Science Together - November 2021 update

An update on the recent developments for the Science Together: Oxford Researchers and Communities (STORC) programme.

Rainbow pattern to symbolise equality and diversity

Background

MPLS and MSD have launched a new Public Engagement with Research (PER) programme to connect researchers and local communities, so that our research is grounded in local needs, interests and priorities.

Named Science Together: Oxford Researchers and Communities (or STORC for short), this pilot programme explores what challenges can be overcome or opportunities seized by local community groups when they are given access to the world class skills, knowledge and resources of our researchers.

Throughout September we ran four introductory sessions that brought researchers, community groups and facilitators (PPI, PER and Comms professionals) together to conceive and plan collaborate research projects.

Latest developments

Rachel Ashwanden joins the team as Science Engagement Officer, her experience as Project Manager for the hugely successful Meat: Your Persona touring event will bring great expertise to the STORC celebratory event. Welcome Rachel!

We now have 28 researchers assigned to 8 community groups, with more partnerships to follow. As you can see from the table below, these researchers are various career stages and from a diverse range of departments across the university – which is great because it allows for some really interdisciplinary projects. Furthermore, we are pleased to welcome into the programme researchers from Oxford Brookes University, enabling Science Together to support collaboration across both institutions.

First name	Department and institution	Job title
Dr Adham Farah	Clinical Neurosciences	Postdoctoral associate
Prof. Alex Goody	Oxford Brookes University School of English and Modern Languages	Professor
Dr Alison Chisholm	Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences	Qualitative Researcher
Dr Andrei Constantin	Department of Physics, University of Oxford	Stephen Hawking Fellow in Theoretical Physics
Prof. Anna Barnett	Centre for Psychological Research, Oxford Brookes University	Professor in Psychology
Cameron Booker	Department of Physics, University of Oxford	PhD Student
Dr Carmel Capewell	School of Education, Oxford Brookes University	Senior Lecturer
Cillian Gartlan	Nuffield Department of Medicine, Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics	DPhil student
Dr Clare Rathbone	Psychology, Oxford Brookes	Senior Lecturer
Dr Daisy Lee	Health and Life Sciences	Associate Researcher
Prof. David De Roure	Engineering Science, University of Oxford	Professor
Dr Emma Pritchard	Nuffield Department of Medicine	Medical Statistician
Prof. Gabriele De Luca	Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences	Director, Clinical Neurosciences Undergraduate Education, Oxford Medical School
Prof. Harrison Steel	Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford	Professor of Engineering Science
Julie Bennett	Oxford Brookes University - Department of Psychology	Research Associate and PHD Student
Dr Juliet Carpenter	Kellogg College, Oxford University	Research Fellow
Dr Kate Wilmut	Psychology, Oxford Brookes University	Reader
Leonhard Tannesia	Materials, Oxford	M.Res student
Maria Armaou	Oxford Brookes University, Department of Psychology, Health and Professional Development	Postgraduate Research Assistant
Dr Mauricio Villarroel	Engineering Science, University of Oxford	Senior Researcher
Dr Mina Samangooei	School of Architecture, Oxford Brookes University	Senior Lecturer
Norah Alrishedan	Oncology	DPhil student
Dr Sangeetha Thondre	Department of Sport, Health Sciences and Social Work, Oxford Brookes University	Senior Lecturer in Nutrition
Robert Kerr	University of Oxford	PhD Student
Dr Stephanie Longet	Nuffield Department of Clinical Medicine	Postdoctoral Researcher in Immunology
Dr Tina Mohindra	Jenner Institute	Project Manager
Victoria Strutt	Department of Materials	PhD student
Dr Zhuangzhuang Dai	Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford	Software Engineer

The community groups are all local to Oxfordshire and are undertaking a broad range of projects:

Barton Community Association are running an after school science club to help young people catch up on learning missed during lockdown

Daybreak are looking at how technology can help people with dementia live independent lives for longer

KEEN Oxford are investigating how to make activity across Oxfordshire more inclusive and accessible for disabled people

Leys Community Development Initiative are co-developing an app with the young people of Blackbird Leys

Oxfordshire Play Association are researching the impact of freeform play on young people’s mental wellbeing and physical health

Oxford Neighbourhood Watch are conducting a data mapping exercise to understand the scale of under-reported bike crime in Oxford

Urban Music Foundation are exploring the interplay between science, technology and Hip Hop

Watlington Climate Action are developing a colour-stable, CO2-absorbing ‘hedgerow paint’

Generously supported by Wellcome Enriching Engagement, Van Houten Fund, Higher Education Innovation Fund and Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council Impact Acceleration Account, each STORC project has a £4000 budget, and we are giving each community group a grant as a contribution towards the time they are committing to the programme. This will help ensure that they can continue their essential on the ground work.

These projects are made possible by the brilliant contribution of University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University professional services staff, they have been so generous with their time and expertise, resulting in eight fantastic projects with the potential to bring about real change for the people we share a city with.

First name	Department and institution	Job title
Alexandra Almeida	Dept of Psychiatry	Research & PPI Manager
Carinne Piekema	Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging	Public Engagement Manager
Carla Wright	NDM, Experimental Medicine	PPIE Coordinator
Carly Smith-Huggins	OU Museum of Natural History	Family Learning Officer
Caroline Wood	Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford	Communications Officer
Charlotte Medland	Humanities Division, University of Oxford	Innovation, Impact & Evaluation Facilitator
Christopher Parkin	History of Science Museum	Learning Officer
Claire Schwartz	Department of Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford	NIHR ARC Programme and PPI Manager
Emily Lloyd	Experimental Psychology/ Psychiatry	Emerging Minds Network Manager
Hannah Pollard	Oxford University Press, University of Oxford	Commissioning Editor
Kathryn Boast	Hertford College, University of Oxford	STEM Outreach Officer
Lee-Anne Stork	Oxford - Dept of Oncology	Executive Officer - Research
Lena Shams	Physics	Outreach Project Officer
Maragaret Mumbi Mutahi	Competency Testing Centre, Brookes university	Associate Lecturer
Martha Buckley	Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics	Portfolio Manager
Naomi Gray	NDCLS, WIMM, University of Oxford	Administrator for the Oxford Centre for Haematology (OCH) and Biomedical Research Centre (BRC)
Norah Alrishedan	Oncology	Student
Polly Kerr	Nuffield Dept of Primary Care and Oxford BRC	Patient and Public Involvement Manager
Saskia O'Sullivan	Department of Chemistry	Educational Outreach Officer
Victoria Green	Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford	Events Manager

Next steps

We are working towards a celebratory event to run in early 2022 which will showcase the collaborative projects and celebrate the new partnerships.

How to participate

If you are interested in collaborating on any of the projects, participating in the celebratory event, or simply keen to find out more then do not delay – contact us today!

Oliver Moore, Science Engagement Facilitator: oliver.moore@mpls.ox.ac.uk