As the fallout of Brexit and the US election results play out, it’s important to remember that maxim on change – it’s constant. So while political parties rise and fall, leaders come and go, prepared businesses and communities can aid economic stability and fuel more of the entrepreneurial spirit across the world.

And although issues like migration and visas-related bureaucracy coloured talks between Prime Ministers Theresa May and Narendra Modi last year, UK and India, for example, have for long pursued and established valuable research partnerships between their institutions. Sir Keith Burnett, Vice-Chancellor, University of Sheffield, who maintains a keen interest in India’s start-ups, weighs in here on how these relationships can continue.

Ties that Benefit

Sir Keith visited India last year and stopped by Bengaluru’s Indian Institute of Science (IISc). The University of Sheffield is keen to “investigate opportunities… for indepth collaboration” with institutions like the IISc.

“Bengaluru, for example, is not just an amazing centre of tech and now Internet of Things, but one of the reasons for my visit is to meet people who are looking at innovations in advanced manufacturing and research,” he said.

The University of Sheffield’s Advanced Manufacturing Research Centre (AMRC) is run in partnership with Boeing. It has pursued collaboration with the private sector in a combination of partnership and engagement models at various places in the UK. There are also AMRCs in South Korea and China. An AMRC “identifies, researches and resolves advanced manufacturing problems in a number of key technology areas.”

Environment for innovation

As automation takes on a range of sectors, it’s time for institutions and businesses in the education, training and skilling sectors to advise governments fearlessly.

“You need people with skills of the future, so they need to be trained in an environment where innovations happen,” says Sir Keith.

It’s a question to face squarely: could India have been better prepared for the Fourth Industrial Revolution?

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