(Episode 92) Kay Guccione Reflects on 10 Years of Researcher Education and Development Scholarship (REDS) conference

30-10-2024 • 27 mins

This week, Heledd Jarosz-Griffiths in their debut episode as host chats Kay Guccione from the University of Glasgow about reaching an incredible milestone of 10 years of the Researcher Education and Development Scholarship (REDS) conference.

With a wealth of experience in doctoral education, mentoring, research community building, and more, Kay shared her invaluable insights and the fascinating journey of REDS over the past decade.

Key takeaways:

The Origins of REDS: Kay Guccione shares how the Researcher Education and Development Scholarship (REDS) conference started in 2014, highlighting the need for a conference that supports researcher development professionals in understanding how to research and publish their work effectively.
The Impact of COVID-19 on REDS: The shift to an online format due to the pandemic significantly increased global participation, making the conference more accessible and cost-effective. Kay emphasises the benefits and challenges of maintaining a virtual format.
The Evolution of REDS Themes: The importance of addressing current topics in researcher development, such as inclusivity, supervision, and research culture, and how these themes have evolved to meet the changing landscape of higher education.
Future Goals for REDS: Kay discusses plans for the future, including formalizing the conference's mission statement, enhancing accessibility, securing seed funding for research, and opening up advisory board positions to ensure the event continues to grow and serve the community effectively.
The Community's Role: The significance of community involvement in shaping REDS, including the use of a Padlet to gather ideas for future conference themes and the potential for establishing a REDS blog to support ongoing scholarship and collaboration among researcher development professionals.

Links, resources and initiatives mentioned in the episode: