How universities can support Free Trade Agreements (FTAs)

23 June 2022

Trade deals that support cooperation in research and higher education can help the UK meet its ambition of becoming a global leader in these fields, boost our economy and create opportunity.  

The Russell Group represents 24 leading research-intensive universities across the UK. They are highly international, with over 280,000 students and staff from overseas and partnerships across the globe.

These links can help attract inward investment into the UK, build our national capability across critical technologies and tackle global issues such as climate change. The UK now has an exciting opportunity to build new trade agreements across the globe that will create even more of these valuable connections.

Our research-intensive universities have a lot to offer if they can be part of early conversations during development stages of FTAs and are ready to work with government to ensure new agreements build on the UK’s strategic advantage and help to meet our ambition to build an ideas-driven economy and tackle challenges like climate change and health inequality. 

Read our briefing below.

Related case studies

Monitoring the levels of pollution in cities

Scientists and engineers at the University of York are coordinating an innovative project which will use new technologies to improve the understanding of urban pollution.

Read more >

Tackling air pollution and greenhouse gases with Europe-wide collaboration

Access to a €6.5million Horizon 2020 fund for research on air quality is helping University of Bristol academics influence climate change policy and reduce greenhouse gases and pollution.

Read more >