Insights

As the research sector continues to invest in research culture, attention is increasingly turning to a new question: has all this work actually made a difference? Funders, institutions and sector bodies are rightly seeking to understand impact. Programmes are being evaluated, surveys are being commissioned, and new datasets are emerging to track progress. This is both necessary and overdue. Improving research culture is not just about initiating change.

Across higher education and research, governing bodies are being asked to make decisions in conditions that are more uncertain, more politicised and more financially constrained than at any point in recent memory. In response, it is entirely understandable that boards lean into what feels safe: tighter controls, stronger assurance, and a heightened focus on risk. But from that emerges a growing tension between what boards are optimising for and what effective governance re

The Trusted Research Evaluation Framework (TREF) offers institutions a structured way to reflect on how they approach research security. Used well, it can support proportionate decision‑making, highlight gaps in capability, and create a shared language across complex institutions. Used less carefully, it risks becoming another checklist layered onto already crowded and stretched compliance environments.

Research security has become a central feature of global research governance. Yet, as these agendas develop, they can clash with other foundational principles of research. Equitable partnerships is one point of tension that’s received less focus. As a result, well-intentioned security measures can inadvertently undermine the very values that make research collaborative, inclusive, and impactful. The rise of research security: A growing field

In an era of heightened geopolitical tension, research security has shot to the top of policy agendas worldwide. Governments and institutions are implementing new measures intended to safeguard sensitive science against threats like espionage, theft, and undue foreign influence. The Flagship EU Conference on Research Security, held recently in Brussels, underscored the urgency: for the first time, the European Union announced plans to anchor research security in EU law via