Royal Society becomes a supporter of the Technician Commitment

The Royal Society has today become the latest supporter of the Technician Commitment, an initiative which aims to ensure visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technicians working in higher education and research.

Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society said: “Technical skills have always been vital to scientific progress – Isaac Newton invented his own reflecting telescope. Today that is as true as ever, with technicians supporting research in universities and research institutions across the UK. With research becoming increasingly central to the UK’s prosperity, it is essential that we cherish and nurture our highly skilled technicians and ensure that we are developing tomorrow’s technicians as well.” 

Kelly Vere, Technician Commitment Programme Director, commented: “We are delighted to welcome the Royal Society as a formal supporter of the Technician Commitment. We have been working with the Royal Society in a number of ways to advance visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability for technical skills, roles and careers and we are looking forward to continuing our work together to further advance knowledge and status of our vital technician community”. 

The Commitment is supported by the Science Council and the Technicians Make it Happen campaign and the signatories and supporters pledge action against the key challenges facing technical staff. The Royal Society has undertaken a number of activities as part of its support for the campaign.