The Worldwide Universities Network is pleased to announce the results of the WUN Research Development Fund (RDF) 2025 round. These awards mark a direct investment of £250,000 in international collaborative research among WUN member universities.
A record number (44) of applications were received this year, with 25 awarded – equaling the most projects supported since the RDF’s inception in 2009.
WUN’s capacity to assemble teams of researchers representative of the diversity of the network confers a distinctive advantage in tackling major research challenges, especially in areas where comparative analysis is important. Consistent with the WUN Strategic Plan priority to nurture research talent, over half (13 of 25) successful projects will be led by early career researchers.
These newly awarded projects join 69 currently active WUN research projects.* The WUN RDF has directly invested over £3.45 million over 17 years to establishing research projects on problems of global significance, and on which member universities, working together, can make real progress.
Peter Lennie, Executive Director of WUN, said ““The successful projects from this year’s competition exemplify the range and depth of research talent at our member universities. Every member university is represented on at least two of the projects— a testament to the richly collaborative ethos of WUN.”
*More information on active and completed WUN Research Projects can be found here.
RDF 2025 awarded projects (lead university in bold)
Africa-Focused Initiative for Just Energy Transition – AFFINITY-FORSIDES
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Auckland; University of Cape Town; University of Ghana; University of Leeds; Mahidol University; Makerere University; National Cheng Kung University; University of Pretoria; University of Rochester; Ruhr University Bochum; University of Tsukuba
AI for Well-Being: Evaluating Synthetic Data from Menopause Narratives
Research Team: University of Exeter; Makerere University; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; Technologico de Monterrey
AI-Powered Sleep Technologies for Mental Wellness
Research Team: National Cheng Kung University; University of Technology Sydney; University of Tsukuba
A New Fit-for-Purpose Highly Sensitive Diagnostic Test for Preeclampsia
Research Team: University of Auckland; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; University of Leeds; University of Pretoria; University of Queensland; University of Technology Sydney
A Socio-Technical Approach to Sustainability
Research Team: University of Bristol; National Cheng Kung University; University of Queensland
Barriers and Solutions to Responsible AI in Mental Health Across Cultures
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Cape Town; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; University of Ghana; University of Leeds; University of Technology Sydney
Bimanual Assistive Robots for Safe and Personalized Daily Care
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Leeds; University of York
Critical AI Literacies in Language Education: Building with Design Justice
Research Team: University of Leeds; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; Technologico de Monterrey
Cross-Regional Insights on Water Supply Chains using Machine Learning
Research Team: University of Cape Town; Griffith University; Technologico de Monterrey; University of Sheffield; University of Technology Sydney
Digital Pathways:Wearable Solutions for Gestational Diabetes in Rural Areas
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Cape Town; University of Rochester
Does Explainable AI Shape Trust and Critical AI Adoption Across Continents?
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Auckland; Maastricht University
Food Security in Global South under Future Socioeconomic & Climate Changes
Research Team: University of Alberta; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; University of Exeter; University of Ghana; University of Pretoria
Forming an International Indigenous Doctoral Student and Supervisor Network
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Auckland; University of Queensland
Fusing multimodal earth observation data to map abandoned greenhouses
Research Team: National Cheng Kung University; University of Technology Sydney; University of Tsukuba
Gender and AI: Digitalisation and Changing Dynamics in Professions
Research Team: University of Cape Town; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; Makerere University; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; University of Pretoria
Human-in-the-Loop Responsible AI for Medical Diagnosis and Decision-Making
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Auckland; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; Griffith University; University of Queensland
Platform Capitalism and Gig Economy: Digitalising Taxi Labour in Big Cities
Research Team: University of Cape Town; The Chinese University of Hong Kong; National Cheng Kung University; University of Pretoria; University of Technology Sydney; University of Tskuba; University of York
PolicyBridge: Policy Assessment & Reporting for Healthy, Sustainable Cities
Research Team: Technologico de Monterrey; University of Queensland; University of Technology Sydney
Shared Genomic Architecture of Schizophrenia and Type 2 Diabetes
Research Team: University of Bristol; University of Cape Town; Makerere University; University of Queensland
Sustainable Natural Alternative to Synthetic Additives for Food Security
Research Team: Griffith University; Mahidol University; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; National Cheng Kung University; University of Queensland; University of Sheffield
Sustaining Intangible Cultural Practices in Contexts of Forced Displacement
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Ghana; Griffith University; Maastricht University; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; Technologico de Monterrey; University of Technology Sydney
Timber Circularity: Affordable Housing Solutions from Waste and Disassembly
Research Team: University of Alberta; University of Auckland; University of Bristol; University of Pretoria; The University of Queensland
Transformative Youth Justice for Indigenous Children
Research Team: University of Ghana; Griffith University; University of York
Vehicle-to-Grid Pathways for Sustainable Cities in the UK and Australasia
Research Team: University of Auckland; University of Bristol; Griffith University
WICTORIA: Women-focused International Initiative on Comparative Crime scene Thought-based Outcomes in Reconstruction and Integration of AI
Research Team: University of Auckland; University of Lausanne; Makerere University; Technologico de Monterrey; University of Sheffield; University of Technology Sydney