Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities to host showcase of excellence

This June, the new Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities will host the 2026 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards Showcase – bringing together some of the University of Oxford’s highest-impact projects under one roof.

The Vice-Chancellor’s Awards are issued to staff at the University who have made a difference through their work. 

The Showcase is a free event that will take place on 2 June 2026, and staff, students and members of the public are welcome to come along between 10am and 4pm to see first-hand how Oxford’s work benefits society. Visitors will have the opportunity to explore the shortlisted projects through interactive displays and exhibition boards and meet the teams behind them. 

From educational outreach in Oxfordshire schools and creative public health programmes overseas to transforming the success of liver transplants and building robots that can autonomously inspect power plants, the projects being presented reflect a shared commitment: ensuring that research, innovation and teaching improve people’s lives in meaningful ways. 

More than a venue, the Schwarzman Centre represents the University’s commitment to opening its work to wider society. At this year’s Awards Showcase, that mission will be prominently on display, with shortlisted teams delivering tangible benefits to communities locally, nationally and globally.

Opened in October 2025, and designed as a public-facing base for performance, learning and collaboration, the Schwarzman Centre is a fitting backdrop for initiatives that focus on people and communities.

In fact, the work that went into creating it is itself on the shortlist, in the Enabling Our Mission category. 

Professor Irene Tracey CBE, FRS, FMedSci, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Oxford, said: 

‘The nominations for the 2026 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards demonstrate the exceptional commitment of our colleagues across the collegiate University and the impact they make in advancing our academic mission. I look forward to celebrating these achievements together at the showcase and ceremony in the new Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities in June.’ 

Other shortlisted projects include:
•    A programme of high-quality cultural education opportunities for young people with complex special needs at the Iffley Academy school
•    A circus programme co-designed with young people and using performance arts to raise community understanding of antimicrobial resistance in Cambodia
•    OrganOx, a company commercialising research into life-saving organ preservation technology, saving over 8,000 lives.

Highlighting these at the Schwarzman Centre shows it is already taking its intended place as a bridge between the University and the city – a space where academic excellence meets public engagement. 

Professor Amy Dickman, WildCRU Director and Professor of Wildlife Conservation at the University of Oxford, and part of the team nominated for the ‘Making a Difference Globally Award’, said:

‘We are thrilled to have made the shortlist for these awards – it's a wonderful recognition for the many WildCRU staff and students, in Oxford and beyond, who are helping transform wildlife conservation through research, training and implementation. This award ceremony highlights the amazing talent and passion shown by so many people across the University, and we are both humbled and honoured to be part of it this year.’

George Green, Associate Professor in Classical and Scientific Archaeology, who has been shortlisted for the Breakthrough Researcher Award, said: 

‘There’s an awful lot of research going on at Oxford, so to be nominated by my colleagues and then selected as one of five people shortlisted for “Breakthrough Researcher” is a fantastic feeling. So many of the things recognised in the nomination were only possible due to the partnership we’ve built between ISIS and Oxford. The new teaching concepts, scholarship opportunities and formal relationships with collections are not something I could have achieved without Archaeology, Classics, ISIS and the Ashmolean all throwing their support behind me’. 

Winners of the 2026 Vice-Chancellor’s Awards will be announced at a ceremony on Thursday 4 June.

Find out more about the Vice-Chancellor’s Awards and the Shortlist 2026 here: Vice-Chancellor’s Awards.