Cochrane is part of a new global consortium to develop new tools, powered by artificial intelligence (AI), to analyse and synthesise research evidence on the relationships between climate change and human health.

The consortium is supported by a £10.2 million grant from Wellcome over four years, led by the Berlin-based climate research institute MCC.

The DESTINY project will develop novel AI-driven tools to make evidence synthesis faster, more efficient and continuously updated. The tools aim to automate and streamline tasks such as detecting relevant individual studies, extracting and synthesising their respective findings and identifying overarching insights.

As an internationally-recognised leader in evidence synthesis for human health, Cochrane will help to apply our methodological expertise to the field of climate research. We will co-lead several work programmes with the Campbell Collaboration, who specialize in evidence synthesis for social research.

It will be vital to ensure that outputs from automated tools are responsible and robust, with human oversight offering safeguards and methodological expertise. Cochrane will co-lead this workstream with Campbell, defining standards for responsible AI use and producing best-practice guidance. We will also help to ensure that the technology can be used equitably across the world, working with our extensive global network and consortium partners to build and strengthen capacity.

“Climate change poses one of the greatest threats to human health, so this project is both vital and timely,” says Dr Karla Soares-Weiser, Editor-in-Chief of the Cochrane Library and co-Principal Investigator on the DESTINY project. “It has the potential to transform evidence synthesis for climate and health, equipping decision-makers with the evidence they need to make informed decisions. Climate change is a key research priority in Cochrane’s scientific strategy, while methodological innovation is one of our core commitments. The DESTINY project will enable us to further these goals in collaboration with partners across the world, all bringing our own strengths to deliver the best outcomes.”

The project takes place in the context of a wider investment into evidence synthesis infrastructure, with £54.2 million of funding announced in September from both Wellcome and the UK government. The DESTINY grant is a separate award focused on climate change and health, signalling Wellcome’s leadership in this area.

“Stopping climate change is critical for securing human health,” says Jan Minx, head of the MCC working group Applied Sustainability Science and principal investigator of the DESTINY project. “Policymakers need the best and most recent scientific evidence to support their decisions, but the ready-to-hand evidence is often anecdotal and outdated. This project is pushing the boundaries of what is possible by using the latest advances in AI. It will demonstrate that the scientific knowledge needed for health-centred climate action can be synthesised and provided almost instantly. Speed and scientific rigour can go hand in hand – this is key to efficiently solving the big issues of our time.”

The consortium partners are Cochrane, University College London, The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, the ACRES Center for Rapid Evidence Synthesis, Future Evidence Foundation, the African Synthesis Centre for Climate Change, Environment and Development, Effective Basic Services (eBase) Africa, the Campbell Collaboration. “Having a diverse community of partners will ensure equity and inclusion in global evidence infrastructures,” says Patrick Okwen, Co-Investigator from eBase Africa.

Title: Assistant Quality Assurance Editor
Specifications: Permanent – Full Time
Salary: £30,000 per annum
Location: (Remote) based in the UK, Germany or Denmark
Directorate: Evidence Production and Methods Directorate
Closing date: 17 December 2024

Cochrane is an international charity. For 30 years we have responded to the challenge of making vast amounts of research evidence useful for informing decisions about health. We do this by synthesising research findings and our work has been recognised as the international gold standard for high quality, trusted information.

As Assistant Quality Assurance Editor within Cochrane’s Editorial Department, you will provide support to the Quality Assurance Editor and Senior Quality Assurance Editor, to help them to assess whether protocols, reviews and updates submitted to Cochrane’s Central Editorial Service have met Cochrane’s methodological standards. The post holder will provide this support by gathering information on individual reviews (e.g., by performing initial checks on submitted reviews, identifying and accessing relevant papers, or performing consistency checks within the reviews), assisting with the write up of peer review reports, and helping the Quality Assurance Team to reach consensus on recommendations to make for each submission.

You will also be trained to conduct your own full assessments of protocols, reviews and updates submitted to Cochrane’s Central Editorial Service have met Cochrane’s methodological standards, with the possibility of moving up a level to the role of ‘Quality Assurance Editor’ at a future stage. 

Don’t have every single qualification? We know that some people are less likely to apply for a job unless they are a perfect match. At Cochrane, we’re not looking for “perfect matches.” We’re looking to welcome people to our diverse, inclusive, and passionate workplace. So, if you’re excited about this role but don’t have every single qualification, we encourage you to apply anyway. Whether it’s this role or another one, you may be just the right candidate.

Our organisation is built on four core values:

Collaboration: Underpins everything we do, locally and globally.

Relevant: The right evidence at the right time in the right format.

Integrity: Independent and transparent.

Quality: Reviewing and improving what we do, maintaining rigour and trust.

You can expect:

• An opportunity to truly impact health globally.
•   A flexible work environment
• A comprehensive onboarding experiences.
•  An environment where people feel welcome, heard, and included, regardless of their differences.

Cochrane welcomes applications from a wide range of perspectives, experiences, locations, and backgrounds; diversity, equity and inclusion are key to our values.

How to apply

•  For further information on the role and click “how to apply”.
• The deadline to receive your application is 17 December, 2024.
• The supporting statement should indicate why you are applying for the post, and how far you meet the requirements, using specific examples.
• Read our Recruitment Privacy Statement

Cochrane is excited to announce the The People’s Review, a project designed to empower individuals worldwide to take part in a systematic review. The People’s Review invites the public to learn about systematic reviews by directly participating in the process. The People's Review is brought to you by Evidence Synthesis Ireland and Cochrane Ireland.

The People’s Review will be hosted on the Cochrane Crowd platform, which already supports various citizen science tasks related to systematic reviews. It will help guide participants through eight interactive stages— from choosing the review question to sharing the final results.

What Makes The People’s Review Special?

In an age of overwhelming information and online health advice, it’s crucial to have tools that allow individuals to navigate complex medical data. Systematic reviews offer a structured and reliable way to assess healthcare treatments. By involving the public in conducting one, The People’s Review seeks to demystify the process and equip participants with essential critical thinking skills for health decision-making.

 Éle Quinn, is a PhD student at University of Galway and is working alongside Evidence Synthesis Ireland and Cochrane Ireland on this project. Éle is the lead behind The People’s Review and shares her enthusiasm for the project and its potential impact:

“The power of systematic reviews is extraordinary. Especially in a world where we are bombarded with information 24/7. Finding reliable sources to help make choices, especially health choices is more difficult than ever. The People's Review is an exciting opportunity opening up the world of health research to the wider public in a unique even a fun way!”

The Cochrane Crowd platform hosts tasks that help identify and describe health research for systematic reviews. Many within the Crowd community have fed back that the experience helps build skills around understanding health evidence. Each task is always supported by brief (and fun!) interactive training, and any contribution is welcome. Anna Noel-Storr, Cochrane Crowd Lead adds:

"We’re thrilled to be part of this exciting initiative. Cochrane Crowd has always been about engaging the public in evidence production, and The People’s Review is the next step in empowering individuals to contribute to systematic reviews directly."

April English, Cochrane's Patient and Public Involvement Manager, highlights the importance of this project:

"The People's Review is an inspiring project that empowers the public. I see it as a valuable opportunity to learn from and help build trust in research by making it more inclusive and transparent. I look forward to continuing to collaborate on this important work."

Get Involved and Stay Updated

Everyone, regardless of background or experience, is welcome to join The People’s Review. Whether you have a smartphone, tablet, or computer, you can participate from anywhere in the world. This project is designed to be inclusive and accessible to all.

Be part of this unique opportunity to engage with health research! The project will go through 8 different stages. The first stage is now live, so sign up if you're interested in suggesting a question you want answered. To stay informed about opportunities to get involved, sign up for the newsletter and be the first to know about each new step in The People’s Review.

• To learn more about The People's Review visit www.thepeoplesreview.ie
• Follow The People's Review on social media 
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The People’s Review is funded by the Health Research Board (Ireland) (ESI-2021-001) and the HSC Research and Development Division of the Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland) through Evidence Synthesis Ireland and Cochrane Ireland. Éle Quinn’s PhD studentship was funded by the College of Medicine, Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Galway, Ireland through Evidence Synthesis Ireland.