Monthly Archives: August 2024

Dear everyone,

As many as 5 out of 8 applications that have proceeded to round 2 of the call from the women’s health center DRIV come from K2 – Eystein Husebye, Stian Knappskog, Camilla Krakstad, Stephanie Le Hellard and Helge Ræder. Congratulations!

In order to maintain the fantastic research and teaching work (including supervision) at K2 and at the same time save money, we need to look at how we can help each other in a better and more effective way. We will therefore begin a mapping process of our technical staff, who constitute a huge resource at the institute we are completely dependent on. Without them, we would not have been able to carry out the research projects or the teaching that we do today. Over the past 10 years, the structure of the research groups at K2 has naturally changed a lot, so it becomes natural to look at it. To begin with, we will send out questionnaires to our technicians to get an overview of the skills, capacity, wishes etc. We will inform everyone on an ongoing basis about where we are in the process.

Have a great weekend!

Joint Lunch for Academic Staff

Get to know your colleagues! The faculty leadership invites all academic staff, from PhD candidates to professors, to a joint lunch on Wednesday, September 4th, at 11:30 in EITRI. The purpose is simply to meet across disciplines and departments to get to know each other better. Sandwiches will be served. No registration is needed.

This autumn, joint lunch will also be organized on 2/10, 6/11 and 11/12, at 11:30 in EITRI.

Welcome!
Best wishes
Per Bakke, Dean

Invitation to the Local Well-being Survey for K2 year 2024

We hope you will take time to respond to this year’s well-being survey for those of us working at K2. This is a local survey that takes between 5 – 10 minutes to complete.

The deadline to respond is September 15th. The survey is anonymous, and the general results will be presented in the newsletter.

https://skjemaker.app.uib.no/view.php?id=17517976

Election of Safety delegates for the term 2025 – 2026

Please be informed that the election of safety delegates at all levels is underway.

For the local election at K2, we encourage employees at the institute to nominate candidates for the period 2025 – 2026.

It is also allowed to nominate yourself, as well as those currently holding the positions.

Submit your suggestions via the link by 23.09.:

https://skjemaker.app.uib.no/view.php?id=17578693

Link to information about the election and the role of safety representatives:

UiB is electing new safety delegates | The HSE-gateway | UiB

Safety delegate election | The HSE-gateway | UiB

 

The Norwegian Directorate of Health comes for an inspection – be prepared

The Norwegian Directorate of Health has notified an audit pursuant to the Gene Technology Act at the Faculty of Medicine, 10-12 September this year. In preparation for the audit, research group leders must submit documentation by August 29 in accordance with the following points

  1. Ongoing projects that have been applied for approval according to GMO (Brief overview of ongoing work with GMOs)
  2. Overview of ongoing GMO projects that have not been applied for approval
  3. List of persons who can be interviewed during the audit
  4. Which rooms (Room number) are used for GMO work

Everyone should familiarise themselves with this page of the HSE Handbook: 4.4. Genetically modified organisms (GMOs) – HSE at K2 (uib.no)

For the daily work in the laboratory, there are four things you have to deal with:

  1. That laboratories and facilities are approved for work with GMOs.
  2. That there is a notification/approval for the work you are performing. The notification/approval must include a pre-assessment (risk assessment) of the contained use. A link to the notification form for GMM can be found here.
  3. That the work is carried out in a safe manner. Each research group should have its own procedures for this work, based on its own risk assessment.
  4. That a journal is kept of the work, and must be able to be presented in the event of an inspection.

For all activities involving GMOs, the principles of good microbiological practice and the following principles of good safety and hygiene in the workplace apply.

For questions, contact Siv Lise Bedringsaas (siv.bedringaas@uib.no)

New Deputy Director of Research

Professor Kurt Hanevik takes over as the new deputy director for research at K2. Kurt is a specialist in infectious diseases. He also has experience from international humanitarian aid and global health. He defended his thesis on research on the long-term effects of the Giardia epidemic in and has continued research on diarrhoea and related disorders. His experience and expertise will constitute a good addition to the leadership at K2.

Have a good weekend when the time comes!

Regards
Eystein Husebye

(Norsk) Status som merittert underviser – utlysning 2024

The Faculty of Medicine is inviting teaching staff to apply for the status of distinguished educator. Distinguished status is awarded to academic staff who have shown significant efforts to ensure educational quality in a broader sense. Academic staff in all position categories with teaching obligations can apply, except for doctoral candidates, postdocs, and specialist candidates. Individuals (not groups) can apply for distinguished status. To be considered, one must have been employed in a teaching position for at least five years and be able to document pedagogical basic competence.

More information can be found here: Meritteringsordning for fremragende undervisere ved Det medisinske fakultet | Enhet for læring | UiB

This year’s deadline is 01.11.24.

If you wish to apply or learn more, please contact the acting head of studies at martha.dahle@uib.no

Digital morning coffee with the rector

Dear all colleagues,

 The academic year is officially underway. On that occasion, I would like to welcome you to a new digital morning coffee to talk about what occupies the university leadership.Some of the topics will be the start of the semester and today’s student generation and UiB’s ambitions and challenges as an international university. 

It is also possible to submit questions in advance via this form. https://skjemaker.app.uib.no/view.php?id=17537491

The morning coffee takes place on Thursday 29 August at 09:00-09:30 on Zoom. Follow the link to participate: https://uib.zoom.us/j/64244074872?pwd=zBvwesafx5KROfaisebI5HjMzeaEKb.1

 The conversation is in Norwegian.

 Kind regards

Margareth Hagen, rector

Welcome to Mohn Synergy Symposium, on August 29

In 2024, the Trond Mohn Research Foundation (TMF) celebrates its 20th anniversary, marking two decades of significant contributions to research in Bergen and beyond. This milestone coincides with the co-location of researchers from three prominent Mohn Research Centers on the 7th floor of the University of Bergen’s BBB research building, where the new Bergen Center for Medical Stem Cell Research is being established.

To explore opportunities for collaboration between these three research centers, which all have common interests in neuroscience, stem cells, and cell biology, we are excited to organize the first Mohn Synergy Symposium on Thursday, August 29. Here, we will delve into common research interests and supplemental methodological approaches while honoring TMF’s contribution to scientific initiatives and progress.

The event is open to all, and no registration is required. Welcome!

Link to event: Mohn Synergy Symposium 2024 – Helse Bergen HF (helse-bergen.no)

More about the three Mohn Research Centres:

  1. Mohn Research Center for Regenerative Medicine (MRCRM), led by Professor Einar Kristoffersen ( https://www.helse-bergen.no/en/regenerative-medicine/)
  2. Mohn Research Center for Psychotic Disorders (MRCP), led by Professor Erik Johnsen ( https://www.helse-bergen.no/en/regenerative-medicine/mohn-research-centre-for-psychotic-disorders/)
  3. Mohn Research Center for the Brain (MRCB), led by Professor Clive Bramham with Nobel Laureate Professor Edvard Moser as co-lead (https://www.ntnu.edu/kavli/mohn-research-center-for-the-brain)

Innovation Festival 2024

You are invited to the UiB Innovation Festival that will take place on September 20th from 9 to 14:30 at Nygårdsgaten 5. The festival is your opportunity to engage with the broad spectrum of innovation emerging from our university, discuss responsible research and innovation, consider how to balance the open science with protecting intellectual property, and reflect on how UiB can contribute to Vestland’s green transition. The event is a part of the InnovasjonsukenOPP and will be a meeting place for people from academia, businesses and public sector in the region.

For the full program, and registration visit the webpage of the UiB Innovation Festival 2024.

Most of the day will be in English, whilst the panel discussion and the UiB Ide Award will be in Norwegian.

Dear everyone,

I look forward to being back as (this time not just acting) head of K2! I started on July 1st and have an office on the 8th floor of the lab building. I know that this will be a challenging job and I will have to make some decisions that may not be so popular, but as everyone has noticed, K2 is in a very precarious financial situation so that we have to make changes to get back into balance. I am grateful for any suggestions and input you can provide. I will not make the decisions all alone, with me in the leadership of K2 continue Eystein Husebye as deputy director, Silje Skrede as head of innovation and Mia Holmaas as head of administration, and Camilla Tøndel is the new head of teaching. Many thanks to Mette Vesterhus for her brilliant efforts as head of teaching in recent years and Silje Skrede as acting head of teaching in recent months! I still need a new head of research, but I am working on it.

My goal is to have K2 as a place where people thrive and like to work, where you feel heard, seen and valued, and where you also have the infrastructure to be able to conduct clinical, translational and experimental research of high quality. I know that I am responsible for fantastic researchers, teachers, technicians and administrative supporters and not least students for the next 4 years, and together we will make it happen!