A Student’s Interdisciplinary Journey: Bridging Disciplines to Facilitate Impactful Change

Written by Denise Zheng, UCL Arts and Sciences

Hi, I’m Denise, a UCL Grand Challenges Student Consultant. This December, after seven weeks of dedicated work, my team and I had the honour of presenting our innovation lab framework to a professional panel of judges, including Sam Balch, Director of UCL Grand Challenges.

When I first started this interdisciplinary journey, I wasn’t sure what to expect. The UCL Grand Challenges initiative offered me the unique opportunity to work as a student consultant, developing an innovative framework to tackle pressing global issues in mental health and sustainability.

The initiative thrives on collaboration, bridging disciplines to facilitate creative problem solving and impactful change. My consultancy journey began in UCL BaseX, where I worked alongside 11 other students from diverse academic disciplines. Together, we were tasked with designing the mechanisms for a lab model used by students in Term 3 to create innovative solutions aligned with the Grand Challenges themes. The sessions throughout the program were transformative, enriching both our skills and professional networks. This featured key project management principles with Fiona Wilkie (UCL ChangeMakers), a discussion on student voices by sustainability officer Alan Guerra Salazar, and insights into Equity-Centered Design and empathy mapping by Kiran Thadani.

However, the journey was not without its challenges. Balancing the demands of a student life alongside weekly sessions can be stressful. However, our facilitators — Zulekha Mayet, Kiran Thadani, Milly Metcalfe, and Clare Stainthorp — were incredibly adaptable to our needs, transitioning our sessions online when necessary. This flexibility fostered a supportive environment where we learned a great deal from each other. Navigating the diversity within our team posed its own difficulties, yet it became a strength as we leveraged diverse perspectives and harnessed individuals’ strengths. Real world constraints, such as scalability, initially limited the scope of our creative designs. However, it encouraged us to refine our approach, focussing on practical and data-driven problem-solving skills.

Seeing our ideas come to life and contributing to something impactful is highly rewarding. This experience taught me to embrace the learning curve, highlighted the value of teamwork, emotional intelligence, and equity considerations. Being part of a dynamic team of interdisciplinary yet like-minded individuals was genuinely inspiring.

As I look back, I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity. The skills, insights and connections I have made will stay with me throughout my academic and professional journey.

Find out more about UCL Grand Challenges by visiting our website.