• Title: BEACON - Building Excellence in Academic Collaboration, Output, and Networking in Jorda
• Funding Programme: British Academy
• Duration of the Project: 24 months
• BA Co-financing: £29,424.00
• Start Date: March 2025

BEACON is a transformative capacity-building initiative empowering Early Career Researchers (ECRs) in Jordan by equipping them with skills, mentorship, and networks to produce high-quality academic outputs in the humanities and social sciences. The program focuses on women entrepreneurship and digital innovation, addressing structural barriers and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. Aligning with the British Academy's objectives, and through pre-workshop preparation, immersive boot camps, and writing retreats, ECRs gain essential skills in academic writing, grant drafting, and research dissemination.

The BEACON project is a partnership between several organisations:

1. University of Bedfordshire, UK (Lead Partner)
2. Oxford Brookes University, UK
3. Swansea University, UK
4. Middle East University, Jordan

Program Goals

• To advance research excellence, and build the capacity of ECRs in Jordan to produce high-quality, impactful research in the humanities and social sciences
• Foster inclusive academic development and promote gender equity and inclusivity by addressing systemic barriers in academia
• Strengthen global and interdisciplinary collaboration, and establish sustained partnerships between Jordanian ECRs, and UK-based academics
• Equip ECRs with leadership and mentorship skills, enabling them to drive meaningful research agendas and nurture future scholars in their institutions and beyond.
• Develop the Women Entrepreneurship and Innovation Research Network (WEIRN) as a platform to support collaboration, mentorship, and impactful research outcomes addressing regional challenges.

Project Structure

• Writing and Career Development Bootcamps and Retreats: Intensive workshops, focused writing sprints, and advanced skill-building sessions.
• Women Entrepreneurship and Innovation Research Network (WEIRN): A dedicated research network to sustain collaboration and foster actionable insights into women entrepreneurship and technology.
• Strategic Partnerships for Research and Innovation: Long-term collaborations with universities, NGOs, and technology firms to embed research outcomes in regional development.

Outcomes

• High-quality research outputs through improved academic writing and publishing competencies of participating ECRs.
• Creation of the Women Entrepreneurship and Innovation Research Network (WEIRN), a sustainable platform for interdisciplinary collaboration, mentorship, and peer support.
• Policy-relevant insights (i.e. Research findings inform strategies to promote inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems and digital transformation)
• Creation of a comprehensive, publicly accessible repository of resources, including toolkits, research publications, and templates.
• Strengthened mentorship and leadership skills.
• Knowledge dissemination

Project News

Project Launch

Contact Information

Dr Sanaz Vatankhah
E: sanaz.vatankhah@beds.ac.uk