Edwin is Director of Scientia Scripta, a support agency on a mission to democratise science and innovation, for good. The business focuses on strategic communications and storytelling, ethical engagement and impact consultancy. During an undergraduate placement in a molecular biology lab, Edwin realised that hands-on science was not his strength, but he loved telling stories of innovation and discovery. Some 25 years have not dampened his curiosity; he is quick to probe the depths of new research and test its impact on society and the environment. He is never afraid to ask that ultimate question: so what?

Through his work as an Impact and Engagement Manager at Manchester Metropolitan University for the Research Excellence Framework 2021, Edwin developed his current fascination for AI, specifically around the ethics of AI research, development and deployment. He developed a research side hustle and collaborated in an analysis of AI ethics toolkits that revealed their limited attention to the importance of diversity and public involvement across R&D&I processes.

The EPSRC PEAs in Pods project is now helping to address this gap by upskilling AI researchers and data scientists in co-production and co-creative practices with traditionally marginalised communities. The project aims to pilot community representation in formal and informal institutional AI and data science governance mechanisms.

In 2022, Edwin became the European Research Council’s first European Science Journalism Fellow. He spent a month exploring research and innovation in Brno, Czech Republic. Stories on electron microscopy, virology, deep space, and Antarctic ice melt coming soon…