Catchup – Debate – Is Peer Review Beyond Repair?

Can peer review still serve science effectively? Join Kalliopi Mavromati and Dr Evelina Valionyte for a live debate on 26 November at 8pm GMT and cast your vote..

Debate Motion:

This House believes that the peer review system is beyond reform and should be scrapped.

Peer review is central to how we fund, publish, and assess research. But is it still fit for purpose and the essential standard we should work to? Or has it become a flawed, outdated gatekeeper? Join us to explore whether peer review is perfect as it is, needs to be fixed, or whether it’s time to start over.

Speaker For the Motion:

Kalliopi Mavromati is a Research Assistant at the University of Glasgow. She works on improving patient reported outcome measures for stroke survivors and studies early processes linked to Alzheimer’s disease. With a background in psychology, neuroscience and statistics, she is driven by a wish to strengthen research practice and help the field understand the earliest stages of disease.

Speaker Against the Motion:

Dr Evelina Valionyte is an Alzheimer’s Society Research Fellow at the University of Plymouth, specialising in the cell biology of neurodegeneration. Her current work focuses on selective autophagy and how neurons maintain health, including mechanisms that keep protein aggregates in check. She completed her PhD in 2023, holds a biochemistry undergraduate degree, and has been awarded funding from Alzheimer’s Society and the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

What to Expect

Join us for a live online debate where our speakers will present opposing views on the continued relevance of animal models in dementia research. The session will include:

• 10-minute opening statements from each speaker
• Moderated discussion
• Audience Q&A
• Live vote before and after the debate to see if opinions shift

This is your chance to examine how we decide what counts as credible research — and whether we need to reform the system or replace it entirely.