Meet the team
Hilary Sutcliffe and Joe Woof are the co-leads of The Addiction Economy initiative.
Hilary is the Director of UK-based not-for-profit SocietyInside and Joe leads its work on Vaping and Digital Media.
For more about SocietyInside check our our website:
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Director
Hilary's work over the last 20 years with SocietyInside has been on exploring the concept and practice of a ‘Pro-society’ approach to innovation. This is a system of innovation which better serves people and planet without causing more problems than it solves.
She has been involved in a number of initiatives exploring the whole system of innovation from early academic research, through technology transfer, commercial product development, the role of shareholders, policy decision-making and regulation. Most recently I have focused on building trust in this process and how the meaningful engagement of stakeholders could be incorporated as part of a collaborative outcome-based innovation system.
In 2023 she initiated and co-leads this Addiction Economy project which aims to understand what political and social systems are failing when harmful industries flourish, and what it then takes to put the public interest first in policy and regulation. This initiative brings together her skill in synthesising complex issues, a relentless focus on the public interest, and her strong communications skills honed in the commercial consumer sector.
To see more check out www.societyinside.com
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Executive
Joe is the co-lead of the Addiction Economy project, which was inspired by his research on vapes and the addictive effects of social media on young people. He will lead the work on vaping and digital media and drive the innovative communications and public engagement aspects of the Addiction Economy project.
He produces Joe’s Friday Shorts, a weekly YouTube short video on the topical issues of the Addiction Economy, featuring one of the compelling infographics which is fast becoming a hallmark of SocietyInside’s approach to communication.
His short film ‘The Vaping Dilemma’ shows how The Addiction Economy at work with vapes. It was inspired by the groundbreaking film ‘The Social Dilemma’ and explores the addictive techniques and business model of companies marketing vapes to young adults, aiming to equip them with more information about how vaping became so popular and why.
Joe was also chosen by Sense About Science to ask a question on Vaping to MP’s as part of their Evidence Week, generating significant interest among MPs in SocietyInside’s work. He then presented to his MP Helen Hayes on vaping and young people, who referred to him and his work as ‘her constituent’ in the Houses of Parliament in a speech on vapes.
He has a Master’s degree in Science Communication from UCL and a BA in Geography from Newcastle University where his dissertation focused on exploring with young people why they don’t change their behaviour when they find out about the addictive effects of social media.