About us
Mission
Founded in 2021, the SDG Impact Lab was built on the conviction that Oxford’s graduate students have the potential to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and lead transformative change on both a local and global scale.
Our unique curriculum and programme integrates theory, ethics and practical skills, and is designed to equip students to lead transformative and sustainable change.
We enable students, recruited as Lab Fellows, to work with businesses and non-academic organisations to develop innovative, research-based solutions and initiatives to the mounting challenge of sustainability and social responsibility. Our Lab Fellows test and translate creative ideas into actionable proposals that have real, measurable impact.
The United Nations 17 Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) are a resounding call for action by all countries to form an active, global partnership and progress the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. A shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and planet, the agenda was adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015.
"We cannot choose between growth and sustainability – we must have both."
“The SDGs are a call to action for businesses, governments, Universities and individuals. They provide a framework for our students and partners to collectively deliver solutions to challenges in areas such as sustainable business operations, climate change, social impact and corporate responsibility, which organisations and institutions all over the world are being urged to consider”
Dr Edward Brooks is the Executive Director of the Oxford Character Project at the University of Oxford, where he leads a major research project on character and responsible leadership. He is also co- founder of the Oxford SDG Impact Lab.
Professor Alexander Betts is the Leopold Muller Professor of Forced Migration and International Affairs, William Golding Senior Fellow in Politics at Brasenose College, and Associate Head (Graduate and Research Training) of the Social Sciences Division at the University of Oxford. He is also co-founder of the Oxford SDG Impact Lab.
Ashley leads the operational management of the Lab and is programme manager for the partnership with Rosberg Philanthropies. She is an experienced social entrepreneur and business adviser, with a focus on start-ups, social enterprise and impact ventures. As well as leading on a number of European-funded enterprise support programmes, Ashley has a background in broadcasting and media.
Ollie is a former Olympic rower who competed in the 2020 Tokyo Games. He is responsible for the design and delivery of the graduate training programme of the SDG Impact Lab, combining in person and online approaches. He has a masters in History from the University of Oxford. Previously he founded the LSE Ambassadors for Sport Fund and was in the first cohort of GB athletes to take part in the Sport & Business Leadership Program run by PwC.
Helen's professional background is in higher education programme management, teaching and curriculum development. She has an MA in International Relations and Diplomacy, postgraduate qualifications in international development and conflict resolution, and has collaborated with the United Nations on various projects as a writer and editor.
Laura was part of the inaugural cohort of Fellows who joined the Lab in 2021-2022 to work on a sustainable tourism project for easyJet holidays (read more about the food waste project she worked on.) The following year, while pursuing a DPhil in International Development, she took on the role of Lab project coordinator, helping to create the first comprehensive ESG framework for Tourism, in a project led by UN Tourism. Laura now works as a Senior Project Specialist in the Statistics Department of UN Tourism.
Map is our Lab Administrator. Map helps the team with general administration, purchasing, organisation of Lab events, booking travel and design work. Prior to joining the Lab Map worked in the Refugee Studies Centre where she helped arrange the summer school.
Lady Mariéme Jamme is an award-winning technologist, a pioneer in systems change and a Young Global Leader of the World Economic Forum. In September 2017 she won the Innovation Award at the Global Goals Awards, led by Bill and Melinda Gates and UNICEF. She is a ‘Goalkeeper’ for the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). She aims to advance the SDGs by teaching 1 million women and girls to code by 2030.