Events

Monday 11 May 2026

The Group's seventh workshop opened with a session led by Adam Oliver (LSE) revisiting the Group's original objectives and assessing the extent to which a shared understanding of behavioural public policy has been reached across its members. Topics covered included artificial intelligence and behavioural public policy as well as an international lens on behavioural public policy. The workshop concluded with reflections from several longstanding members of the Group, including Rupert Gill (Ofcom), Pete Lunn (ESRI, Dublin), Chiara Varazzani (OECD), Leigh Caldwell (Irrational Agency), Oliver Payne (The Hunting Dynasty) and Cameron Belton (FCA).

Monday, 23 February 2026

This workshop addressed the practical and institutional challenges facing behavioural public policy across different settings. Rupert Gill (Ofcom) led a discussion on how to preserve and strengthen the use of behavioural public policy within government, while Faisal Naru (Think Test Do) and Zeina Afif (World Bank) examined its application in emerging and developing countries. Andriy Ivchenko (LSE) and Cameron Belton (FCA) discussed BPP topics from a financial regulator’s perspective and the role of information disclosures in a regulatory toolbox. Bev Bishop (DfT) led a session on the legitimacy of behavioural interventions and their relationship to public trust.

Monday 15 September 2025

The fifth workshop brought together discussions on the influence of behavioural science on economic policy, artificial intelligence and subjective wellbeing. David Halpern (Behavioural Insights Team) and Gus O'Donnell (Frontier Economics) examined whether behavioural insights have influenced economic policy and the Treasury. Deelan Maru (Behavioural Insights Team) presented on AI and behavioural public policy, and Christian Krekel and Kate Laffan (both LSE) discussed augmenting behavioural public policy with subjective wellbeing measures. Faisal Naru (Think Test Do) led a session on behavioural public policy in the international context.

Monday 12 May 2025

This workshop focused on how behavioural science applies to specific policy domains. Liam Beiser-McGrath (LSE) opened with a session on public support for different frames of environmental policy. Cameron Belton (FCA) and Ellie Batteux (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero) led a practitioner-focused discussion on what doing behavioural public policy is really like in practice. Lal Chadeesingh (Behavioural Insights Team) presented work on behavioural interventions to improve school attendance, and Alexander Sebald (Copenhagen Business School) examined behavioural approaches to addressing unemployment.

Monday 16 September 2024

A central aim of this workshop was to address the definitional question that had emerged as a recurring theme across the Group's discussions “what, precisely, is behavioural public policy?” Adam Oliver (LSE), Zeina Afif (World Bank), Pete Lunn (ESRI, Dublin), Rupert Gill (Ofcom) and Chiara Varazzani (OECD) each contributed their own definitions, informed by their respective professional and institutional perspectives. Among other topic, Ivo Vlaev (Warwick Business School) examined mechanisms in BPP and Malte Dewies (University of Cambridge) led a session on classifications of and aspirations for the field.

Tuesday, 23 April 2024

The Group's second workshop built on the themes established at its first meeting, with sessions led by Adam Oliver (LSE), Natalie Gold (Verian), Zeina Afif (World Bank) and Rupert Gill (Ofcom). Discussions ranged across the question of whether the private sector genuinely uses behavioural science, the tension between academic theory and the pragmatic needs of policymakers, and the distinction between upstream systemic interventions and downstream individual behaviour change. The workshop also surfaced a clear need for a common definition of behavioural public policy.

Monday, 25 September 2023

The Group's inaugural workshop set out the broad objectives of the initiative and began the process of identifying common ground across its members. Rupert Gill (Ofcom) and Dan Berry (NHS England) presented public sector perspectives on the use of behavioural science in policy, highlighting the tension between academic rigour and the timely demands of policymaking. Lis Costa (Behavioural Insights Team) and Pete Lunn (ESRI, Dublin) discussed knowledge exchange, arguing for more diagnostic use of behavioural science and for training civil servants in the field. Oliver Payne (The Hunting Dynasty) and Chiara Varazzani (OECD) offered private sector and international agency perspectives, emphasising the need for multidisciplinary approaches and the risk of framing behavioural public policy as separate from mainstream policy.