Join us for our annual celebration of research

The politican in charge of Scotland's finances will outline the importance of the Sustainable Development Goals at GCU's annual research celebration in May.

Derek Mackay MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Constitution, will be the keynote speaker at the event, to be held in the University's Hamish Wood building on Friday, May 31.

He will be joined by Dr Ruth Hussey CB OBE, former Chief Medical Officer for Wales, and Shane McHugh, Head of International Partnerships at the Royal Academy of Engineering.

GCU's research strategy is underpinned by the Sustainable Development Goals, issued by United Nations in 2015 and developed in order to "end poverty, ensure prosperity for all and protect the planet". Through our own research, GCU addresses the Sustainable Development Goals via three societal challenges of Inclusive Societies, Healthy Lives and Sustainable Environments.

This work will be exhibited throughout the day via various workshops and activities, rounded off by GCU's annual Three-Minute Thesis competition. Workshops include Solving water issues in Nigeria, Electrical stimulation to promote health in adults, and much, much more.

This one-day event also gives you the opportunity to meet our research community; get to know our PhD students, research associates and post-doctoral researchers. They will share with you the innovations and explorations that have the potential to make a positive impact in the world.

Then, on Friday, June 7, and Saturday, June 8, the community element of our annual research celebrations takes place as we host our Citizen Science Days with partners in the north of the city as part of the Glasgow Science Festival.

Last year's event was a great success with over 200 people attending. First Minister Nicola Sturgeon took part in an experiment to measure the speed of a cricket ball at our Meet the Researcher event, held in the Gorbals. This offered school pupils the chance to meet university researchers, and learn about science and further university-community links in pursuit of the SDGs, which apply to all countries of the world and are in place until 2030.

Details on how to sign up for workshops and other events can be found here. It is not essential to sign up for the entire day.