The Cabinet Office’s Open Innovation Team generates analysis and ideas for priority projects by collaborating with academics and other non-government experts. The team works across Whitehall on a wide variety of policy areas, including mental health, industrial strategy, digital transformation, childcare and early years education.
Envision DTP has been working together with the Cabinet Office’s Open Innovation Team to set up a 3 month internship opportunity for one of our Envision students. This opportunity was advertised to all Envision students.
Congratulations to Nick Girkin, a University of Nottingham student, currently in his 3rd year working on the project ‘Tropical forest methane emissions: Root regulation of soil processes and fluxes’.
Nick was successful in his application and will join the Open Innovation team and contribute to the design and delivery of flagship projects while working closely with senior figures inside and outside government. He will support exciting projects that are already under way or under discussion; including the following: industrial strategy, digital transformation, mental health, childcare and environment policy. He will help to shape and deliver these projects, while developing a pipeline of future work.
Nick will be working at the heart of government, reporting to senior leaders and contributing energy and vision to making a success of this exciting new initiative.
Nick Girkin explains why he is excited to begin this role:
“During my PhD project, which focuses on the mechanisms by which different types of surface vegetation regulate tropical greenhouse gas emissions, I have developed a range of research focused skills including data analysis and the communication of results to a range of audiences. However, at this stage in my work I haven’t yet had the chance to fully experience the implementation of research in the policy environment. An internship working with the Open Innovation team based in the Cabinet Office offered a superb opportunity to develop my skills in this area and gain a better appreciation of how research, business and government can work together to meet specific public policy objectives. I’m confident that this will prove to be great experience for a future career in either academia or policy development.
I’m very excited about beginning this internship and working alongside a team of individuals with a broad range of backgrounds and interests. It will also be exciting to be able to be working on a range of projects focusing on diverse areas ranging from the environment to public health. I am also excited at having the opportunity to live and work in London for the duration of the placement before returning to Nottingham for the last year of my PhD.”
Read Nick’s Policy Brief which helped him in his successful application for this internship position.