At the 24 September launch event, Business School Senior Lecturer in Systems Thinking, Dr Agnessa Spanellis, discussed her work on inclusive engineering as Deputy Director of the Failure Modes of Engineering (FeME) network and her collaboration with Dr Encarni Medina-Lopez, Senior Lecturer in Ocean Observation at the School of Engineering and FeME Director. This network exemplifies the type of collaboration the tool can facilitate.
Professor Christine Boswell, from the University’s School of Social and Political Science, led the development of the Shape Innovation tool, which makes it easier for researchers to find partners, build cross-disciplinary teams and turn research into solutions. The launch event explored how collaboration can address accountability and responsibility gaps in AI decision-making. It also highlighted the habits that make partnerships successful: developing T-shaped skills, which involve deep expertise in one area combined with the ability to work broadly across other disciplines; stepping beyond disciplinary boundaries; communicating clearly; and making time to build relationships.
FeME focuses on engineering solutions for climate change and biodiversity loss that benefit women, children, and underserved communities. Using a failure mode approach through a SHAPE lens, the network connects researchers, industry and communities to anticipate breakdowns and co-create practical alternatives. The project secured £2.2 million from EPSRC earlier this year and, in September, hosted its first international workshop, which drew more than 60 participants from 18 countries across four themes: transport and logistics, energy systems, water crises, and biodiversity.
Bringing in different methodologies and different views on the discipline is always illuminating and allows me to do things that I wouldn’t have otherwise been able to do within the boundaries of my discipline. It opens up new ways of thinking about how engineering interacts with society and the environment, and challenges me to consider questions I might never ask on my own. That process is demanding, but it is also what makes the work so rewarding, because it leads to solutions that are more inclusive, resilient and genuinely shaped by the people most affected.Dr Agnessa Spanellis
Find out more on the FeME website and explore the SHAPE Innovation tool online.
Agnessa Spanellis is our Senior Lecturer in Systems Thinking.