The coronavirus pandemic presented the world with challenges which The Open University (OU) has sought to address right from the outset. In March, a team led by the Pro Vice-Chancellor for Research, Enterprise and Scholarship (RES), acted quickly to mobilise academics and resources to respond to the crisis.
RES rose to the challenge by identifying nine areas of activity where the OU could contribute and add value to the lives of staff, the general public, to professionals needing to move their services online and to the body of academic research in this field.
Early opportunities to respond came in the form of meeting a demand for hand sanitiser; joining an industry partner who was researching a test for COVID-19 and support to counsellors who wanted to move their services online.
