What is the Agile Initiative?
Our Story
The Agile Initiative was established in February 2022 with a major £10 million grant from the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC). We are one of four Changing the Environment programmes funded by NERC, along with RENEW (University of Exeter), GALLANT (University of Glasgow) and the Centre for Landscape Regeneration (University of Cambridge).
We are part of the Oxford Martin School at the University of Oxford, building on its mission to foster innovative collaborations to solve the world’s most urgent challenges. The Agile Initiative reflects Oxford University’s commitment to net zero carbon and net biodiversity gain and is part of an increasing community of programmes and institutes at the University focused on pressing environmental issues.
Our Mission
Effective policy and world-class science are both needed to prevent catastrophic environmental degradation on a global scale, yet science and policy often operate in different worlds and to different timelines. Agile aims to address this challenge.
- Deliver solution-oriented science through a new model of interdisciplinary research. Groups of researchers from across the University work with stakeholders and partners (including government at all levels, industry partners, NGOs and local communities) in rapid “Sprint” projects to address a time-critical research question identified by policymakers.
- Create a critical mass of interdisciplinary researchers capable of working within this model. Agile offers training, career development, community-building and collective learning on the Sprint model.
- Contribute to a research culture shift in how impactful, interdisciplinary research is funded and delivered at the University of Oxford and more widely. By collating evidence and learning, Agile will use its findings to influence institutional policies and practices.
Our Rationale
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Environment
We need to act now to address biodiversity loss, climate change and poverty, interlinked challenges that are undermining human health and wellbeing around the globe.
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Policy
The social and environmental challenges we face are solvable, but rapid responses are needed. Policymakers and scientists need to work together to develop effective, solution-focused policies to get results.
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Research
To encourage researchers to work across disciplines and engage in policy work and outreach, we need to ensure that this essential work is valued and rewarded in academic career paths.
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Collaboration
Policymakers and researchers often work at different speeds and can be driven by different incentives. Effective policy needs these communities to be aligned and work together.
Our Values
Doing research differently means thinking differently also. We have five values that guide us:
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Experimentation
Agile aims to push the boundaries for the way impactful research is conducted at Oxford University. We explore new ways of doing fast-paced, interdisciplinary work, learn from successes and failures, and adapt accordingly. We are always striving to improve.
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Ambition
Agile is tackling major societal challenges and this means confronting and disrupting existing systems and norms. We cannot solve everything and recognise our limitations. However, we do not shy away from difficult issues.
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Collaboration
Agile brings together researchers, leaders, and stakeholders from the worlds of policy and practice. Working across disciplines and sectors, researchers and decision-makers co-create policy-relevant research programmes. We value the knowledge and experiences of all our collaborators and learn from each other.
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Transparency
Agile’s plans, processes, decision making, and progress are shared openly and clearly. We do this to improve fair and equitable participation in research, co-creation, and policy-oriented solutions that address societal challenges. We also welcome feedback. Receiving different perspectives about what does and doesn’t work promotes continuous improvement within Agile.
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Pragmatism
Meeting the needs of policymakers on issues such as climate change and biodiversity loss requires realistic, evidence-based solutions. We acknowledge the complexity of real-world decision-making and aim to produce useful, practicable research. It’s important that we also offer practical support to researchers. Agile activities are tailored to align with researchers’ level of readiness and career development objectives.
- Read our Diversity and Inclusion Plan, focused on offering marginalised researchers and stakeholders better opportunities to generate and use knowledge about protecting the environment.
How can I get involved in Agile?
The Agile Initiative is always looking for the next big question and the brightest minds to help answer it. We are building a community of researchers, across all career stages, ready to bring their expertise together and mobilise within Sprint teams and Agile activities.
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