School of Social and Political Science

Niki Vermeulen

Job Title

Professor and Director International

Photo
Niki Vermeulen photo

Room number

Attic

Building (Address)

Chisholm House

Street (Address)

High School Yards

City (Address)

Edinburgh

Country (Address)

UK

Post code (Address)

EH1 1LZ

Research interests

Research interests

Niki Vermeulen specialises in science and innovation policy and the organisation of research, with an emphasis on collaboration in the life sciences. She investigates the entanglement of epistemic and social transformations, analysing new ways of doing research as well as the political and institutional structures in which research is performed. Thereby she is working to integrate scientometrics research into qualitative research approaches to understand the dynamics of collaboration (together with CWTS, Leiden University), while she has also developed a particular interest in the geography and architecture of collaboration, investigating the places in and across which people are working together.

Research into collaboration is embedded in broader knowledge of developments in research and innovation policy. Research subjects in this area include the changing roles of universities; innovative clusters; research infrastructures; projectification of science; evaluation of research; responsible metrics; and careers of (young) researchers.

Niki is founder of Curious Edinburgh creating app-based walking tours showcasing scientific and cultural heritage in Edinburgh: see www.curiousedinburgh.org.

Background

Niki Vermeulen holds a PhD (2009) in Science and Technology Studies from Maastricht University, The Netherlands, was a Marie Curie research fellow in the Science and Technology Studies Unit at the University of York (2004), lecturer/researcher in the Department of the Social Studies of Science, University of Vienna (2009-2012), and Wellcome Trust research fellow in the Centre for the History of Science, Technology and Medicine of the University of Manchester (2012-2014).

Since 2015, Niki is a visiting researcher at the Centre for Science and Technology Studies (CWTS) of Leiden University, contributing to the development of an international strategic partnerships between the Universities of Edinburgh and Leiden, e.g. through joint PhD supervision. In the past she has been a visiting scholar at the Centre for Society and Life Sciences of the Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, the Depertmant of Sociology of the University of Madison-Wisconsin, USA, the Institut für Kulturwissenschaft, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and the Centre for Interdisciplinary Health Research of the University of Augsburg. During her sabbatical in 2022 she is an EHESS guest professor at UMR Géographie-cités, CNRS in Paris and a DAAD research fellow at the Museum für Naturkunde and the Institut für Europäische Ethnologie, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin.

Niki is a member of the Royal Society of Edinburgh's Young Academy of Scotland (YAS), the Society for the Social Studies of Science (4S) and the European Association for the Study of Science and Technology (EASST) for which she is editor of the EASST Review and adopted Council Member.

Next to her academic positions, she has experience as a policy advisor and consultant in science and innovation policy, working for Technopolis Group, the Executive Board of Maastricht University, the Netherlands Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR), and the Scientific Council of the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Washington DC, USA. She is currently a member of the ESRC/Innovate UK 'Innovation Caucus' and Marine Scotland's delivery group of Scotland’s marine science strategy on behalf of YAS.

Current Projects

Geographies of Collaboration (RSE Saltire Award)

The GEOCOLLAB research network (with Marion Maisobe & Morgan Meyer) aims to advance our understanding of international scientific collaboration and mobility, with a focus between Scotland and France. The network assembles scholars from the University of Edinburgh and CNRS Paris working at the nexus of quantitative geography and science and technology studies (STS). Based on our previous interactions and current shared research interest in the biosciences (specifically marine biology -focussing on seaweed research and innovation- and genetic engineering focussing on synthetic biology and gene editing), the network will allow us to 1) develop a common vocabulary and methodology to study the (inter)national dissemination and exchange of scientific knowledge and 2) trace the ‘placing’ of scientific fields: examining how practices and discourses of scientific disciplines co-emerge with their geographic modes of organisation. The network has direct policy relevance, building capacity and giving insight in patterns of (inter)national scientific collaboration and the ways in which they may be disrupted or fostered by changes in international relations (e.g. Brexit). GEOCOLLAB is bringing together scholars from Scotland and France who work at the interface between geography, Science and Technology Studies and scientometrics, a combination which will lead to improved understanding of the geography of scientific work and its (inter)national relations.

Architectures of Collaboration (various funding sources)

In line with the work of the network Architectures of Science, I am exploring the architecture of collaboration in various contexts, including the Francis Crick Institute, the Edinburgh Future Institute, the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin and Institutes of Advanced Studies. I am investigating the history, transformation and present functioning of these institutes, and how ways of working together interact with the built environment and (urban) landscapes. Special attention is given to the material embedding of interaction inside buildings and the permeability of the walls, e.g. openness to publics. Edinburgh is functioning as a playground to develop various approaches to the architecture of collaboration, connecting my work on Curious Edinburgh to new developments as part of Data Driven Innovation, e.g. working on the transformation of the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, with colleagues Matjaz Vidmar, Bill Jenkins, Ellen Stewart and Ruth Honeybone (LSHA). In addition, I am a member of Writing Urban Places, which explores narrative methods to develop human understanding of communities, their society, and their situatedness.

Curious Edinburgh (various funding sources)

Curious Edinburgh is a website and mobile phone app which tells stories behind the cities many historic buildings and places. Originally developed to make large-scale undergraduate teaching more interactive and ‘bring the classroom into the city’, we started with tours showcasing the importance of Edinburgh's scientific and medical heritage in an innovative way. The project adds a spatial dimension to the history of science by linking ideas, inventions and scientist to physical places in the city of Edinburgh. Thereby it allows scholars to connect their work to specific places that develop through time, and it invites novel historical and sociological analysis of the interaction between the scientific process, its materiality and geography. As the format allows to tell a variety of stories about the city, we now also cover tours on Edinburgh’s international connections and its vibrant local communities, paying attention to diversity, equality and civic action. Content is sourced from a wide variety of research projects across the University of Edinburgh and community archives, bringing diverse knowledge on Edinburgh together in one space, while making it accessible for students, staff as well as Edinburgh's citizens and visitors. Curious Edinburgh won the Tam Dalyell Prize for Excellence in Engaging the Public with Science (2018). See for acknowledgments of many individuals and organisations who contributed to this project our webpage.

Coastal knowledge (RSE Young Academy Scotland)

With the marine (social) science group of the Young Academy Scotland we have developed an interactive map exhibition of Scotland’s Coasts. Delivered in collaboration with Granton Hub and Curious Edinburgh, this initiative provides windows into Scottish coastal communities, providing various actors (researchers, artists, community organisations and inhabitants of coastal communities) the possibility to showcase their visual and narrative perspectives on the Scottish coast. See: https://www.youngacademyofscotland.org.uk/coastal-knowledge/

EVALUATE project (Erasmus+/British Council)

Developing a Framework for Evaluation of International University Partnerships, the project aims to improve the quality of International Strategic Partnerships between universities through evaluation and mutual learning. The project brings together a range of universities with varying experience in developing and delivering all types of partnerships to collaboratively develop a methodology that can be used to evaluate and continually improve the quality of partnerships that universities and similar organisations are involved in. The project reviews existing models for evaluation in similar settings and develops an evaluation framework within the university setting for International Strategic Partnerships. Traditionally this could involve student and staff mobility, research collaboration, collaborative teaching provision, joint appointments of staff, network development and participation, commercialisation of research and funding relationships for teaching & research. However, there is a drive towards innovation in this area of work so it is important to ensure that models for evaluation can be flexible and adapted to suit new purposes. International Strategic Partnerships are seen as investments that will bring some benefit to the institutions involved, but the evidence-base for this is often lacking. This project will enable institutions to determine how International Strategic Partnerships are performing and highlight areas for development.

Partners: University of Edinburgh, University College Dublin, University of Copenhagen, Leiden University, University of Helsinki and University of Sydney.

Completed Projects

Following the life of a research institute: a biography of the Francis Crick (Wellcome Trust seed grant)

Given the prominence of the £700 Million, 93000 m2 Francis Crick Institute, its (inter)national uniqueness, and the availability of British scholars analysing knowledge creation and translation, it seems timely to study this experiment in the organisation of biomedical science as it unfolds. Unsurprisingly, first media analyses are debating the Crick, with proponents seeing its 'bigness' as progress while opponents fear uprooting of current practice. Both positions are unnuanced and not evidence-based, as academic analysis shows not one ‘right’ way to organise science with collaboration being content and context dependent. Consequently, the influence of research institutes on the integrative production of knowledge can still be further explored. This project studies the birth of the Crick Institute and its new research strategy – discovery without boundaries. Key goals are: a) mapping the (spatial) design and initial functioning of the Crick; b) exploring the ways in which it provides new opportunities for interdisciplinary knowledge creation; c) design a longitudinal and reflexive study of a biomedical institute. The project contributes to advancement of knowledge on the functioning of research institutes, while the magnitude of societal investment and its importance for human health adds urgency to this opportunity.

The emergence of systems biology (Wellcome Trust research fellowship)

As a Wellcome research fellow I have been working on the emergence of systems biology as a new field, shedding light on the recent history of the biosciences, and the ways in which different disciplines become reconfigured. Special attention is given to different local and national patterns of emergence, fashions in science policy, and the shaping of international collaboration. The study into the intellectual and social history of systems biology will help us draft the history of new biology and its relation to research policies, funding structures, university transformation, etc. in a way which can inform policy discussions and public understanding of contemporary science. In addition, the interaction between actors and social scientists will be analysed, showing (and improving) the reflexiveness of these developments.

Bio-Objects (COST Action)

Since 2005 I have been involved in the development of the concept of bio-objects, co-founding a network of young researchers which culminated in the European COST action ‘Bio-objects and their Boundaries: Governing Matters at the Intersection of Society, Politics, and Science’ (2010-2014). I have more recently employed this approach to investigate the making of bio-printed organs in collaboration with Gill Haddow and scientists Will Shu and Alan Faulkner-Jones and at the moment looking at choreographies of research and innovation in algae/seaweed in Scotland, also using a bio-objects lense.

PhD topics and programmes

Find out more about the programmes that I am involved with:

Current PhD Candidates

*Fiona Coyle 'Mitigating Modification: Understanding the Societal and Ethical Implications of the Regulation of New and Emerging Biomedical Technologies in the UK Context 2006-2018' (with Gill Haddow)

*Louis Volkmer 'Transferring Scientific Objects: unpacking the intellectual ownership of scientific apparatus transferred from universities to museums' (with Dominic Berry and Tacye Phillipson & Rebekah Higgitt, National Museum of Scotland)

*Kate Bowell 'Science on display: the historical relationships between exhibit label texts, scientific objects, and technologies at National Museums Scotland' (with Lawrence Dritsas and Tacye Phillipson & Rebekah Higgitt, National Museum of Scotland)

*Julie-Ann Fooshee 'Festivals as Laboratory: experimentation in temporal and geographic barriers to create accessibility' (with Eugenia Rodrigues)

*Mayline Strouk 'Free as a bird? Geography of seabird ornithologists' mobilities to the field in the Anthropocene' (with Rob Smith, Thomas Franssen and Sarah de Rijcke, CWTS)

*Marta Sienkiewicz 'New evaluative tools as devices on the academic market(s)' (based at CWTS with Thomas Franssen, Sarah de Rijcke and Andrew Millar)

Completed dissertations

*Rodrigo Liscovsky Barrera 'Internationalisation Dynamics in Contemporary South American Life Sciences. The Case of Zebrafish' (with Tod Van Gunten & Alfredo Yegros, CWTS)

*Rosalind Attenborough 'Finding virtue in open science? Biological scientists' constructions of openness in historical, advocacy and policy contexts' (with James Mittra)

*Matjaz Vidmar 'UK/Scottish Space Sector and Innovation' (with Alessandro Rosiello & Robin Williams)

Undergraduate Teaching and Postgraduate Teaching

After my arrival in Edinburgh in 2014, I have taken over the UG History of Science course from John Henry (2014-2016), while also developing the Responsible Researcher course. In addition, I am lecturing on Investigating Science in Society (semester 1) and Science, Nature and Environment (semester 2).

Till 2022 I have been convening the PG course Social Dimensions of Systems and Synthetic Biology (semester 2), while also supervising the final thesis of students from MSc SaTiS.

Other Teaching Activities

I have previously taught in the STS Master programme of the Department of Social Studies of Science (University of Vienna), the History of Science, Technology and Medicine programme (University of Manchester), and the Arts and Sciences programme, the European Studies programme and the European Society, Science and Technology (ESST) Master programme of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences (Maastricht University).

Staff Hours and Guidance

Please contact me per email to make an appointment

Publications by user content

Publication Research Explorer link
Kastenhofer K, Vermeulen N. “Should we stay or should we go now?”: Dis/Engaging with emerging technosciences. Science & Technology Studies. 2024 Feb 15. doi: 10.23987/sts.113479
Zambetti LP, Vermeulen N, Heteren LV, Drooge LV, Strouk M, Sinisalo AS et al. Harnessing the power of evaluation to build better international strategic partnerships between universities - Condensed version of The EVALUATE framework and handbook. 2022. doi: 10.5281/zenodo.7330917
Lowe J, Leng R, Viry G, Wong M, Vermeulen N, Garcia-Sancho M. The bricolage of pig genomics. Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 2022 Jun 1;52(3):401-442. doi: 10.1525/hsns.2022.52.3.401
Leng R, Viry G, Garcia-Sancho M, Lowe J, Wong M, Vermeulen N. The sequences and the sequencers: What can a mixed-methods approach reveal about the history of genomics? Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 2022 Jun 1;52(3):277-319. doi: 10.1525/hsns.2022.52.3.277
Garcia-Sancho M, Leng R, Viry G, Wong M, Vermeulen N, Lowe J. The Human Genome Project as a singular episode in the history of genomics. Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 2022 Jun 1;52(3):320-360. doi: 10.1525/hsns.2022.52.3.320
Garcia-Sancho M, Lowe J, Viry G, Leng R, Wong M, Vermeulen N. Yeast sequencing: 'Network' genomics and institutional bridges. Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 2022 Jun 1;52(3):361-400. doi: 10.1525/hsns.2022.52.3.361
Lowe J, Garcia-Sancho M, Leng R, Wong M, Vermeulen N, Viry G. Across and within networks: Thickening the history of genomics. Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences. 2022 Jun 1;52(3):443-475. doi: 10.1525/hsns.2022.52.3.443
Burnham-stevens C, Vermeulen N. Envisioning 3D bioprinting: Scenarios of organs ‘on demand’. In Hansen SL, Schicktanz S, editors, Ethical Challenges of Organ Transplantation: Current Debates and International Perspectives. Transcript Verlag. 2021. p. 317-334. (Bioethik / Medizinethik). doi: 10.1515/9783839446430-019
Sekar MP, Budharaju H, Zennifer A, Sethuraman S, Vermeulen N, Sundaramurthi D et al. Current standards and ethical landscape of engineered tissues—3D bioprinting perspective. Journal of Tissue Engineering. 2021 Jul 29;12. doi: 10.1177/20417314211027677
Hackett EJ, Leahey E, Parker JN, Rafols I, Hampton SE, Corte U et al. Do synthesis centers synthesize? A semantic analysis of topical diversity in research. Research Policy. 2021 Jan 1;50(1):104069. Epub 2020 Sept 21. doi: 10.1016/j.respol.2020.104069
Vidmar M, Rosiello A, Vermeulen N, Williams R, Dines J. New space and agile innovation: Understanding transition to open innovation by examining innovation networks and moments. Acta astronautica. 2020 Feb 1;167:122-134. Epub 2019 Oct 24. doi: 10.1016/j.actaastro.2019.09.029
Kitagawa F, Vermeulen N, Maisonobe M. Organisational forms and strategies for data-driven Innovation: Mapping the university knowledge production and hybrid knowledge spaces in the City Region Deal. 2019. Paper presented at 59th ERSA Congress, Lyon, France.
Tamminen S, Vermeulen N. Bio-objetos: Novas conjugações do viver. Sociologias. 2019 Apr 30;21(50):156-179. doi: 10.1590/15174522-02105005
Hackett EJ, Leahey E, Parker JN, Rafols I, Hampton S, Corte U et al. Do synthesis centers synthesize? A semantic analysis of diversity and performance. bioRxiv, at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. 2019 Jan 13. doi: 10.1101/518605
Szymanski E, Vermeulen N, Wong M. Yeast: One cell, one reference sequence, many genomes? New Genetics and Society. 2019;38(4):430-450. Epub 2019 Oct 14. doi: 10.1080/14636778.2019.1677150
Vermeulen N. The choreography of a new research field: Aggregation, circulation and oscillation. Environment and Planning A. 2018 Nov 1;50(8):1764-1784. Epub 2017 Sept 5. doi: 10.1177/0308518X17725317
Vermeulen N, Bijker W. Ways of knowing and doing STS: Niki Vermeulen talks with Wiebe Bijker. Engaging Science, Technology, and Society. 2018 Jul 12;4. doi: 10.17351/ests2018.233
Vermeulen N, Haddow G, Seymour T, Faulkner-Jones A, Shu W. 3D bioprint me: A socioethical view of bioprinting human organs and tissues. Journal of Medical Ethics. 2017;43:618-624. Epub 2017 Mar 20. doi: 10.1136/medethics-2015-103347
Vermeulen N. On 'Big Science': Can we characterise Wiebe as a 'Big Scientist'. In van Lente H, Swierstra T, Wyatt S, Zeiss R, editors, Wegwijs in STS: Knowing your Way in STS. Maastricht : Maastricht University Science, Technology and Society Studies (MUSTS). 2017. p. 167-171
Hackett EJ, Parker JN, Vermeulen N, Penders B. The social and epistemic organization of scientific work. In Felt U, Fouché R, Miller CA, Smith-Doerr L, editors, Handbook of Science and Technology Studies. 4 ed. Massachusetts: MIT Press. 2016. 25
Vermeulen N. Big biology: Supersizing science during the emergence of the 21st century. NTM Zeitschrift für Geschichte der Wissenschaften, Technik und Medizin. 2016 Jun;24(2):195-223. Epub 2016 May 23. doi: 10.1007/s00048-016-0141-8
Good B, Vermeulen N, Tiefenthaler B, Arnold E. Counting quality? The Czech performance-based research funding system. Research Evaluation. 2015 Apr;24(2):91-105. Epub 2015 Feb 24. doi: 10.1093/reseval/rvu035
Penders B, (ed.), Vermeulen N, (ed.), Parker JN. Collaboration across Health Research and Medical Care: Healthy Collaboration. 1st ed. Routledge, 2015. 246 p. doi: 10.4324/9781315572611
Vermeulen N. From virus to vaccine: Projectification of science in the VIRGO Consortium. In Penders B, Vermeulen N, Parker JN, editors, Collaboration across Health Research and Medical Care: Healthy Collaboration. 1st ed. Routledge. 2015. p. 31-58
Penders B, Parker JN, Vermeulen N. When scientists, scholars, clinicians, physicians and patients meet. In Penders B, Vermeulen N, Parker JN, editors, Collaboration Across Health Research and Medical Care: Healthy Collaboration. 1st ed. Routledge. 2015. p. 3-12
Vermeulen N, Parker JN, Penders B. Understanding life together: A brief history of collaboration in biology. Endeavour. 2013 Sept 1;37(3):162-171. doi: 10.1016/j.endeavour.2013.03.001
Swierstra T, Vermeulen N, Braeckman J, Van Driel R. Rethinking the life sciences. to better serve society, biomedical research has to regain its trust and get organized to tackle larger projects. EMBO Reports. 2013 Mar 19;14(4):310-314. doi: 10.1038/embor.2013.30
Vermeulen N. From Darwin to the census of marine life: Marine biology as big science. PLoS ONE. 2013 Jan 14;8(1):e54284. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0054284
Vermeulen N. Growing a cell in silico: On how the creation of a bio-object transforms the organisation of science. In Vermeulen N, Tamminen S, Webster A, editors, Bio-Objects Life in the 21st Century. Ashgate Publishing Ltd. 2012. p. 171-185
Vermeulen N, Tamminen S, Webster A. Bio-objects life in the 21st century. Ashgate Publishing Ltd., 2012. 226 p.
Wheeler QD, Knapp S, Stevenson DW, Stevenson J, Blum SD, Boom BM et al. Mapping the biosphere: Exploring species to understand the origin, organization and sustainability of biodiversity. Systematics and Biodiversity. 2012 Jul 10;10(1):1-20. doi: 10.1080/14772000.2012.665095
Tamminen S, Vermeulen N. Bio-objects and generative relations. Croatian Medical Journal. 2012 Apr 1;53(2):198-200. doi: 10.3325/cmj.2012.53.198
Moodie LH, Reeve JC, Vermeulen N, Elkins MR. Inspiratory muscle training to facilitate weaning from mechanical ventilation: Protocol for a systematic review. BMC Research Notes. 2011 Aug 11;4:283. doi: 10.1186/1756-0500-4-283
Parker JN, Vermeulen N, Penders B. Admin burden is part of the job. Nature. 2011 Aug 3;476(33). doi: 10.1038/476033c
Vermeulen N, Parker JN, Penders B. Big, small or mezzo? EMBO Reports. 2010 Jun 1;11(6):420-423. doi: 10.1038/embor.2010.67
Penders B, Vermeulen N, Parker JN. To make progress we must remember and learn from the past. Nature. 2010 Jan 13;463(7278). doi: 10.1038/463157d
Vermeulen N, Penders B. Collecting collaborations: Understanding life together. In Collaboration in the new life sciences. 1 ed. Ashgate Publishing Ltd. 2010. p. 3-13
Parker JN, Vermeulen N, Penders B. Collaboration in the new life sciences. 1 ed. Ashgate Publishing Ltd., 2010. 263 p.
Niki Vermeulen's Research Explorer profile