Sandy Oliver

New book out in Open Access with UCL Press, co-edited with Elmira Muratova, with chapters on case studies ranging from Ukraine, Turkey-Afghanistan, diasporic West Africa, Thailand, Kyrgyzstan-Kuwait, and Indigenous Canada. Free download from the link in the thread.

It covers how to judge the relevance and quality of you find, and how policy makers, researchers and communities can work together to make those judgements. You can study in London or online

Would you like to know more about how to tackle policy problems with research already available? If so, this masters course could be the one for you.
lnkd.in/dRMcbpmt

Since I can’t sleep, here’s another hot take: The world would be a better place if everyone‘s science literacy was much better. There should be more emphasis on teaching basic science at all levels in school. Science isn’t just something nerds do, it’s the foundation of the modern world.

Powerful video from @nikki-s.bsky.social on 6 years of #LongCovid.
Tens of thousands of others are approaching same anniversary in UK alone - millions worldwide.
A very long tail from the pandemic.

#CountLongCovid
#CareForLongCovid
#ResearchLongCovid

Have your say! Complete the UCL Open Environment Survey.

UCL Press publishes UCL Open Environment, a diamond open access journal for environment research 🌍

Help us better understand what researchers value when choosing where to publish, and awareness of the journal.

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🎁 Prize draw

👉 Take the survey: bit.ly/4anusxc

#ScholarlyCommunications

Co-creating a play with a Kenyan community theatre group framed vaccine research findings in ways that are relatable to community members. journals.uclpress.co.uk/r4a/article/...

When people talk about the idea that some universities must go under, there’s a certain tendency to behave as if these smaller local campuses are negligible- regrettable casualties perhaps but not ‘real’ universities. This report does a great job of illustrating why that’s wrong.

Come to our masters programme Open Days, today and tomorrow, and hear about how to change the world by:
• Rethinking global societies
• Developing new policies
• Mastering cutting edge methods

The big questions.

Here's your invitation to our masters programmes Open Days

Such a variety of personal journeys lead to our MSc Social Policy (Evidence Synthesis). It’s a pleasure to read applications and learn what has sparked a deep interest in bridging the gap between research and making important decisions www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-...

Abstract of the report of the Lancet Commission on improving population health post-COVID-19

🗣️ Privileged to have played a small part in this Lancet Commission on improving population health, published today: www.thelancet.com/journals/lan...

It focused on three interconnected threats:
⚠️ Non-communicable diseases;
⚠️ Outbreaks of infectious diseases; and
⚠️ Environmental degradation

(1/2)

This deep-dive course in evidence synthesis looks great

Looking forward to October 2026, we've started offering places to applicants to our MSc Social Policy (Evidence Synthesis) www.ucl.ac.uk/prospective-...

‘Many things are true which only the commonest minds observe’
‘Then I think the commonest minds must be rather useful’ “
That’s how I opened a book chapter.

My favourite: “ ‘Celia,’ said Dorothea, with emphatic gravity, ‘pray don’t make any observations of that kind’.
‘Why not? They are quite true,’ returned Cecilia, who had her own reasons for persevering, though she was beginning to be a little afraid.

Why science for policy?

It helps define the policy problem and find underlying causes.

It helps reach trade-offs and compromises by understanding impacts.

It helps find out what works through evaluation.

Most of all, it helps earn trust in democracy by grounding it in facts and reality.

This really is a shame.

In times like these we really should be commissioning more engaging, informative evidence-based shows, not fewer.

The value of public R&D

Government has published one of those quiet but important documents that might get overlooked as it is not 'newsy'. The headline finding is that £1 of public R&D investment generates £8 in net economic benefits for the UK over the long term
www.gov.uk/government/p...

Thank you to everyone who joined #Stage4 of #ThePeoplesReview. Now, our team working backstage are taking a closer look at the 699 possibly relevant studies to find the ones that answer the People's favourite question.

Stay tuned for #Stage5 coming soon...

I’ll be there - looking forward to it.

Oh dear - we desperately need better public understanding of science.

In this lecture, Catherine Clarke will re-visit the question of what makes history radical, asking what kind of radical history we need in our public life and contemporary context today. In particular, she’ll explore ways in which popular history – trade publishing for a wide public audience – has the capacity to be radical, drawing on experiences and examples from her own new book A History of England in 25 Poems (Penguin Allen Lane, September 2025). Catherine’s lecture will move towards a manifesto for how research-led, scholarship-driven popular history can and does make necessary, vital public interventions – from opening inclusive conversations and confronting the rise of AI, to modelling radical empathy and imagination.

I'm hugely honoured and very excited to be giving this year's Historical Research #Lecture at @ihr.bsky.social, on 'Can popular #history be radical? Historical research and writing for the #public'. Tuesday 4 November, all welcome. More info in AltText. Book here: www.sas.ac.uk/news-events/...

when autistic people talk about research that will actually help to improve autistic people's quality of life, this is the kind of thing we mean. this is a neat study.

Have a lovely time.

Unsolicited writing advice, no.976:
Read. Read for pleasure. Read out of curiosity. Read both in and outside your comfort zone. Read in order to a get a thorough understanding of the industry you’re getting into. No time? Find time. Writing without reading is like cooking without food.

👇🏻

Listening is a tool for health equity, not just a soft skill The medical establishment hasn't always listened to patients; nurturing this vital skill can help to tackle health inequalities, says Rageshri Dhairyawan Communication skills such as listening are of...

“Listening is a tool for health equity, not just a soft skill”

Had a wonderful experience writing this piece that was commissioned for The Student BMJ by editor @georgeawebster.bsky.social!

www.bmj.com/content/390/...

‼️HOT OFF THE PRESS‼️

⭐Updated Responsible AI use in Evidence Synthesis (RAISE) 3-paper collection on OSF: osf.io/fwaud/files/... ⭐

Now includes:
1️⃣Recommendations for practice for the main roles in the ecosystem
2️⃣ Guidance on building & evaluating AI tools
3️⃣Guidance on selecting & using AI tools