Social action can be the key to unlocking the potential of an economy and society.

Social action can lead to greater care within our communities, greater social cohesion, and a range of improved outcomes in health, work, and life.

The evidence tells us that social action doesn’t occur naturally, but that there is a lot that we can do to nudge it along the way.

Join us for a talk with Professor Michael Sanders, Professor of Public Policy and Director of the School for Government at King’s College London, to hear about what evidence tells us about how to achieve more social action and how to use it effectively. This will include evidence from behavioural and experimental social sciences, as well as insights from data science.

The talk will cover how:

• Social capital and social action work in tandem to create the fabric of our societies in a way that is missed by traditional economic data, whilst simultaneously contributing substantially to it.
• Social action in the form of charitable donations and volunteering can be increased by applying nudge theory.
• Social action can contribute meaningfully to social mobility.
• People’s physical and mental health can be increased through social action, both giving and receiving.

Places are limited; book early to secure your place.

About Michael Sanders

Michael Sanders is a Professor of Public Policy and Director of the School for Government at King’s College London. He was previously Chief Scientist and Director of Social Action at the Behavioural Insights Team, also known as the Number 10 Nudge Unit. While serving for the UK Government, he led the Nudge Unit’s work on Social Action and the Big Society. He has conducted more than 100 experiments in Social Action, across more than a dozen countries. His research has shown how social action and social connection can have transformative impacts. He is a prominent advocate of the UK’s What Works Movement, which brings a robust, evidence-based approach to understanding how to change a range of outcomes, and has worked prominently on social mobility, health and social care, and homelessness.