Agenda

Social impact investments scale when cost-effective solutions to social problems are adopted by governments, private firms, and large NGOs. Yet we underinvest in the R&D necessary to find the next generation of solutions that will scale. 

The Agenda Fund will mobilize the philanthropic, policy, and research communities to map the most promising opportunities for social and behavioral science R&D to find solutions that scale, defining a research agenda for social innovation.

FINDING SOLUTIONS THAT SCALE

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In 2022 the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported that “changes to lifestyles and behavior have the potential for large reductions in global greenhouse gas emissions.” Social and behavioral science R&D can help us find the interventions, programs, and policies that can shift decision-making and behavior in the direction of reducing harmful emissions.

In partnership with The Conversation and SAGE, the Agenda Fund hosted an important conversation with leading social and behavioral scientists and climate thought leaders to discuss: 

• what we know about cost-effective and scalable interventions to shift decision-making and behavior in the direction of reducing harmful emissions;
• the potential return on investment from expanding this knowledge base.

Social media platforms enable expression and information sharing on a global scale, but may facilitate or encourage societally harmful behaviors. Social and behavioral science R&D can help us find the interventions, programs, and policies that can increase societally beneficial behaviors on social media platforms.

In partnership with the Social Science Research Council’s Digital Platforms Initiative, the Agenda Fund hosted an important conversation with leading social and behavioral scientists and thought leaders to discuss: 

• what we know about cost-effective and scalable interventions to increase societally beneficial behaviors on social media platforms;
• the potential return on investment from expanding this knowledge base.

The rate of scientific innovation appears to be decreasing over time, a concerning trend given the importance of innovation for spurring increases in productivity and economic growth. Social and behavioral science R&D can help us find the interventions, programs, and policies that can increase the pace of innovation in university-based science.

This initiative brings together leading social and behavioral scientists and thought leaders to explore a new frontier in the science of innovation: experimentation on university campuses. The initiative will investigate:

• what we know about cost-effective and scalable interventions that can increase the pace of innovation in university-based science;
• the potential return on investment from expanding this knowledge base through university-based experiments.

Congress has increasingly turned to geographically targeted investments in university-based science R&D in an attempt to galvanize economic growth in areas of the country that have lagged economically. But we lack credible evidence that these investments will in fact lead to inclusive economic growth. 

Careful evaluation of the local economic returns from university-based science R&D will provide reliable evidence about the local economic benefits of federal research investments, and will identify the specific investments that are most likely to lead to inclusive local job growth. 

This initiative brings together leading social and behavioral scientists and funders to explore: 

• what we know about the local economic impacts of federal investments in university-based science R&D; 
• what we know about the specific kinds of science R&D investments that are most likely to lead to inclusive and geographically dispersed economic growth;
• the potential return on investment from expanding this knowledge base.

Investors in ESG social impact funds often expect to receive “social returns” in addition to financial returns, but fund managers have struggled to document these returns. Social and behavioral science R&D can help us find approaches that more reliably estimate the social returns from impact investing, reducing risk for investors and fund managers alike.

This initiative convenes leading social and behavioral scientists and thought leaders to discuss:

• what we know about the social returns from ESG impact investment strategies;
• the potential return on investment from developing more reliable approaches to estimating the social returns from ESG impact investing.

Women and minorities are substantially underrepresented in the STEM fields that are central to the innovation economy, depriving those fields of critical talent and slowing the pace of innovation. Social and behavioral science R&D can help us find the interventions, programs, and policies that can increase the numbers and success of women and minorities in STEM.

This initiative brings together leading social and behavioral scientists and thought leaders to explore a new frontier in advancing diversity in STEM: experimentation on university campuses. The initiative will investigate:

• what we know about cost-effective and scalable interventions that can increase the numbers and success of women and minorities in STEM fields;
• the potential return on investment from expanding this knowledge base through university-based experiments.