Research funding calls have increasingly short deadlines, and sometimes the research that is needed is in response to pressing external events – like the Covid-19 pandemic.

But how can researchers develop collaborations quickly in order to respond to these tight timeframes? Dr Gina Reinhardt (Essex) and Dr Jeremy Rossman (Kent) talk about two networks of which they’re part: the Disaster and Emergency Research Network (DERN), and the Research-Aid Networks.