:

• Scientific quality
• Commercial potential
• Quality of the commercial development plan
• Evidence of added value enhancing the commercialisation potential

For this reason Committee members need to understand the issues associated with the commercialisation of bioscience research.


Further Details: 

Appointments will be for one year initially, with anticipated extension for a further two years.

For further details and guidance on how to apply visit:  http://www.bbsrc.ac.uk/news/people-skills-training/2014/140512-n-call-strategy-panels-pool-experts-fof.aspx

The closing date for applications is Monday 16 June 2014.