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Meet the 2026 Finalists

From transforming healthcare and shaping policy to empowering communities and protecting the environment, the finalists for the 2026 UEA Innovation and Impact Awards demonstrate the incredible breadth of projects changing lives.

Find out more about the finalist projects and teams below:

Award for Student or Graduate Innovation or Enterprise​

Entries in this category couldn’t be separated, and so four student or graduate-driven initiatives were selected, showcasing extraordinary innovation and social impact, applying ingenuity and compassion to solve real-world challenges:

  • Far From Travel (Oscar Heaney) - an innovative travel-tech startup rethinking how people experience travel in the UK through structured work-for-accommodation exchanges.
  • Nasalyzer (Luisa Maria Ponces de Carvalho) – a groundbreaking, non-invasive breathalyser designed to detect early indicators of upper gastrointestinal cancer in primary care.
  • Peer Access to Maths Education for Afghan Girls (Hasenat Zafari) – an online, peer-led education programme enabling Afghan girls banned from formal schooling to access high-quality maths learning.
  • Peerdweb: Reimagining how Unregistered Intellectual Property is Proven, Protected and Commercialised (Dan Whitman) – a secure digital platform designed to help creators and organisations protect and commercialise unregistered intellectual property.

Knowledge Exchange Project of the Year 

This year’s finalists exemplify UEA’s strength in translating research into impact, and highlight the power of collaboration across academia and industry:

  • The AFN Network+ (Prof Neil Ward, ENV) – the UK’s leading cross-sector forum driving food system transformation with over 3,100 active members.
  • AI-Powered Seabed Mapping (Prof Wenjia Wang and Dr Ben Milner, CMP) – a commercialised AI innovation, codeveloped with GeoAcoustics, that is transforming global marine surveying.
  • Tools for Coping with the Biodiversity and Climate Change Double Emergency (Dr Jeff Price, TYN) – globally accessible conservation platforms (Wallace’s pARCs and GiraffeClim) helping organisations adapt to climate change pressures.

Outstanding Commercialisation of Research

From biotech breakthroughs to digital education, this category showcases transformative innovation:

  • Fish for All: A Natural Antimicrobial Solution for Seafood and Food Industry (Dr Yan Fen Lee, CPP) – a natural antimicrobial solution improving seafood safety and sustainability.
  • Studious Digital Education: Ryze App and Platform (James Gardiner and Dr Ivan Mitchell, NBS) – a game-changing digital learning ecosystem supporting more than 18,000 learners worldwide.
  • Virilitas Labs: Improving Diagnostics and Intervention around Male Fertility (Prof Simone Immler and Dr Daniel Marcu, BIO) – an at home diagnostic device and AI-powered app advancing male reproductive health.

Outstanding Impact in Health, Wellbeing and Welfare

Three projects delivering major improvements in care and public health:

  • Opioid Deprescribing Toolkit for Healthcare Organisations (Prof Debi Bhattacharya, HSC) – evidence-based behavioural tools reducing harmful opioid use across healthcare systems.
  • The Prostate Urine Risk (PUR) Test (Prof Daniel Brewer, MED) – a simple home-based test with the potential to transform prostate cancer diagnosis.
  • Translating Nutrition Science into Practical Solutions for Brain Health and Longevity (Dr David Vauzour, MED) – pioneering research shaping personalised nutrition to support healthy ageing and long-term brain resilience.

Outstanding Impact in Policy and Practice

These finalists have shaped policy and governance at national and international levels:

  • Enhancing Market Integrity in the UK (Dr Gustavo Fruet Dias, ECO) – transforming insider trading detection and market cleanliness for the Financial Conduct Authority.
  • Equity in Management of Protected and Conservation Areas: (Prof Adrian Martin and Prof Iokine Rodríguez-Fernandez, DEV) – embedding social justice in global biodiversity policy and supporting Indigenous autonomy.
  • UEA Research Informs UK Data Adequacy Policy (Dr Karen McCullagh, LAW) – influencing UK–EU data protection policy and safeguarding £146bn in trade.

Outstanding Social or Cultural Impact

Three powerful examples of community-centred, culturally meaningful collaboration:

  • Empowering Literacies: Working with Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Children in Early Years (ROMLIT) (Dr Spyros Themelis, EDU) – cocreated literacy resources transforming early years education for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.
  • SAAM (Support for Access to Audiovisual Media) (Dr Carlos de Pablos-Ortega, MLC) – expanding audiovisual accessibility for D/deaf and Hard of Hearing audiences through student-led training and innovation.
  • Separations/Connections: Empowering Fijian communities through heritage collections (Prof Karen Jacobs, SRU) – transforming Fijian cultural heritage into a catalyst for social change, and empowering communities in Fiji.

Partnership of the Year

These standout partnerships demonstrate the impact of UEA working hand-in-hand with industry, charities and communities:

  • Black Beauty: Cultural Heritage in the Service of Animal Welfare and Children’s Literacy (Prof Thomas Ruys Smith, PPA) – a movement promoting animal welfare and children’s literacy rooted in Norfolk’s literary heritage.
  • Brandland: Turbocharging Norwich's Creative Economy (Prof Robert Jones, NBS) – building a regional hub for creative excellence and driving economic growth in Norwich and the region.
  • Made Smarter Adoption Programme: Supporting SMEs on their Digital Journey (Dr Ivan Mitchell, Prof Tomás Harrington and Andrew Vassallo, NBS, and Dr Colin Dowding, EMP) – supporting digital transformation for manufacturing SMEs across the East of England.

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Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Achievement 

The recipient of this prestigious award is selected by judging panel members from across any category, recognising a project with exceptional and far-reaching impact. We are delighted to announce that this year’s Chancellor’s Award for Outstanding Achievement is awarded to:

Prof Eylem Atakav (MLC), for her project Domestic abuse: Using Film to Change Policy, Training and Awareness. 

Prof Atakav’s body of work – Growing Up Married, Lifeline and Left Behind – has had extraordinary national impact, shaping legislation, informing government strategy, improving frontline training, and amplifying the voices of survivors of domestic abuse. Her films have influenced the Marriage and Civil Partnerships (Minimum Age) Act 2022, contributed to the 2025 Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, and improved support pathways for frontline practitioners.

This powerful, survivor-centred work exemplifies values of creativity, compassion and social justice.

The Award for this project will be presented by UEA Chancellor Dame Jenny Abramsky GBE at the ceremony. 

Congratulations to all the finalists! The 2026 winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on Wednesday 20 May, celebrating achievements from staff, students and partnership organisations. 

To explore previous winners and finalists, visit the UEA for Business YouTube channel.