Innovation team

Innovation is at the heart of our organisation. Scientific exploration of the polar regions is made possible through the inventive approach we take to our work. We aim to apply this creativity by taking our expertise wherever else it could add value. The Innovation Team, led by the Director of Innovation and Impact, facilitates this process and helps to unlock our potential to create benefit for society and economy.

Innovation Champions community

The core Innovation team brings together the Innovation Champions community. Each team across BAS has a designated champion for innovation. They collate and develop innovation ideas arising from within their teams, and facilitate internal and external collaboration.

Entrepreneur in Residence

Partnership is central to innovation work at BAS. We are grateful for the collaboration and active contributions of our Entrepreneur in Residence, Simon Hombersley from Puntios. Simon supports BAS in identifying pathways to create value and impact from our knowledge assets.

Aurora Events & Partnerships

Discover more about our ongoing events and partnered projects.

Aurora Innovation Centre

Our mission is to create space for collaboration within the British Antarctic Survey – addressing issues of global importance and helping society adapt to a changing world. The Aurora Innovation Centre offers a space and support services for interdisciplinary collaboration to tackle environmental challenges and increase real-world benefit of polar research.

beatrix

Beatrix Schlarb-Ridley

Director of Innovations and Impact

pilchi

Pilvi Saarikoski

Impact Facilitator

pbu

Pete Bucktrout

Senior Creative Services Manager


Universities Network: COP26 Images of Innovation Exhibition

19 October, 2021

The Innovation Showcase explains how innovative science and technology is helping or, in future, could substantially help the goals of COP26 and of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, enabling adaptation to climate change or informing action related to climate change.



Underrepresented groups welcomed to polar science

5 March, 2021

This week over 100 early career researchers and students from underrepresented groups, particularly BAME, LGBTQ+ and the Disabled, took part in Polar Horizons 2021. The Polar Horizons Initiative, funded by …



Pride Day declared on 18 November

27 July, 2020

The Government of the British Antarctic Territory (BAT) and the Government of South Georgia & the South Sandwich Islands (SGSSI) celebrate the contribution of LGBTQ+ people by declaring 18 November …



Plastic solutions: workshop at BAS

10 September, 2018

People, Plastics and the Planet is an international workshop to tackle the global plastic waste problem taking place at British Antarctic Survey’s Aurora Innovation Centre from 18th – 21st September 2018. Organised by BAS, Cambridge University and Value in Enterprise offers the unique opportunity for scientists and entrepreneurs to spend four days developing and testing ideas to address challenges posed by plastics in our environment.


Science Minister opens new Aurora Innovation Centre

21 July, 2017

The new Aurora Innovation Centre that will support cross-discipline research to tackle environmental challenges and increase the real-world benefit of polar research was officially opened today (Friday 21 July) by …


NEWS STORY: Milestone for new Innovation Centre

18 March, 2016

British Antarctic Survey (BAS) staff joined forces with building representatives from ISG, colleagues from neighbouring organisations and Cambridge University this week to mark an important milestone in the building of …




NEWS STORY: Design opportunity

13 December, 2013

Architectural design opportunity – British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge British Antarctic Survey (BAS) has advertised an opportunity to design and deliver a new Innovation Centre at its Cambridge offices.  The commission …




Fair Winds and Following Seas Remotely: Modifying Perceptions of Fieldwork as a Requirement in Marine Science to Aid in Diversifying the Discipline

6 December, 2023 by Cecilia Liszka, Pilvi Saarikoski, Sophie Fielding

Pursuing an academic career in marine science requires a range of skills that can be applied across different contexts, including experimental or computational proficiency, policy engagement, teaching, and seagoing fieldwork.…

Read more on Fair Winds and Following Seas Remotely: Modifying Perceptions of Fieldwork as a Requirement in Marine Science to Aid in Diversifying the Discipline

Ninety years of change, from commercial extinction to recovery, range expansion and decline for Antarctic fur seals at South Georgia

1 December, 2023 by Andrew Wood, Jaume Forcada, Pete Bucktrout

With environmental change, understanding how species recover from overharvesting and maintain viable populations is central to ecosystem restoration. Here, we reconstruct 90 years of recovery trajectory of the Antarctic fur seal…

Read more on Ninety years of change, from commercial extinction to recovery, range expansion and decline for Antarctic fur seals at South Georgia