University College London (UCL) is one of the UK’s major research universities. It is often ranked in the top ten world universities on a variety of metrics; University College London ranked fourth in the world's top ten universities by the QS World University Rankings (2013). UCL was established in 1826 to open up education in England for the first time to students of any race, class or religion. UCL was also the first university to welcome female students on equal terms with men.
University College London is one of the most successful UK universities at attracting funding, with an income of nearly £900 million in 2012. For example, in 2012, UCL the 3rd highest allocation European Research Council starting grants. In 2013, UCL, along with Oxford, has been awarded nine consolidator grants, the highest number awarded to any UK university, giving a total of over 100 ERC awards in 2008-2013.
University College London prides itself on its cross-disciplinary approach to research and the breadth of its expertise across engineering, science, humanities, medicine and the arts: UCL is one of the top two universities in the UK for the number of professors. University College London Grand Challenges are the mechanisms through which expertise from across UCL and beyond can be brought together to address the world's key problems. They support researchers to think about how their work relates to global issues. UCL Grand Challenges are a key part the UCL Research Strategy, which aims to: cultivate leadership founded in excellence, foster cross-disciplinarity grounded in expertise and realise the impact of a global university. The four grand challenges are all relevant for this proposal: Global Health, Sustainable Cities, Intercultural Interaction and Human Wellbeing.