New thematic champion joins the team

We are delighted to announce that Dr Rob Barker will be joining Eastern Arc as the thematic champion for Health Systems, Social Care and Wellbeing at the University of Kent. He will be taking the place of Prof Michelle Garrett, who has had to step down due to other commitments.

Rob will bring an invaluable perspective to the theme, with an interdisciplinary interest that crosses fields as diverse as engineering, physics, chemistry, forensics, biology, medicine and computing.

‘I’m so pleased that Rob has agreed to join us in exploring the opportunities to take forward our collaboration,’ said Phil Ward, Director of Eastern Arc. ‘We are already making plans for a series of interdisciplinary seminars in the autumn and spring term 2021/22, and his input will be essential.

‘I’ve worked with Rob in the past, and have always been impressed by his creativity, productivity, and ability to work with an incredibly diverse range of people in different disciplines. Not only does he bring with him a significant track record of world-class research, but he is also the innovation lead for the Division of Natural Sciences at Kent, so will ensure that knowledge exchange, engagement and impact are central to our discussions’.

To find out more about Rob’s work, watch him talking about his research here. For more information or to get involved in Eastern Arc, get in touch with us at info@easternarc.ac.uk