Maximising and measuring impact from the RATE programme

This fellowship will communicate the scientific outputs from the Radioactivity in the Environment (RATE) programme to relevant stakeholders facilitated by focussed outputs of RATE information. This will be achieved by fostering and developing strategic partnerships with industry, regulators and other interested parties which will:
a. address challenges of radiation protection by ensuring access to data and embedding the RATE findings in policy
b. identify future research requirements on environmental radioactivity
c. ensure that meaningful impact arising from RATE is recorded.

The fellow will embed the findings of RATE in policy and practice around radiological protection, radioactive waste management and nuclear new builds. Knowledge exchange activities will bring together academia, industry, regulators and communities to exchange ideas, evidence and expertise.
Preliminary analysis has identified primary stakeholders such as the Department for Business, Energy and Industry Strategy, Environment Agency, Food Standards Agency, Radioactive Waste Management and Scottish Environment Protection Agency. Conversations with these key stakeholders during the preparation of this proposal identified the need for RATE outputs to address three user-defined challenges (see objectives). Primary stakeholder groups (see beneficiaries) will aid the development of reports addressing each challenge through meetings (see LoSs).

RATE information in novel reports will address UK and international user-defined challenges for radiation protection and will be developed with primary stakeholders. These reports will create economic impact and improve quality of life through addressing the Government's clean growth industrial challenge for low carbon-based energy generation systems. The key role of these reports will be to signpost users to RATE information and facilitate discussion during meetings and workshops. The fellowship will communicate with secondary stakeholders (identified through a detailed stakeholder analysis at the start of the fellowship). Fellowship specific workshops and national and international conferences/meetings will be used to ensure RATE research outputs are disseminated to broad audiences to increase impact. All meetings/workshops will use the reports to focus discussion and to identify avenues for embedding the RATE outputs into policy and practice and identify further research needed in environmental radioactivity. National and international meetings and conferences will be used to build on the legacy of RATE and foster collaborative working, therefore, increasing the impact of RATE.

Impact from this fellowship will come from assessing the change in stakeholder's views of the radiation protection landscape with the addition of the RATE information. How this information is used in policy and practice, both nationally and internationally is another measure of impact. To be able to evaluate the impact of this fellowship, an information baseline will be established at the start of the fellowship to enable comparison at the end of the fellowship.

This project will be led by a fellow developed as part of the capacity building of the RATE Programme. The fellow has taken every available opportunity to extend their knowledge and understanding of the policy arena surrounding environmental radioactivity. In addition the fellow has worked at Scottish Environment Protection Agency, undertaking knowledge exchange activities (including facilitating meetings and workshops) expanding their knowledge and understanding of the science-policy interface. Utilising soft skills developed to support and foster knowledge exchange between partners this project will capitalise on established networks of contacts both nationally and internationally in the field of environmental radioactivity. The fellow will also draw on working relationships with other participants of RATE including the project PIs and the RATE science co-ordinator.