Possibility Lab

The Possibility Lab at the University of California is a team of policy researchers and practitioners who partner with government and community to design, pilot, and scale data-driven innovations for the public good. Through ongoing collaborations, the Lab is pioneering innovative ways to center community perspectives and expertise in public policy: by working directly with diverse stakeholders to foster engagement, empowerment, and equity. Through sustained partnerships between public sector changemakers and academic research teams, we’re tackling big questions that cut across traditional research and policy boundaries. In the service of an equitable sustainable future, the Possibility Lab’s work brings together public management scholars, community organizers, behavioral economists, political scientists, and public policy experts who are committed to evidence-based policy making and who use rigorous quantitative, participatory, and experimental methods to better understand the impact of new ideas. In each case, projects are co-designed with community and government partners in order to ensure that innovations are feasible in the short term, scalable in the future, and make meaningful progress towards systemic change.