Cover mockup of UPEN’s Surfacing EDI report, with an illustrated shared table, on a pale peach background.

Opening credits and contents spread from UPEN’s Surfacing EDI report, listing authors, contributors, acknowledgements and design credits for Charlie Peel and Benedict Richards.

Illustrated chapter opening and Introduction spread mockup from the Surfacing EDI report, designed by Urban Good.

Executive summary and green Recommendations spread mockup from UPEN’s Surfacing EDI report.

Green Conclusion spread mockup with white typography from UPEN’s Surfacing EDI report.

Social-media card asking what good academic-policy engagement would look like with EDI at its centre.

Expertise versus Diversity social-media graphic featuring Charlie Peel’s illustration of people around a table.

UPEN social-media recommendation card calling for sustained dialogue to advance equity, diversity and inclusion.

UPEN Surfacing EDI recommendation 2: work with funders to understand how national and institutional rewards and incentives drive research culture.

UPEN Surfacing EDI recommendation 3: universities should take responsibility and create EDI principles with members and relevant institutional experts.

Surfacing Equity, Diversity and Inclusion — UPEN

Illustration, design and typesetting for a more inclusive conversation between universities and policymakers, with a social-media pack to carry the findings further.

Urban Good worked again with Dr Olivia Stevenson of UCL Public Policy and Siobhan Morris of UCL Grand Challenges on Surfacing Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion within Academic-Policy Engagement, published by the Universities Policy Engagement Network (UPEN) in 2021.

The report asks how a wider range of academic voices can contribute to public policy. Drawing on a survey of 29 UPEN member organisations, it examines how opportunities are shared, whose expertise is recognised, and the barriers that can prevent researchers from taking part. Its recommendations address the everyday work of connecting research with policymaking, from training and funding to data collection and institutional culture.

Illustration, design and typesetting

Charlie Peel created the report’s illustrations and worked with Benedict Richards on the design and typesetting. The central image brings people together around a shared table, giving the publication a visual focus on participation, conversation and the exchange of ideas.

Colourful, textured illustrations carry through the cover and chapter openings. Emerald headings, clear columns, highlighted quotations and generous margins help readers find their way through the research, while the recommendations and conclusion use full green pages to give the main messages emphasis.

Taking the report beyond the page

We also created a social-media handover pack so the team could share the work in smaller, focused pieces. The pack brought together launch graphics, discussion prompts, executive-summary and conclusion extracts, illustrated themes, recommendation cards and reusable layouts for new messages.

Using the same illustrations, colours and typography across the report and social assets gave the project a consistent identity, with material the team could return to as the conversation developed.

A continuing collaboration

The project continued our work with Olivia and Siobhan following Structurally Unsound. Both publications connect research with questions of inequality, using design to make detailed evidence and ideas easier to explore.

Read the report

Download the free report (PDF) or visit UPEN’s publication page. Find out more about UCL Public Policy and UCL’s earlier Structurally Unsound project.

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