Annika Östman Wernerson: We have much to gain from broadening our perspectives

New opportunities for research partnerships with South Korea

In early October, I led a KI delegation to South Korea, where we met leading universities, hospitals and research bodies. This gave KI the opportunity to strengthen its relations and discuss collaborations on such matters as clinical research, AI in healthcare, precision medicine and biotechnology. There is much to learn from how South Korea deals with pressing demographic and health challenges, which are also of relevance to Sweden.

I’m happy to have signed a new collaboration agreement with Yonsei University in Seoul, which is a leading university in medical research and clinical innovation. For KI, the collaboration brings a new international partner with exciting environments that provide opportunities for joint research projects and researcher exchanges; moreover, South Korea’s association with Horizon Europe opens new openings for research financing.

From dialogue to priorities

A big thanks to everyone who took part in the university management’s dialogue meeting in Solna earlier this month. One of my takeaways from the event was an important discussion on our internal culture and how we can incentivise collaboration across departmental and activity boundaries rather than having internal competition. This is an issue that I am keen to discuss further, perhaps at the next such meeting in Flemingsberg on 17 November.

I was asked some specific questions concerning life as a researcher at KI, such as what the conditions are like for researchers at the start of their careers, financing that doesn’t always cover actual costs, premises and work environments.

Many of those questions are ultimately about how we use our government appropriation. The University Board (Konsistoriet) has now decided on the budget framework for 2027 and we’re moving on to the next stage: deciding on allocations from the President and the Faculty Board. After that, our deputy presidents and heads of department will make priorities within their own frameworks and closest to their respective activities. I hope that many of the issues raised during the dialogue meetings will also be brought to the table here, too.

Take part in discussions on sound research practice

For me, scientific excellence and sound research practice go hand in hand. 

If KI is to succeed in its ambition to conduct research of the very highest standards, we need to safeguard integrity, transparency and responsibility throughout our university. We must not shy away from discussing questions and challenges that ensue from our presence in an increasingly complex research landscape. The ethics committee and I therefore invite everyone to a seminar on 24 November on how we can collectively enhance the quality and trustworthiness of our research.