Dr. Ryan Edginton

Communities Engagement Manager, University of Exeter

About

Ryan is developing the stakeholder involvement strategy for the Raman Nanotheranostics (RaNT) research programme at the University of Exeter.

A strong proponent of Engaged Research, Ryan works with people that have experience of living with cancer, clinicians, and other healthcare professionals, incorporating their vast and varied experiences of the UK’s cancer care pathway into the design and implementation of this evolving clinical technique.

He also engages with members of the public who might have no experience of a cancer diagnosis, but who’s perspectives as the potential patients of tomorrow, will play an important role in the successful roll-out of this ground-breaking clinical procedure.

What is RaNT?

Raman Nanotheranostics (RaNT) is a £5.7 million project developing a new technique which aims to detect and treat cancers – even those deep inside the body – non-invasively, using tiny, specially designed gold particles and infra-red laser light.

This interdisciplinary, multi-institutional research programme is funded by the EPSRC. The team is led by Prof. Nick Stone at the University of Exeter, with research partners at the University of Cambridge, the UCL School of Pharmacy and the STFC Rutherford Appleton Labs.

Ryan Before RaNT...

Ryan earned his PhD in biomedical physics from the University of Exeter in 2018, shining a light (quite literally – using lots of lasers and light scattering techniques!) on how the body’s connective tissue works at the molecular scale.

Whilst studying for his doctorate, he stumbled across the enticing world of science communication and discovered a love of connecting non-scientists to the world of living research. For those 5 years, he volunteered as the Outreach Officer for the Biomedical Physics Group, helping deliver the university's widening participation programme.

Now he’s outside of the laser lab in the daylight, helping researchers work together with critical interest groups to create the most relevant, impactful advances in science and technology.

Abstract
Glorious Purpose! Engaged Research in an Interdisciplinary World

The research funding landscape has changed. The days of solo scientists noodling away at niche ideas are, for better or worse, long behind us. Today, everything has to have purpose. We need to demonstrate impact, and for those seeking public funding, that impact needs to be experienced by the taxpayer through some form of tangible positive, societal, environmental, or economic change. There are big problems out there and most now need a multi-disciplinary approach to solve them.

But what to fund? We know only too well that the national cash pot is not bottomless. Which research gets to pick itself up off the ground in such a relentlessly competitive environment?

Well, why not ask the communities that might benefit from your research idea? Better yet, why not get them involved in shaping your research before it even starts. You want to know what’s going to have the most impact? Reach out, outside the lab, past the code, beyond the academy, and have a conversation.

In this talk, we’ll take a look at funders’ growing expectations that public and community engagement be an integrated part of the modern research pathway. Ryan will discuss the role of public engagement professionals (PEPs) supporting research teams to make and sustain these connections, and he’ll share some of the fun and games of his most recent work.