Been doing some work with CaSE over the last couple of years, based on the surveys theyve done on public attitudes to public funding of R&D.
Thereās actually a lot of positive sentiment towards govt. Funding for research, and for it to be done locally, in spite of people saying they donāt really know what happens in their area. Thereās an obvious benefit to get that message over, especially in areas outside the South East, to try to drive pressure to get public money more evenly invested, given the huge benefits it brings locally, especially in terms of public health uplift.
Also been doing a lot of work with uni research directors who despair of their colleagues inability to, and sometimes outright resistance having to, articulate the impact and public benefits of the reseach theyāre doing, despite how important that is to securing funding.