Faculty of Science and Engineering Better World Awards 2022

This award recognises effort, innovation and success in collaborative working, partnerships and knowledge exchange activities that have enabled University of Manchester research to achieve positive impacts in terms of improvements to the economy, society, culture, public policy or services, health, the environment or quality of life.

The award is open to:

Academic staff and researchers at any career stage, including PhD students, post-doctoral researchers and other early career researchers. Individuals or small teams

Entrants will be assessed based on:

• Impact: Evidence that the research has changed activity, attitudes, behavior, capacity, decision-making, practice or processes.
  Impact may also have resulted from new understanding that benefits individuals, organisations, communities or the population.
• Partnerships: How have the researchers engaged the relevant users/ beneficiaries in shaping and communicating the research and engagement?
• Pathway: What was the knowledge exchange process? What was done to address challenges and bring about change? How was impact evaluated? Was the research fundamental to the impact being achieved?

Emerging impact sub-category

For entrants at all career stages, evidence of ‘emerging impact’ will be considered – particularly those that show great promise and potential for the research to achieve impact, in terms of the partnership and pathway elements of their application.

This award recognises staff innovation in the curriculum where teaching and learning has enhanced social, cultural or environmental impact.

The award is open to:

Staff (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Innovation: Evidence of innovation in the way the curriculum, programme, module or student project has been developed, delivered and/or assessed.
• Student impact: Evidence of impact of the teaching and learning on the students and their understanding and commitment to social responsibility and/or environmental sustainability.
• Community impact: Evidence of impact of the students’ work, or the course itself, on the wider community beyond Higher Education.

This award is to recognise innovation through the creation of novel solutions to societal and environmental problems through either an emerging project or an existing enterprise.

The award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).
• Recent graduates/alumni (up to three years, individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed based on:

• Innovation: Demonstrate innovative thinking through improvements to i.e. products, services, delivery, technology, interventions, etc.
• Impact: Evidence how the activity (project or enterprise) addresses a social, economic or environmental problem and has a positive impact on individuals, organisations, the wider community.
• Values: Demonstrate the motivation to create a vision and model for sustained behavioural change and impact led outcomes. Ideally entrants should identify where their activities could align to the UN's Sustainable Development Goals.
  For more information the University's Sustainable Development Goals report can be downloaded.

This award is to recognise innovation and commitment to equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility by individuals or groups at The University of Manchester, where impact is within or outside the University. The award recognises contributions taking place outside of the University’s EDI team and formal EDI staff and student roles.

The award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Impact: Demonstrable evidence of impact of work or initiative on promoting equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. 
• Values: Evidence of commitment to the values of equality, diversity and inclusion that are above and beyond the expectations of the job role or project.
• Innovation: Evidence of innovation in response to an equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility issues.

Recognising innovation and impact in the Faculty’s professional services, library and technical staff in social responsibility, for example by developing and/or delivering processes, policies and services that contribute to the University’s third goal.

The award is open to:

Staff (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Aims: Evidence that the initiative is clearly linked to the University’s strategic framework for social responsibility.
• Innovation: Demonstrable evidence of how the process, initiative or activity has innovated a new way to support social responsibility.
• Impact: Evidence of impact of the process, initiative or activity.

Recognising innovation and commitment to environmental sustainability at work or in the local, national or international community. We welcome all relevant nominations but particularly encourage those which highlight a clear commitment to sustainable travel and to the reduction of emissions associated with business travel (Scope 3).

This award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Principles: Degree to which the principles of environmental sustainability are embedded.
• Impact: Demonstrable impact of the work or initiative.
• Sustainability and replication: How can the initiative or approach be sustained over time and/or be replicated?

This award, is to recognise outstanding staff and student contributions to widening participation activity taking place locally, nationally or internationally.

The award recognises contributions taking place outside of the University's central widening participation team which support widening participation students across the whole student lifecycle including access, student success or progression.

This category recognises contributions which will often go above and beyond the expectations of the job role or initiative.

This award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Innovation: Evidence that the activity is an innovative response to a widening participation challenge.
• Impact: The activity has demonstrable evidence of making a difference to the educational opportunities or outcomes of less-advantaged learners at any phase of the student life cycle and is targeted to engage with or benefit particular groups.
• Sustained commitment: Evidence that your involvement in widening participation work is over a period of time. This may be through multiple activities and projects.

This award recognises outstanding contributions made to our local communities by staff or students that have achieved demonstrable benefit through either engaging with or working in close partnership with communities in and around Greater Manchester.

The award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Purpose and aims: the engagement initiative is purposeful and meaningful.
  
  Consider: How is it linked to the University’s core goal of social responsibility? What needs were addressed? What were the aims and objectives of the engagement initiative? Who was involved and/or who has benefitted?
  
  
• Innovation: the engagement is imaginative and creative.
  
  Consider: How does the initiative demonstrate an innovative response to a social, cultural, environmental or research challenge? What was innovative e.g. was an existing activity or resource used in a new way; did it engage under-represented audiences, or was this a new type of engagement activity in your discipline/area of work.
  
  
• Impact and sustainability: the engagement has demonstrable evidence of impact and where appropriate sustained mutual benefit for both staff/students and communities.
  
  Consider: What has changed as a result of the initiative? How have the outcomes of the initiative been realised? What evaluation evidence best supports your statement?
  Has any external recognition been received? Does the initiative show evidence of sustained outcomes as appropriate to the timescale e.g. legacy materials or processes, an ongoing partnership or new partnerships, opportunities or collaborative activities?

Recognises outstanding examples where the Faculty engages with the public to share knowledge locally, nationally and internationally.

There are two awards in this category:

1. Outstanding UK engagement (staff/student involvement)

This award recognises outstanding contributions made to communities by staff or students that have achieved demonstrable benefit through either engaging with or working in close partnership with communities, organisations and/or stakeholders from areas within the UK.

2. Outstanding international engagement (staff/student involvement)

This award recognises outstanding contributions made to international communities by staff or students that have achieved demonstrable benefit through either engaging with or working in close partnership with communities across the world.

The award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams).
• Students (individuals or small teams).

Entrants will be assessed on:

• Shared purpose and aims: the engagement is a response to a key social, cultural, environmental or scientific challenge that is clearly linked to the University’s core goal of social responsibility.
• Innovation: the engagement is innovative and imaginative. For example this may be an existing activity being used in a new way, innovation in how resources are being used to engage audiences or a new type of engagement activity in your discipline/area of work.
• Impact and sustainability: the engagement has demonstrable evidence of impact and where appropriate sustained mutual benefit for both staff/students and communities.

This category is for the staff, students and/or alumni who give their personal time to volunteer on environmental projects or with disadvantaged groups in the community locally, nationally and internationally.

Examples of this could include:

• Setting up a community project
• Running a festival
• Mentoring or befriending a child or a vulnerable person
• Giving time to a local community group

To be eligible, the activities must address disadvantaged groups, deprived communities or the environment. Nominations should also not be for work that is part of a nominee's job but be over and above that which is expected.

Entrants must meet at least one of the following:

• Leadership: Demonstrating exceptional leadership skills.
• Impact: Evidence that actions through volunteering have created real impact and change.
• Innovation: Evidence that the activity is an innovative response to a challenge with the environment or with disadvantaged groups.
• Commitment: Demonstrating a significant and sustained commitment to community activity, over and above what would normally be expected.

In our first year since the outbreak of the pandemic, we would like to acknowledge the significant contribution colleagues and students of FSE made to the efforts to address COVID-19.

There will not be a ‘winner’ for this category, all submissions will be recognised and celebrated in recognition of the variety of efforts and the ability to which people could make impact.

We encourage anyone to nominate themselves or colleagues / students in this category.

This award is open to:

• Staff (individuals or small teams)
• Students (individuals or small teams)

We are interested to hear more about the initiative and activity that took place, the outcomes and who it impacted.