StoryLab’s interdisciplinary research explores how advancements in and increased access to existing and emerging technologies can facilitate heritage revitalisation, promote environmental and cultural sustainability, and inspire social change.
We collaborate with a variety of researchers, organisations and industry-academia networks to develop creative artefacts, generate new knowledge and drive innovation, with a focus on four key research areas.
Identity, Culture & Heritage
Our interdisciplinary research investigates how digital innovation and storytelling can encourage participation, interrelate diverse and often contradictory perspectives, and generate positive action regarding complex issues such as equality, migration, heritage-making and revitalisation, and social justice.
We believe that democratic and integrated use of digital technology, immersive media and online platforms can empower local communities and promote participatory and sustainable management of their heritage and culture.
Sustainable & Resilient Communities
We use creative technologies, culture/heritage-led research and storytelling to enable broader and more diverse audiences to understand and engage with complex concepts related to environment and vulnerability, climate change and sustainability, human wellbeing and resilience.
Digital and sustainable innovation and creativity are invaluable tools for exploring the way people interpret the world and their place within it. These tools can ensure agency and empowerment, making communities and their places more resilient and sustainable, as well as contribute to safeguarding culture and heritage, and critical services and infrastructure from natural and man-made hazards.
Creative Practice and Co-Creation
We employ creative design and participatory processes between teams of experts and communities to investigate the impact of human creativity and technologies on social change.
Our work explores existing participatory methods while also developing new approaches. We leverage our team’s creative practices to produce designs inquiring into societal themes and challenges.
Digital and Immersive Technologies
StoryLab explores application of cutting-edge technologies to create digital and immersive experiences from complex narratives, highlighting important and impactful stories.
Through investigating the current technological landscape, StoryLab produces creative outputs that showcase digital and immersive frameworks (VR, AR, XR etc) while partnering with academic and cultural institutions, and community-led enterprises.
For details please visit our projects page.
Bringing together academics and creative practitioners with wider industry and the charity and social action sectors is central to our work at StoryLab. Please get in touch with us to start a conversation about research collaboration, consultancy or to discuss PhD project opportunities.