UK universities need ‘significant reset’ as populist era looms Sector will face heightened questions about role and purpose unless it engages with new political forces, report warns

UK universities need ‘significant reset’ as populist era looms www.timeshighereducation.com/news/uk-univ...

UK universities need ‘significant reset’ as populist era looms Sector will face heightened questions about role and purpose unless it engages with new political forces, report warns

'Universities must build bridges with populist parties and take steps to restore their legitimacy among the general public or face being recast as “convenient enemies” by the next Westminster government, according to a new report.' 1/2

Preparing for populism - HEPI Prepare for populism: Universities need to rebuild their legitimacy with all major parties and the public as they head into a tougher political era. In Preparing for Populism (HEPI Debate Paper 44), P...

'“Questions about universities’ role, purpose and value for money are resurfacing, alongside renewed scrutiny of the student experience and graduate outcomes. In short, the sector’s storytelling is about to face its toughest audience yet,” it says.' 2/2

How to get science back into policymaking Misunderstanding and hubris have broken public trust in governments’ use of science, but it can be restored.

"....In reality, the ‘truth’ around a policy problem can be uncertain. It will be contested in good faith by experts and in bad faith by lobbyists, in high stakes contexts..."

www.nature.com/articles/d41...

Fascinating to hear what's happening at home at the research-to-policy interface. #FOMO

Calling all @ox.ac.uk folk interested in knowing more about policy outputs, come join me at this hands-on workshop next week!

Are you an @ox.ac.uk researcher or staff? Interested in exploring and informing the policy world? Want your research to have more policy impact?

Watch out for OPEN's upcoming learning opportunities. We strengthen links between researchers and policy professionals for rich, meaningful engagement.

Of interest @torchoxford.bsky.social ? @socsci.ox.ac.uk @reutersinstitute.bsky.social ?

😔

Why the data driving government could be wrong Government decisions are led by statistics—on the economy, employment, housing and more. But what if the numbers are unreliable?

Excellent piece by @jamesrball.com for @prospectmagazine.co.uk arguing for better data for policy making. We should all be extremely concerned by the many examples collected here.

A must-read for fans of Bad Data.

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/busine...

How to make conversations about immigration less painful Let's get one thing straight at the very least

Most of us are in a wobbly position when it comes to our understanding of immigration numbers.

How would things go if we didn’t make these half-remembered statistics so central to how we form and articulate opinions?

georginasturge.substack.com/p/how-to-mak...

Have you ever written an evidence-based Policy Brief?

communicatingscienceforpolicy.org wants to make examples of formal written communication easily accessible online, enabling us to learn from one another.

P𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗯𝗺𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮𝘁 bit.ly/4mJHUk7 (Re-use the same link for multiple submissions.)

Hybrid workshop: 'Communicating Science for Policy in a Populist Age' lead by our good friend Karen Akerlof @georgemasonu.bsky.social

Looks like a great and important agenda! Sept 8th

In person: www.eventbrite.com/e/communicat...

Online: www.eventbrite.com/e/online-wor...

#scipol #scienceadvice

The deadly toll on journalists in the Gaza war With foreign media barred, Palestinians have reported alone, facing the ‘most deliberate effort to kill and silence’ them ever

The Guardian has today printed the names, and where possible, images, of all the media workers killed in Gaza, as part of an international day of action involving more than 150 media organisations.
www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

Really looking forward to this. Of interest @migobs.bsky.social @reutersinstitute.bsky.social ?

Nice sentiment, though a lack of evidence isn't the issue here with this particularly policy-making.

I've signed up to "How Story Creates Agency for the Nature and Climate Crises" by Jules Pretty, University of Essex, organised by @biodivoxford.bsky.social
7 November

bookwhen.com/oxfordbiodiv...

Is anyone out there? Dead Internet Theory says that you’re the only human left online. It started out as a conspiratorial joke, but it is edging ever closer to reality

Shoutout to @jamesrball.com whose excellent Prospect essay on the Dead Internet Theory I referenced:
www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/ideas/techno...

On the 'enshittification' of LinkedIn ....

Note to self...

“Cool About It” - boygenius YouTube video by The Late Show with Stephen Colbert

Earworm.
#Officemusic
www.youtube.com/watch?v=kWHZ...

Come join me and much more articulate colleagues talk about communicating with policy folk. I will bring cake. Lemon drizzle or chocolate?

Mo Salah and the Myth of the Good Immigrant His presence brought hope, inclusion and pride to Liverpool — but no individual can live up to the demands of a divided nation

NEW: Mo Salah is a star, a saint and a symbol of inclusion. But the fragile myth of the “good immigrant” can’t combat the rise of the far right, writes Tam Hussein for @newlinesmag.bsky.social.

newlinesmag.com/spotlight/mo...

OPEN LETTER: 150+ UK Academics & Writers to Keir Starmer New anti-immigrant rules are bad policy & will only validate the far-right

Good to see so many Oxford names here. www.politicalphilosophypodcast.com/starmer

Book talk: 'Pro-vax: Supporting Vaccines through Activism, Petitions, and Trials' with Samantha Vanderslott

Really looking forward to this book talk next week: 'Pro-vax: Supporting Vaccines through Activism, Petitions, and Trials' with Samantha Vanderslott www.ovg.ox.ac.uk/upcoming-eve...

" in an era where media saturation and digital interconnectedness have often seemingly blurred borders, the greatest power now lies in the refusal to allow access to real spaces of influence...Borders, once the spaces between nations, are now the frontlines of silencing."

Now this is a cool job!

Hurray for my old alma mater (though I was out in the north Antrim field that is the Coleraine campus, now pitched as "coastal living"!)

X’s dominance ‘over’ as Bluesky becomes new hub for research Data indicates more scholars turning to alternative social media site to post about their work after Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover

Bluesky has overtaken its flailing rival X in hosting posts related to new academic research, indicating the platform is fast becoming the go-to place for scholars to share their work

#AcademicSky #EduSky

Please do share with @ox.ac.uk colleagues. Awards up to £5,000 enabling researchers and public policy professionals to kick-start short (3 month) projects to deepen collaboration & share evidence and support its use in policy making.