Turning knowledge into action — without burnout, box-ticking, or wasted effort.
Universities and research organisations are under growing pressure to demonstrate real-world impact — yet many researchers feel overwhelmed, constrained, or disconnected from the systems meant to support it.
The result is a widening gap between excellent research and meaningful change.
The Maya Academy Applied Impact Lab exists to close that gap.
What is the Applied Impact Lab?
The Applied Impact Lab is a practical, high-intensity training space designed to help researchers and research teams:
clarify what impact actually means for their work
move beyond theory and frameworks into real decisions and actions
design impact pathways that are credible, ethical, and achievable
regain confidence and agency in complex systems
This is not generic impact training.
It is a working lab — focused on real projects, real constraints, and real outcomes.
Who it’s for
The Lab is designed for:
Academic researchers (any career stage)
Research teams and centres
Interdisciplinary projects
Knowledge exchange and impact leads
Institutions seeking deeper, more authentic impact practice
It is particularly valuable for those working in:
sustainability and environment
social science
health, wellbeing, and public policy
complex or contested problem spaces
What makes it different
Most impact training focuses on:
compliance
reporting
frameworks without follow-through
The Applied Impact Lab focuses on:
decision-making
relationships
systems navigation
confidence under complexity
Participants leave with:
clarity, not overwhelm
direction, not another checklist
renewed belief in the value of their work
The Format
Applied Impact Lab — 3-Hour Intensive
Fee: £2,000
Format: In-person (can be online if requested)
Participants: Any career stage
Each Lab is tailored to the participants in the room.
Typical flow:
Reframing impact — from obligation to opportunity
Mapping real pathways — grounded in lived constraints
Working with complexity — uncertainty, power, politics, ethics
Action design — what changes next, not someday
Participants actively work on their own research, not hypothetical examples.
Outcomes
By the end of the Lab, participants typically have:
a clearer impact direction for their work
a more confident narrative for funders, partners, and institutions
practical next steps that feel achievable
reduced anxiety around “doing impact properly”
a renewed sense of purpose and agency
Institutions gain:
more grounded impact practice
researchers who feel supported rather than pressured
stronger alignment between values, evidence, and action
Why this matters now
We are living in a moment where:
public trust in expertise is fragile
complex problems demand collaboration, not silos
impact cannot be performative — it must be real
The Applied Impact Lab supports researchers to engage with this reality without losing themselves in the process.
How to book
To discuss hosting an Applied Impact Lab for your institution or team, please get in touch.
Each Lab is designed collaboratively to ensure it fits your context, people, and priorities.
