Putting Community, Collaboration and Innovation at the Heart of Sustainable Lifestyle Initiatives Rosalyn Old has a background in sustainable development and innovation research. She thinks that societal shifts toward the common good happen when we recognise and make use of the links between wider systems and potential levers. In this short interview, we explore more on her ideas and goals as a new project manager in our Sustainable Lifestyles (SL) team. How does your past experience relate to the CSCP? My background is in sustainable development and social innovation research. I’ve worked across themes from human behaviour in sustainable cities, to digital participatory democracy, to community ownership and data commons. At the heart of all of these sit the themes of community, collaboration and innovation for social good, which link closely with the CSCP’s aims. For me, the most interesting areas are the intersections between these fields, where we can start to see the links between wider systems and the potential levers for societal shifts. We live in dynamic and unprecedented times. How can we ensure that sustainability is kept high on the agenda in the current transformations (like the digital one) or transitions (like the one from the linear to the circular economy)? Against the backdrop of an incredibly challenging time (experienced in very different ways for different people), the pandemic has forced us to change the ways in which we do things, at a fast pace. With that has come an acknowledgement of the scale of change that is possible, a period of reflection on what really matters in society and an example of the power of stakeholder groups all working towards a shared goal. Combined with emerging trends such as digital transformation and the circular economy, I think it has provided us with a unique moment to reflect on the course that we want to take forward as institutions, governments, organisations and citizens. I see opportunities through ensuring that sustainability is embedded in the recovery plans: as a tool to both support those who need the recovery most, and to show a path forward which enables more sustainable lifestyles and systems, whilst reducing the inequalities which have been made especially visible during this time. What are you interested most in achieving as part of the CSCP? At the heart of CSCP is collaboration and developing initiatives that enable good lives. I think that sustainable lifestyles are a core part of that journey, and so it is great to be part of a team approaching societal shifts towards sustainability through the ways in which we live our lives. I am excited to work on projects which practically tackle these challenges at a number of levels and in different contexts. I hope to contribute my previous experience to furthering these projects as well as driving future work including the themes of behaviour change, digitalisation and use of data for social good amongst others. I think that testing out research and ideas on the ground is incredibly important, so I am very happy to be part of an organisation that is both about ‘thinking’ and ‘doing’. For further questions, contact Rosalyn Old directly.