Scaling Social Science Research & Innovation
Lead Research Organisation:
Zinc Ventures Limited
Department Name: Core Team
Abstract
There is a wealth of knowledge from social science research that can inform an understanding of the societal challenges currently facing the UK. Increasingly, there is a range of exciting technological innovations that could be harnessed to develop effective solutions. However, at present, these pockets of knowledge and emerging technologies sit in siloes - fragmented across disciplines and sectors.
Zinc provides a platform to bring together social science and technologies (from life, computer and material sciences) with creative design and entrepreneurship, with the aim of tackling big societal issues through new, scalable products and services. Over the last two years, we have piloted a series of research and innovation activities that have drawn upon evidence, theory and methodologies from social science. These have included: embedding and generating research in new Zinc businesses; launching a Research Fellowship programme where researchers come to Zinc full-time to work alongside our entrepreneurs; establishing a network of experts (called 'Visiting Fellows') who engage with Zinc and Zinc businesses on an ad-hoc basis, creating opportunities for researchers to work in new businesses (through founding and advisory roles), building partnerships with universities at both the 'Zinc' and 'Zinc business' level; building relationships with research funders; disseminating learning; and creating a methodology for social science-based innovation.
We have demonstrated proof-of-concept on all these activities; however, our capacity to 'scale up' has been limited. This Fellowship would allow the Applicant to establish a new scale-up team with the aim of creating, testing, scaling and showcasing a world-leading approach to commercial research & innovation for the social sciences.
Specifically, the scale-up will focus on four missions, developing over 100 new businesses which provide consumers and businesses with new products and services. The missions are to:
- Improve mental and emotional health;
- Unlock new opportunities for people and places impacted by automation and globalisation;
- Add quality to later life;
- Enable individuals to halve their negative environmental impacts.
This programme of work would contribute to our knowledge about the social problems we are setting out to tackle (helping to develop and test potential solutions, as well as to highlight gaps in knowledge that may require further research/investment), the process of business creation (helping to build our knowledge of how to build mission-driven businesses), and the process of social science-based research and innovation. Its outputs will be of potential benefit to a range of audiences, including users of the products/services that are developed, entrepreneurs and start-ups, and the research and innovation ecosystem. It also has the potential for broader societal and economic impact in the UK, through the creation of successful and impactful startups, as well as the opportunity to build on the UK's existing strengths in social science, creative design, and technology to build a global centre of excellence for social science-based innovation.
Zinc provides a platform to bring together social science and technologies (from life, computer and material sciences) with creative design and entrepreneurship, with the aim of tackling big societal issues through new, scalable products and services. Over the last two years, we have piloted a series of research and innovation activities that have drawn upon evidence, theory and methodologies from social science. These have included: embedding and generating research in new Zinc businesses; launching a Research Fellowship programme where researchers come to Zinc full-time to work alongside our entrepreneurs; establishing a network of experts (called 'Visiting Fellows') who engage with Zinc and Zinc businesses on an ad-hoc basis, creating opportunities for researchers to work in new businesses (through founding and advisory roles), building partnerships with universities at both the 'Zinc' and 'Zinc business' level; building relationships with research funders; disseminating learning; and creating a methodology for social science-based innovation.
We have demonstrated proof-of-concept on all these activities; however, our capacity to 'scale up' has been limited. This Fellowship would allow the Applicant to establish a new scale-up team with the aim of creating, testing, scaling and showcasing a world-leading approach to commercial research & innovation for the social sciences.
Specifically, the scale-up will focus on four missions, developing over 100 new businesses which provide consumers and businesses with new products and services. The missions are to:
- Improve mental and emotional health;
- Unlock new opportunities for people and places impacted by automation and globalisation;
- Add quality to later life;
- Enable individuals to halve their negative environmental impacts.
This programme of work would contribute to our knowledge about the social problems we are setting out to tackle (helping to develop and test potential solutions, as well as to highlight gaps in knowledge that may require further research/investment), the process of business creation (helping to build our knowledge of how to build mission-driven businesses), and the process of social science-based research and innovation. Its outputs will be of potential benefit to a range of audiences, including users of the products/services that are developed, entrepreneurs and start-ups, and the research and innovation ecosystem. It also has the potential for broader societal and economic impact in the UK, through the creation of successful and impactful startups, as well as the opportunity to build on the UK's existing strengths in social science, creative design, and technology to build a global centre of excellence for social science-based innovation.
Planned Impact
This is not a traditional research project; Zinc's work, and the specific project being proposed here, is designed with the explicit purpose of having an impact beyond an academic research context. Our goal is to create a new, world-leading approach to commercial research & innovation for the social sciences that will build on the UK's existing strengths, produce social benefits for a range of user groups, and generate economic benefits for the UK.
The primary direct beneficiaries will be:
(1) Users of the products and services that are created;
(2) Entrepreneurs and the UK start-up ecosystem;
(3) Researchers and Innovators who are interested in applying social sciences in commercial contexts.
How will users benefit? By creating and scaling a novel approach to social science-based innovation, we are aiming to develop new products and services that are both engaging and effective - targeted at real user needs, and capable of generating measurable impact. We will draw on social science evidence and methodologies to adopt a user-led approach, maximising the potential for the businesses we create to directly benefit those who are most in need of solutions. In the longer-term, the outcomes of this work have the potential to transform society's most pressing challenges, as these products and services reach scale. With the benefit of this UKRI funding in this 4-year period, we will build and measure the positive impact of 120 new companies on 1m or more people.
How will entrepreneurs benefit? The UK start-up ecosystem is increasingly embracing the concept of design thinking and the approach of being user-led; however, the world of social science research remains largely disconnected. By providing the entrepreneurs who come through our programmes with a systematic methodology for creating new social science-based businesses, we will maximise the impact their businesses create. Further, by building a thorough understanding of human behaviour through engagement with social science research, entrepreneurs can maximise their business's chances of commercial success. This has the potential to lead to a step-change in the UK's start-up ecosystem, e.g. by attracting new types of entrepreneurs (e.g. early career researchers, healthcare professionals, etc.) who are mission-driven and passionate about evidence-based practice.
How will researchers/innovators benefit? By translating social science research into new commercial businesses, we will open up new pathways to impact for academic researchers, new career opportunities for early career researchers, and a new type of intersectionality between the worlds of research and innovation which, in the social sciences, have not always operated in tandem. For example, placing researchers alongside the entrepreneurs, full-time over 18 months (through our Research Fellowship programme) will directly benefit early career researchers, whose career prospects within academia are often limited, and who are increasingly looking for alternative career paths.
In addition, the following groups will indirectly benefit: Public, private and third sector organisations and professionals (e.g. teachers, healthcare professionals, charity-workers, as well as corporates and SMEs) whose work is relevant to one or more of Zinc's missions; higher education institutions and funders, who will benefit from additional collaborative opportunities, and new channels for research funding; the UK economy, whose global economic competitiveness will benefit from the creation of a world-leading approach to social-science research and innovation that draws on the UK's existing strengths.
The primary direct beneficiaries will be:
(1) Users of the products and services that are created;
(2) Entrepreneurs and the UK start-up ecosystem;
(3) Researchers and Innovators who are interested in applying social sciences in commercial contexts.
How will users benefit? By creating and scaling a novel approach to social science-based innovation, we are aiming to develop new products and services that are both engaging and effective - targeted at real user needs, and capable of generating measurable impact. We will draw on social science evidence and methodologies to adopt a user-led approach, maximising the potential for the businesses we create to directly benefit those who are most in need of solutions. In the longer-term, the outcomes of this work have the potential to transform society's most pressing challenges, as these products and services reach scale. With the benefit of this UKRI funding in this 4-year period, we will build and measure the positive impact of 120 new companies on 1m or more people.
How will entrepreneurs benefit? The UK start-up ecosystem is increasingly embracing the concept of design thinking and the approach of being user-led; however, the world of social science research remains largely disconnected. By providing the entrepreneurs who come through our programmes with a systematic methodology for creating new social science-based businesses, we will maximise the impact their businesses create. Further, by building a thorough understanding of human behaviour through engagement with social science research, entrepreneurs can maximise their business's chances of commercial success. This has the potential to lead to a step-change in the UK's start-up ecosystem, e.g. by attracting new types of entrepreneurs (e.g. early career researchers, healthcare professionals, etc.) who are mission-driven and passionate about evidence-based practice.
How will researchers/innovators benefit? By translating social science research into new commercial businesses, we will open up new pathways to impact for academic researchers, new career opportunities for early career researchers, and a new type of intersectionality between the worlds of research and innovation which, in the social sciences, have not always operated in tandem. For example, placing researchers alongside the entrepreneurs, full-time over 18 months (through our Research Fellowship programme) will directly benefit early career researchers, whose career prospects within academia are often limited, and who are increasingly looking for alternative career paths.
In addition, the following groups will indirectly benefit: Public, private and third sector organisations and professionals (e.g. teachers, healthcare professionals, charity-workers, as well as corporates and SMEs) whose work is relevant to one or more of Zinc's missions; higher education institutions and funders, who will benefit from additional collaborative opportunities, and new channels for research funding; the UK economy, whose global economic competitiveness will benefit from the creation of a world-leading approach to social-science research and innovation that draws on the UK's existing strengths.
Organisations
- Zinc Ventures Limited (Fellow, Lead Research Organisation)
- BIRMINGHAM MUSEUMS TRUST (Collaboration)
- British Society of Gerontology (Collaboration)
- Lancaster University (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF READING (Collaboration)
- SHEFFIELD HALLAM UNIVERSITY (Collaboration)
- QUEEN'S UNIVERSITY BELFAST (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF EXETER (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD (Collaboration)
- University of Sheffield (Collaboration)
- Cardiff University (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF GLASGOW (Collaboration)
- Teesside University (Collaboration)
- University of Bath (Collaboration)
- University of Massachusetts Amherst (Collaboration)
- British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF GREENWICH (Collaboration)
- UNIVERSITY OF YORK (Collaboration)
- Royal College of Art (Collaboration)
People |
ORCID iD |
| Rachel Carey (Principal Investigator / Fellow) |
| Title | Animated video capturing Zinc's approach to user research |
| Description | Short, animated video capturing principles underpinning Zinc's approach to user research |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Impact | Increase in awareness of Zinc's R&D activities |
| URL | https://drive.google.com/file/d/1KG9G09ZJqG-60eUHiEfhieWhJMs2m1E6/view |
| Title | Podcast episode describing Zinc's R&D work |
| Description | Podcast episode (openly available online) of the Anthropology + Technology Podcast focused on an interview with Rachel Carey about Zinc's R&D work |
| Type Of Art | Artefact (including digital) |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Impact | Increased awareness of Zinc's work; new connections; invitations to participate in other events. |
| URL | https://response-ability.tech/podcast/ |
| Title | Podcast episode on 'taboo' health issues |
| Description | Rachel Carey hosted a conversation, on the Zinc podcast, with Linnea Dunne and Dr Anna Hushlak on the nature and impact of health issues that are stigmatised or taboo. |
| Type Of Art | Artefact (including digital) |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | The podcast led to increased visibility of Zinc's work and new connections made. |
| URL | https://www.zinc.vc/blog/zinc-vcs-podcast-taboos-episode/ |
| Title | Podcast episode: Interview on The Decision Corner |
| Description | Interview with Rachel Carey on The Decision Lab's podcast (The Decision Corner), talking about applied behavioural science and Zinc's approach to R&D. |
| Type Of Art | Artefact (including digital) |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | The podcast has led to new connections and networks. |
| URL | https://thedecisionlab.com/podcasts/creating-startups-through-empathy-behavioural-research-dr-rachel... |
| Title | Video capturing scientists' roles in early-stage startups |
| Description | Short video featuring scientists and researchers in Zinc startups, talking about their role and its impact |
| Type Of Art | Film/Video/Animation |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Impact | Increased recognition of Zinc's R&D work and the role of researchers in our ventures |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-lHyidahMfg |
| Description | The original Fellowship proposal outlined 9 research and innovation activity strands, which together represented my scale-up plans for R&D at Zinc. A brief update on each of these is provided below. Embedding & generating research in Zinc businesses: In November 2021, we launched our fourth venture-builder programme focused on improving children and young people's mental health. We produced a manifesto for this mission to highlight priority areas for innovation, and also produced an open-access guide to engaging with children and young people for Zinc founders (and others) to draw on in their research and innovation activities. In line with a key FLF objective, we are on track to back ~15 research-based ventures in this programme, covering a range of important areas. Since the beginning of the FLF award, we have grown the overall R&D team to >12 people, which has allowed us to scale up the support we provide to our cohorts of entrepreneurs. Our R&D team is supporting our cohort of 67 founders, to help them understand the problems within this space and develop effective, engaging products and services. This involves summarising peer-reviewed literature, supporting with user research, connecting with relevant experts, and maximising the value and quality of ventures' experimentation. In this current venture-builder programme, we have responded to >150 research requests from entrepreneurs, compiled a database of 78 records, facilitated engagement opportunities with charities and other organisations (including 10 schools), delivered >10 whole-cohort workshops and worked individually with entrepreneurs and their emerging teams to explore problems and design and test solutions. Later this year, we will launch our next venture-builder - this time, focused on helping people to reduce their environmental harms. Over the next few months, we will be engaging in research and consultation to build our manifesto for this next mission. Research Fellowship Programme: In 2021, we launched the R&D Fellowships programme, supporting postdoctoral researchers to spend 12 months at Zinc. The Fellowships offer researchers the chance to work closely with entrepreneurs from the earliest stages of the founder journey - accelerating research impact, supporting product development, and offering researchers new translational opportunities and skills. In line with a key FLF objective, we received funding for the first four of these Fellowships from the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and Medical Research Council (MRC). We are currently exploring ways to formalise and grow this programme - expanding to other disciplines and recruiting larger cohorts. In addition to this, in April 2022, we will be launching our first Innovation Internships Scheme, supporting a cohort of 6-10 PhD students to spend 3 months at Zinc, as an industry placement funded by UKRI studentships. With support from ASPECT, we are now designing a programme of support for these students, to make sure their experience is maximally valuable for their career and personal development. Both of these programmes have been designed through research and in consultation with researchers and ventures. Visiting Fellows: We have continued to grow our network of Visiting Fellows, and our current programme involves a network of >100 world-leading experts across a variety of backgrounds, more than 20% of whom are researchers / scientists. In addition, later this year, we will be piloting a programme for mid-career researchers. This will specifically target some of the known barriers to engaging with startups, and provide opportunities for short-term immersion in the world of early-stage innovation. With funding from ASPECT, we will pilot this approach with a small cohort of mid-career social scientists, who will join us for a mix of on- and offline events over the course of several months. Creating roles for researchers in Zinc ventures: In the run-up to our most recent venture-builder, we opened dedicated recruitment pipelines focused on early career researchers. In our current cohort, >20% of the entrepreneurs have a research/science background. In our portfolio of ventures, ~30% of the Founders have a research/science background, and many have taken on scientists as employees, consultants and advisors. Formalising university partners for Zinc: Led by a core member of the FLF team, our Head of R&D Partnerships, we have continued to bolster and grow our network of university collaborators. We have collaborated with universities on funding applications (described in detail elsewhere in this submission), events, and collaborative research projects. We have also expanded our university connections through our delivery, in partnership with UKRI, of the Healthy Ageing Catalyst Awards programme. Our focus in the next two years will be to continue to build international links, beginning with university collaborators for our next mission on the environment. Formalising university partners for Zinc businesses: As our portfolio of ventures grows and diversifies, many are running collaborative research projects and working closely with researchers to refine and test their products and services. Almost half of our portfolio companies have live collaborations or formal relationships with a university/academic. For example, Parla are continuing to leverage the research they conducted in 2021 (as part of the Wellcome-funded Taboo Health programme), as they launch new products to their community of users in the first half of 2022. Bold Health are working with UPenn and Stanford, who are running randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of their IBS product, Zemedy. And Bia Care are officially partnered with Imperial College's Self-Care Academic Unit (SCARU), with whom they conducted research to understand women's experience of menopause, which won the Best Research Award at the RCGP Annual Conference. Building relationships with research funders: Since the beginning of this Award, we have worked closely with a number of funders, and have secured further funding: for Research Fellowships and Zinc-led research and innovation programmes - all outlined elsewhere in this submission. Dissemination and knowledge exchange: We have regularly shared updates and learning through events, workshops, blogs and podcast episodes (listed elsewhere in this submission). We have moved the majority of our dissemination and knowledge exchange events online due to the pandemic, but plan to host and attend more in-person events over the next two years. New methodology for social science innovation: We have begun work on a number of resources to contribute to new methodologies for social science innovation. This work is partially being advanced through our Transforming Business Through Social Science (ESRC) project. We will be sharing more (externally) on this over the next year. |
| Exploitation Route | The outcomes and learning from this Award are being regularly shared through a variety of outputs and outlets (focusing more on public engagement than traditional academic publishing). The aim is for this learning to be taken up and put to use by innovators, researchers and others - both within and beyond the Zinc network. For example, the guidance document we developed on engaging with children and young people was made public, in order to both take on new feedback and share emerging good practice. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Environment,Healthcare,Other |
| Description | This is a programme of research and innovation, hosted within a business setting, and is not a traditional research project. The focus is entirely on having impact: on our missions (mental health, the quality of later life, the future of work, and the environment), on researchers (particularly early career researchers who are interested in working in or with new ventures) and on innovators and entrepreneurs who want to create successful products and ventures. The work supported through this Award is allowing us to scale-up our research and innovation activities to: provide more in-depth support to entrepreneurs, create new opportunities for researchers, and work with our new ventures to have impact at scale on our chosen missions. |
| Description | AHRC / Zinc R&D Fellowships |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 10/2021 |
| End | 09/2022 |
| Description | Discretionary Award - Public Engagement |
| Amount | £240,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 222055/Z/20/Z |
| Organisation | Wellcome Trust |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2020 |
| End | 11/2021 |
| Description | MRC / Zinc R&D Fellowships |
| Amount | £120,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Medical Research Council (MRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2021 |
| End | 03/2023 |
| Description | Transforming Business Through Social Science |
| Amount | £100,000 (GBP) |
| Organisation | Economic and Social Research Council |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 12/2021 |
| End | 11/2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | Birmingham Museums Trust |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | Lancaster University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | Sheffield Hallam University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | University of Cambridge |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | University of Massachusetts Amherst |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Digital Good Network |
| Organisation | University of Sheffield |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Dr Rachel Middlemass, who is part of the FLF team, is on the DGN management team. We will facilitate hosting of PhD placements and postdoc fellowships as part of this collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Digital Good Network (DGN) is a cross-discipline, cross-sector network exploring how to ensure that digital technologies benefit people, society and the economy. Over five years, it will provide funding, training and capacity-building opportunities to DGN affiliates, to enhance our collective understanding of what the 'digital good' should look like and how it can be achieved. DGN was launched in November 2022 with £4m investment from the ESRC and an additional £1m from partners. It will: support research projects and methodological innovation across disciplines and various dimensions of the digital good; offer internships, fellowships and training; host technology design sprints and workshops; co-produce research with policy, industry and communities; and produce a Digital Good Index, based on original research, horizon scanning and open data. |
| Impact | This is a new, multidisciplinary collaboration. |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Involvement in BSG Ageing Business and Society Special Interest Group |
| Organisation | British Society of Gerontology |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Member of research team participating in the British Society of Gerontology's special interest group, actively contributing to building new partnerships and sharing knowledge. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Contributing to planning first public webinar. |
| Impact | Webinar jointly planned. Collaboration brings together multiple organisations and disciplines. |
| Start Year | 2021 |
| Description | Mid-career researchers placement programme - ASPECT network |
| Organisation | Cardiff University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We designed and ran a short programme of events and discussions (over 5 days) for mid-career researchers interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners supported this work by supporting one or more academics to attend this programme. |
| Impact | This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Mid-career researchers placement programme - ASPECT network |
| Organisation | Queen's University Belfast |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We designed and ran a short programme of events and discussions (over 5 days) for mid-career researchers interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners supported this work by supporting one or more academics to attend this programme. |
| Impact | This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Mid-career researchers placement programme - ASPECT network |
| Organisation | University of Exeter |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We designed and ran a short programme of events and discussions (over 5 days) for mid-career researchers interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners supported this work by supporting one or more academics to attend this programme. |
| Impact | This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Mid-career researchers placement programme - ASPECT network |
| Organisation | University of Glasgow |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We designed and ran a short programme of events and discussions (over 5 days) for mid-career researchers interested in entrepreneurship and innovation. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners supported this work by supporting one or more academics to attend this programme. |
| Impact | This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | Royal College of Art |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | Teesside University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of Bath |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of Exeter |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of Glasgow |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of Greenwich |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of Reading |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | Reducing Environmental Harms - ASPECT network partnership |
| Organisation | University of York |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | To ensure we engage the UK's depth and breadth of expertise around environment/climate, and with a social science agenda, we are working with a number of UK universities to collaboratively prioritise areas for innovation in Zinc's current (climate-focused) venture-builder. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partner universities are supporting this project by facilitating introductions to relevant experts and hosting discussion events. |
| Impact | This collaboration was one strand that led to the creation of Zinc's environment manifesto. This project has received funding from ASPECT (and is therefore social science led). |
| Start Year | 2022 |
| Description | BSG New Year New Career Event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Event held in partnership with British Society of Gerontology to raise awareness of the variety of career opportunities available to PhD students and ECRs interested in ageing within and outside the academy. A panel of speakers with experience in a diverse range of industries shared their experience and answered audience questions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Blog on 4 ways Zinc is accelerating research and innovation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Blog outlining ways in which Zinc is advancing and accelerating research and innovation. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://zincvc.medium.com/four-ways-zinc-is-accelerating-research-and-innovation-c2bf105829a6 |
| Description | Blog on how Zinc works with children and young people to create new innovations |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We published a blog on how we planned to work with children and young people in our venture builder on children's mental health. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://zincvc.medium.com/how-well-work-with-children-and-young-people-to-tackle-mental-health-d3748... |
| Description | Blog on the humanities application to innovation at Zinc |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | One of our postdoctoral Research Fellows published a blog on their experience of applying the humanities to the context of early-stage commercial innovation. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.zinc.vc/blog/a-wildness-of-mind-the-arts-humanities-at-zinc/ |
| Description | Blog published to summarise upcoming research and innovation plans (2022) |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | PI published a blog to summarise 2022 plans for R&D at Zinc. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.zinc.vc/blog/whats-new-at-zinc-rd-plans-for-2022/ |
| Description | Blog series on climate innovation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Member of the FLF team has launched a regular newsletter delivered to entrepreneurs to highlight important and interesting insights in the climate tech world. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| URL | http://lukebevan.substack.com |
| Description | Blog summarising plans for FLF project |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Blog written by the FLF award-holder summarising the background and plans for FLF, published on Medium and on LSE blogs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/businessreview/2020/07/27/connecting-social-science-and-startups-to-tackle-i... |
| Description | Blog to launch later life innovation report |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Engagement focused website, blog or social media channel |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | A blog was published, via the ASPECT website, to celebrate the launch of a new later life innovation report, aiming to summarise insights and share them with a wide range of communities and stakeholders. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://aspect.ac.uk/resources/bringing-startups-and-social-science-together-for-later-life-innovati... |
| Description | Contribution at ReSHAPE event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A member of the FLF team contributed to the ReSHAPE event, launching a collaboration between Aspect, The British Academy, ARC and Aspect Angels, the event brought together pioneering SHAPE ventures, investors, policy makers, academics and key players in the sector. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://aspect.ac.uk/news-and-events/reshape-launch/ |
| Description | Contribution to ASPECT Festival |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team gave a short presentation of what Zinc does to support social science ventures, followed by Q&A. Purpose was to explore good practice in supporting social science in commercial contexts and to better understand what support can be offered at institutional level (i.e. at different universities). |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://aspect.ac.uk/news-and-events/aspect-festival-21/ |
| Description | Contribution to LSE Generate ABC PhDs Retreat |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team facilitated talk and interactive workshop to 30 PhD students from different disciplines who are interested in exploring career opportunities outside academia. Aim was to introduce students to early-stage, mission-focussed innovation and helping them understand how their skills and expertise might be used in that context. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://info.lse.ac.uk/staff/divisions/research-and-innovation/generate |
| Description | Contribution to University College Dublin Panel Discussion |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | PI was invited to participate in a panel discussion outlining career paths beyond academia to an audience of postgraduate students and postdocs. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | ECR careers event talk for TU Delft |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Presentation to introduce PhD students to alternative (non-academic) career pathways |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Engage Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team ran a workshop describing an updated version of our new guidance on involving children and young people in research, including a description of the process and outcomes of a crowdsourcing activity run as part of the Engage 'Unconference'. Intended to introduce conference participants to the ways in which high-quality participatory research and co-design can be run in and by commercial start-ups, and to share insights into some aspects of best practice in this. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.publicengagement.ac.uk/sites/default/files/publication/engage_conference_2021_full_progr... |
| Description | Engage Unconference workshop |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Workshop held by members of research team, exploring ways to safely and effectively involve children and young people in research, to the mutual benefit of researchers and research participants. Used the session both to share Zinc's developing insights in this subject and to crowd-source additional input and examples of best practice from PE professionals with experience of working with young people. To do this, we shared a set of draft guidance developed by Zinc (based on desk research and expert engagement) with workshop participants and invited them to comment on and add to that document themselves. The document was made freely available to all. Several participants requested permission to share it more widely in their own institutions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://docs.google.com/document/d/1p_fYXGE25-hW60x9Nsl6v4SNK_BPNYjZveFthoW_7Qg/edit#heading=h.841jn... |
| Description | Event focused on innovations to improve the quality of later life |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We facilitated an event focused on improving the resilience, impact and success of later life startup innovation - held as part of Longevity Week. Of the 82 people who registered, we had ~50% attend the session. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Event focused on the role of research in mental health startups |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We facilitated a virtual event focused on the nature and impact of research in mental health startups, featuring the Founder of Big Health as a keynote speaker. 130 people signed up, of whom >50% attended. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| Description | Event hosted for early career researchers at Zinc |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | We hosted an event for early career researchers entitled 'Accelerating your impact through applied research roles in startups', to share learning and perspectives about non-academic career pathways. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/accelerating-your-impact-through-applied-research-roles-in-startups-t... |
| Description | Information Session on Zinc R&D in Boston |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | The PI hosted a small-group event in Boston, sharing an overview of Zinc's work. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Judging panel for ARC social science accelerator |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | PI invited to be on the judging panel for the ASPECT-led ARC social science accelerator, supporting social science innovations. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://aspect.ac.uk/about/aspect-funded-projects/arc/ |
| Description | Judging panel for Alzheimer's Society Dementia Hero Award for Innovation |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team on judging panel, supporting Alzheimer's Society's process for awarding an innovation prize |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Judging panel for KCL IoPPN digital therapeutics event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team on judging panel, providing feedback (on routes to commercialisation, scale and adoption) to academic innovators working on translational research ideas. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Longevity Leaders Panel Discussion |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | PI was invited to contribute to a panel discussion on funding, as part of the Longevity Leaders annual conference. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.lsxleaders.com/longevity-leaders-congress |
| Description | Panel discussion focused on careers for researchers in ageing |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | 47 early career researchers in the field of ageing research attended this event co-hosted by Zinc and the British Society of Gerontology. One FLF team member was a panellist, sharing experience of different career paths. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Panel discussion for OIST postgraduates and postdocs |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | PI was invited to chair a discussion on academic/scientific entrepreneurship, hosted virtually by the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| Description | Panel discussion on the transition from early career researcher to entrepreneurship |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | We facilitated a virtual panel discussion, as part of the ASPECT annual conference, focused on the transition from academia to entrepreneurship (featuring four panellists from a range of social science backgrounds). 136 signed up, of whom 64 joined the session. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2020 |
| URL | https://aspect.ac.uk/resources/webinar-recording-the-case-for-working-in-start-ups/ |
| Description | Presentation at Praxis Auril Conference |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team participated in panel discussion and Q&A about research careers outside academia. Purpose was to increase and enhance awareness and understanding among university professional service staff of the range of ways in which research can be used to leverage impacts via commercial markets. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.praxisauril.org.uk/civicrm/event/info?reset=1&id=437 |
| Description | Presentation for ADVANCE CRT PhD Students |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team presented to ~100 PhD students in the ADVANCE CRT - a Science Foundation Ireland Centre for Research Training focused on Future Networks and the Internet of Things. Presentation was a 60-minute introduction for students to early-stage, mission-focussed innovation. Intended to help them understand how their skills and expertise might be used in that context. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.advance-crt.ie/ |
| Description | Presentation to Social, Behavioural and Design Research Programme ECR network |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Presentation to Social, Behavioural and Design Research Programme ECR network, giving an overview of an entrepreneurial approach to research and innovation in order to help researchers think through how they can direct their work to develop successful products or services. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| Description | Series of roundtables with health funders focused on ECR mobility |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A formal working group, expert panel or dialogue |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Supporters |
| Results and Impact | Two roundtable discussions, jointly facilitated by Zinc and the Dunhill Medical Trust, focused on new ways of supporting ECR mobility and development. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022,2023 |
| Description | Talk at The Foundation event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | The PI was invited to give a talk to a group of business leaders, focused on behavioural science-led innovation. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/elusive-recipe-customer-led-tech-foundation-forum-6-april-dawson/?tra... |
| Description | Talk at digital health event in Galway |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | The PI was invited to give a talk at a digital health conference hosted by the University of Galway. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kwqFn6E_YUQ&list=PLymPPtvLBpurlx9M9FM9xyiffAGSQuUNd&index=11 |
| Description | Talk at the ASPECT showcase to South African Universities |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The PI was invited to give a talk as part of an ASPECT showcase event at the LSE, with an audience of stakeholders from South African Universities. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Talk to UCL Institute of Sustainable Resources |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of the FLF team delivered a talk and lecture to UCL Institute of Sustainable Resources masters course on Sustainable Innovation and Entrepreneurship, followed by Q&A session. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | Talk to UCL School of Management for Climate Scenarios |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Undergraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of the FLF team gave a talk on the role of venture builders and the space of mission-focussed innovation in the UK, as part of an event held as part of UCL's School of Management scenarios week. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2023 |
| Description | University College Dublin postdoctoral networking event |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Member of research team gave brief careers presentation to postdocs |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2021 |
| URL | https://www.ucd.ie/researchcareers/t4media/Flyer%20Postdoc%20Career%20Day%202705.pdf |
| Description | Videos sharing learning from 'taboo health' programme |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A broadcast e.g. TV/radio/film/podcast (other than news/press) |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Industry/Business |
| Results and Impact | We released two short videos summarising some of the learning from our recent programme on taboo health issues, produced in partnership with The Liminal Space. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |
| URL | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h6JeodLB-AE&feature=youtu.be |
| Description | Zinc SPARK event in Cardiff |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Regional |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | A member of the FLF team travelled to Cardiff to host an event sharing learning from Zinc on how mission-driven startups provide a route to research impact |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2022 |