Double delight for Dundee in RSE honours

The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) has presented the University’s Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science (LRCFS) with its prestigious Mary Somerville Medal. The accolade is in recognition of the collaborative work to develop trusted relationships between practitioners across the justice system and members of the public. It is one of two awards made to Dundee at the RSE’s annual medal ceremony.

The LRCFS team is nationally and internationally renowned for its commitment to creating new interdisciplinary approaches addressing the long-term challenges in the relationship between science and law. This includes its use of ongoing public engagement work and science communication. Its open and collaborative research has effectively achieved purposeful and useful outcomes that create long-lasting positive impacts.

The Centre’s Director, Professor Niamh Nic Daeid, said, “I am enormously proud that the Leverhulme Research Centre for Forensic Science has been selected to receive this award, and it is a testament to the continuous and exceptional achievements of all of the LRCFS staff and researchers.

“Our underlying mission is to unite the justice community, bringing science and law together, to ensure that robust science underpins the forensic evidence used and communicated in our courts. We can only do that through engaging with the public and with our multiple communities of practice across Scotland, the UK and globally and are enormously grateful for their trust and partnership in our work together.”

Also recognised by the RSE is Dr Ralitsa Madsen, a UKRI Future Leaders Fellow and Principal Investigator in the School of Life Sciences MRC Protein Phosphorylation and Ubiquitylation Unit (MRC-PPU). She has been named recipient of the Dame Anne McLaren Medal for her exceptional early-career contributions to advancing knowledge in the life sciences. This includes her work in improving our understanding of the growth-promoting phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K) signalling pathway.

She said, “This recognition would not have been possible without the support of my mentors, students and family along the way – I am deeply grateful to them all. 

“I hope this recognition will also inspire many other early-career researchers to pursue science with passion, integrity, and a commitment to public benefit.”

Professor Anne Anderson, RSE Vice-President of Research, added, “The RSE’s prestigious medals, which are nominated by RSE Fellows, are awarded to recognise truly outstanding accomplishments. 

“Representing a range of fields, this year’s medallists join a remarkable group of pioneers whose work advances our knowledge and helps to improve lives all over the world. Their achievements highlight the depth and breadth of Scotland’s research talent. I congratulate them all.”