Social scientists and collaborators receive new funding to help make the UN Sustainable Development Goals a reality
Six social science projects from University of Oxford and Oxford Brookes University have collectively been awarded some £90,000 to support SDG-focused knowledge exchange activities with non-academic partners in Oxford, the wider UK and internationally.
Spanning a variety of disciplines, partnerships, and types of knowledge exchange, the projects range from advancing justice and social safeguarding for Steppe communities in Mongolia, to co-creating nutrition workshops for young people in Oxfordshire. Each collaboration will address key challenges set out in the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet – now, and in the future.
The 17 SDGs offer a common language through which academic communities and other stakeholders can come together to deliver joint solutions to some of our greatest global challenges. In support of this endeavour, the new SDG Impact Fund from the University of Oxford’s ESRC Impact Acceleration Account offers researchers opportunities for creative and responsible engagement with non-academic partners.
Awarded projects
The successful projects are:
- Delivering the SDGs by Advancing Justice and Social Safeguarding for Steppe Communities in Mongolia. Ariell Ahearn Ligham, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, partnering with Steps Without Borders, International Development Law Organization and Government of Mongolia Cabinet Office.
- Data for action on the violence SDGs: a toolkit to analyse and interpret data on violence to inform programming and policy. Amiya Bhatia, Department of Social Policy and Intervention, University of Oxford, partnering with Mathew Amollo, Clare Ahabwe Bangirana, Timothy Opobo, AfriChild
- Banking on Health: a co-created nutrition cooking workshop initiative for young people in Oxfordshire. Shelly Coe, Oxford Institute for Applied Health Research, Sarah-Louise Mitchell, Oxford Brookes Business School and Patrick Alexander, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, all at Oxford Brookes University, partnering with Good Food Oxfordshire and Achieve Oxfordshire
- Welcoming Futures [improving reception and inclusion for migrants arriving in the UK]. Denis Kierans and Jacqueline Broadhead, COMPAS, School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford, partnering with Glasgow City Council, Brighton and Hove City Council, and Migration Exchange
- Empowering Social Workers and Caregivers in China's Small Cities, Towns and Villages to Support Children Who Are Living Without Their Parents. Rachel Murphy, School of Global and Area Studies, University of Oxford, partnering with Guiyu Academy and Le Qun Social Work Service Centre
- Reducing Extremists' Threats to Democracy in Latin America. Leigh Payne, School of Global and Area Studies, University of Oxford, partnering with Chilean Human Rights Secretariat and National Human Rights Institute, Chile
Heather Viles, Associate Head of the Social Sciences Division (Research), said “We are delighted to have selected six outstanding and diverse knowledge exchange projects for support by this new scheme. The volume of high-quality applications received is a credit to the breadth and rigour of research being undertaken in pursuit of the Sustainable Development Goals across both institutions. It also speaks to the timeliness of the IAA’s focus on advancing the SDGs, and to the relevance of its ‘global to local’ approach to engagement and impact as we seek to tackle some of the world’s greatest challenges.”
The SDG Impact Fund will re-open for applications in late 2024.
Find out more
Are you a social scientist interested in knowledge exchange and impact? Discover more here: https://www.socsci.ox.ac.uk/our-research-and-impact
Impact at Oxford Brookes University: https://www.brookes.ac.uk/research/research-impact-showcase
