Collaborate with us

We share our skills with researchers working in the agricultural, biological, environmental and social sciences. BioSS staff have expertise in a wide range of specialisms, and experience of using these across many different application areas.

BioSS scientists contribute quantitative skills to a wide range of scientific fields, mostly in four broad activity areas: animal health and welfare, plant and crop science, ecology and environment, and human health and nutrition (see panels below for more details).  However, we don't take a restrictive view of the areas in which we might collaborate, and so we define these areas in a very broad way. If you are unsure whether or not your interests are part of our remit, please contact us to discuss your work at enquiries@bioss.ac.uk.  You may find it useful to explore our specialist areas of quantitative expertise.

We work with a wide range of organisations, academic and non-academic, public and private sector, both within the UK and internationally.  Our collaborators and clients include governmental bodies, universities, other research institutes and private industry. 

We value long-term working relationships as they allow us to develop a deeper understanding of specific areas of science, deepen our methodological expertise, and build rich, genuine partnerships.

We work with our partners via a variety of flexible arrangements:

  • as collaborators on research projects supported by many different funders. BioSS is eligible for UK Research and Innovation funding;
  • long-term consultancy arrangements;
  • one-off projects, both commercial and academic;
  • co-supervision of PhD students;
  • engagement in networks of expertise.

If you would like to find out more, please look at the panels below.  If you believe that your organisation already has a relationship with BioSS, you may find the 'Information for You and Your Organisation' panel particularly useful.  If you still can't identify who best to speak with, please email enquiries@bioss.ac.uk and we will be happy to get back to you.

The scientific applications in which we have strong and extensive experience can be grouped into these broad areas:

Plant & Crop Science

An effective transition to sustainable food production is a critical global challenge. Research in plant science is essential if we are to meet the challenge of feeding the growing global population in a period of climate change. Our collaborations with plant scientists range from studies of molecular processes within cells through the interactions between crops, pathogens and their environment.

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Animal Health & Welfare

Achieving a balance between increasing production, ensuring food security, reducing climate emissions, protecting the ecosystem and promoting better animal health and welfare for livestock is key to meeting the challenge of attaining sustainable food production.

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Ecology & Environmental Science

Robust, rigorous, transparent, and statistically-sound ecology and environmental science research is central to achieving national and international sustainable development goals and has never been more important for our society.

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Human Health & Nutrition

The role of a balanced diet in promoting human health is being increasingly recognised. Statistical and mathematical models have a pivotal role in enabling the interpretation of experimental and observational studies.

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Offshore Renewables

The transition to renewable energy requires quantitative estimates of any potential environmental impacts. At BioSS, we develop models and statistical methods that can be used to understand the possible effects of offshore renewable energy generation on seabirds and marine mammals.

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Wastewater COVID-19

Wastewater based epidemiology (WBE) emerged as a key monitoring tool during the COVID-19 pandemic. BioSS developed an analysis pipeline that allows us to report the latest findings to the Scottish Government and other stakeholders.

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Information for You and Your Organisation

Organisation-specific information to help you access BioSS consultancy and collaborate more effectively with us.

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