News & articles

A wooden sign with the words 'community garden' on it against a backdrop of green leaves

Thames Life wins grant for community infrastructure initiative

Thames Life, a community development charity based in Barking and Dagenham, has secured a grant from The Open University’s Open Societal Challenges fund to tackle urgent social infrastructure needs within the borough.

13th November 2024

A distant planet seems to have a sulphur-rich atmosphere, hinting at alien volcanoes

Today, we know of more than 5,000 exoplanets: planets outside our solar system that orbit other stars. While the effort to discover new worlds goes on, we’re steadily learning more about the exoplanets we’ve already detected: their sizes, what they’re made of and whether they have atmospheres.

12th November 2024

Somebody bearing a white flag, with a green circle on it and the words 'Mind the pay gap' on it

How the gender pay gap evolves into a gender pension gap

European Equal Pay Day is the date when women – symbolically at least – start working for free because of the gender pay gap. This gap, of about a month and half of salary per year between men and women, means that from November 15 2024 women will effectively stop earning while their male counterparts continue to get paid.

12th November 2024

A woman wearing a white top and with long, dark hair, holding a mobile phone in her hand

BPAS secures funding to explore AI chatbots to improve at-home abortion services

The British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS) has received funding to launch a project aimed at improving the experience of at-home medical abortion through the integration of AI chatbots.

7th November 2024

Launch of first Open Access book by OU Institutional Open Access Book Fund

The Open University (OU) has just released its first Open Access research book as part of an OU venture to pilot an Open Access Book Fund.

7th November 2024

Saferworld charity awarded OSC funding for national security research

Saferworld, a charity dedicated to creating safer communities by preventing armed violence, has secured funding for an ambitious research project aimed at improving the transparency and accountability of UK national security policy.

31st October 2024

Supermarket chilled food cabinet filled with bottles of milk

How a Trump election win could hit the US food industry and leave millions of Americans hungry

As the US presidential election inches closer, a recent survey found that the economy is the top issue for voters, and many are also concerned about healthcare, foreign policy and inequality. Amid all the noise about these key issues however, food has received only marginal coverage in the campaigning despite the country’s high cost of living.

29th October 2024

Including whom? Practices and consequences of inclusion and diversity

In her inaugural lecture, on 24 October 2024, Cinzia Priola, Professor of Work and Organisation Studies in The Open University's Faculty of Business & Law, explored her research on inclusion, diversity and inequalities in the workplace and social lives.

24th October 2024

Age UK win funding for collaborative OU Initiative

Age UK has secured funding from the Open Societal Challenges Challenge Us! competition for the next phase of the innovative project run in collaboration with The Open University (OU), Take Five to Age Well.

24th October 2024

A group of men and woman standing in a row posing for the camera, with pull-up banners at each of of the row

The Open University establishes new centre for protecting women online following £7.7 million grant from Research England

The Open University (OU) has launched a pioneering Centre for Protecting Women Online, made possible by a substantial £7.7 million grant from Research England.

18th October 2024

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