About Careful Industries
Careful Industries is a research consultancy, founded in 2019.
Our work understands and anticipates the social impacts of technology; our mission is to make sure more people have the chance to shape, inform and create new technologies.
We research the social impact of technologies and technology policies; forecast possible futures; and design and deliver technology policy, governance and training solutions that centre equity and social justice. Our work often involves navigating change and ambiguity, so no two projects are the same: we bring a combination of multidisciplinary research, horizon scanning, communications expertise, strong networks, and practical technology experience.
Recent clients include Salesforce, Genomics England, Wellcome Trust, DCMS, the Royal Academy of Engineering and Open Society Foundations.
We have a not-for-profit sister organisation, Promising Trouble, which is an experiment in redistributing the power of data and digital technologies: sharing knowledge, capabilities, and connectivity to build community-driven alternatives to Big Tech and platform power. Careful Industries works closely with Promising Trouble to empower communities to own, use and adapt technologies.
The Team.
Dominique Barron
Location: London
Dominique Barron is a Design Researcher at Careful Industries, where their work examines the social impacts of technology. Dominique's research places particular focus on the intersections of race, gender, and class through a critical, decolonial analysis, and she is interested in topics related to policing, migration, and Black political organising across the African diaspora.
Prior to joining Careful Industries, Dominique worked in project management, programme development, political education, and graphic design for various not-for-profit organisations and community-based projects in both the UK and U.S.
Dominique's work has appeared in Hyperallergic and 20/20, an exhibition curated by Aida Wilde and Ego Ahaiwe Sowinski in 2022, and she designed the publication Human Endeavour: a creative finding aid to the Women of Colour Index (Goldsmiths Press 2015) in collaboration with the artists-archivists group X Marks the Spot.
Dominique holds a Master of Arts in Visual Sociology with Distinction from Goldsmiths, University of London. She also studied at Nanzan University in Nagoya, Japan, and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government, with minors in Japanese and Studio Art from Georgetown University, in the U.S.
Dominique is part of the research team and works across our research projects.
Rachael Burton
Location: Bristol
Rachael Burton is a producer with experience across the creative, cultural and technology sectors. At Careful Trouble she produces research projects that explore and anticipate the social impacts of technology, technology policies and forecast possible futures.
Alongside her work at Careful Trouble, Rachael is a freelance producer and Action Learning facilitator. Rachael is currently working with M/Others Who Make. She is a Trustee for Attitude is Everything.
Before joining Careful Trouble, Rachael produced large-scale multi-partnership research projects at Watershed. Most recently these included Playable City and University of Bristol research project Connecting Through Culture As We Age.
Rachael is the Producer, working across the team to ensure our research projects are delivered successfully.
Rachel Coldicutt
Location: London
Rachel Coldicutt is an expert on the social impact of new and emerging technologies, and executive director of research consultancy Careful Industries and its sister social enterprise Promising Trouble.
She was previously founding CEO of responsible technology think tank Doteveryone where she led influential and ground-breaking research into how technology is changing society and developed practical tools for responsible innovation. Prior to that, she spent almost 20 years working at the cutting edge of new technology for companies including the BBC, Microsoft, BT, and Channel 4, and was a pioneer in the digital art world. Rachel is an advisor, board member and trustee for a number of companies and charities and a member of the Ofcom Content Board. In 2019, Rachel was awarded an OBE in the New Year’s Honours for services for the digital society.
She is currently writing a book about careful innovation.
Rachel is the founder and Executive Director.
Aurelie Coulibaly
Location: London and Athens
Aurélie Coulibaly supports individual team members at Careful Industries with their daily tasks and assists with project management requirements.
She previously worked in similar capacities and as a personal assistant for a number of people and small studios in the US, Europe, and Australia. Former employers include social practice artist Theaster Gates, architect David Adjaye OBE, and the Festival de Cannes. She received her education in Philosophy from Paris 8 Nanterre Université in France, and a bachelor of Commerce from Concordia University's John Molson School of Business in Canada. Aurélie currently lives and works between London and Athens.
Aurelie is part of the support team and handles administrative tasks for the project manager and team members to keep activities running smoothly.
Anna Dent
Location: Bristol
Anna Dent is an experienced researcher and public policy consultant, and Head of Research for Promising Trouble.
Anna's work at Promising Trouble focuses on building greater community control and influence over technology, and understanding how digital exclusion affects health and wellbeing. Her research interests include employment and the welfare state, with particular interests in good work and the future of work, basic income, and ethical issues around technology, employment and social security. As a freelance researcher and consultant she has produced work for clients including IPPR, the RSA, the Learning and Work Institute, the Institute for the Future of Work and Nesta. She has also previously worked in London local government, and in the creative and housing sectors.
Anna holds a Masters degree in Public Policy from the University of Bristol, which she completed as a mature student, researching and writing about labour markets, precarity and universal basic income.
Anna is Head of Research for Promising Trouble. She leads on research for Community Connectivity and Community Tech.
Anna Hamilos
Location: London
Anna Hamilos is a passionate, empathic individual with an ability to lead agile innovation programmes that result in positive social impact. Relationship and partnership building has been at the heart of Anna's career from her work at the Greater London Authority, London 2012, CABE and Nesta. In 2021 Anna was selected for the prestigious Clore Experienced Leadership course, and received 360 Feedback, where she received top marks as an Empowering Enabler (someone who prioritises organisation and team visibility over personal gain and profile), a Courageous Changemaker (someone who injects a sense of urgency when necessary) and a Focused Strategist (commended for my ability to stay abreast of, and adapt to, social, political and economic trends).
Before joining Promising Trouble, Anna was a Senior Associate with Collaborate CIC. Prior to that Anna was the Head of Y Lab (Y Lab is Nesta's public service innovation lab for Wales). Anna led the design and delivery of major programmes - Infuse a WEFO funded initiative for the Cardiff Capital Region, the EdTech Innovation Programme, a joint venture with the Department for Education in addition to the DCMS funded Future News Pilot Fund (FNPF).
Anna is the Head of Community Development and Inclusion. Anna works on Community Connectivity and Community Tech projects.
Tom McGrath
Location: Lancaster
Tom McGrath is a policy researcher with experience in the academic, charity, and parliamentary sectors. He helps the team at Careful Trouble to analyse and design effective and inclusive policy solutions within the technology space.
Tom has a deep interest in how people and politicians communicate, how those communications are understood by the public, and what the impact of those communications are on people’s lives. His research interests include digital inclusion, human rights, and poverty and inequality, as well as the interplay between these areas.
Prior to joining Careful Trouble, Tom worked at Good Things Foundation, where he led the Data Poverty Lab and its fellowship scheme. He led research with people who had experienced digital exclusion to design better ways to deliver affordable, reliable internet access. Before that, he worked at Sheffield Political Economy Research Institute, where he analysed public attitudes to wealth taxation, and the European Parliament, where he served as a Parliamentary Assistant focusing on human rights in South Asia. Alongside his work at Careful Trouble, Tom is a freelance graphic designer.
Tom is part of the research team, supporting on policy development, analysis, and public affairs across our projects.
Anna Williams
Location: London and Antalya
Anna Williams is a specialist in foresight and research consultancy, which stems from her previous professional and academic research into foresight for science and technology policy.
Anna led innovation foresight research at Nesta for over three years, where her work focused on horizon scanning to identify potential emerging innovations and designing science and technology inducement prizes.
She has most recently worked as a Principal for The International School of Futures and as a freelance Consultant researching topics for both the government and the private sector including, DCMS, The British Science Association and LORCA. She holds a BSc and MSc with Distinction from UCL Science and Technology Studies Department.
Anna is Foresight Lead. Anna works across projects focusing on both the design and implemtaion of foreisght methods and research.
Careful Trouble author and contributor crediting policy
Written by Anna Dent, Head of Research, with input and sign-off from the whole Careful Trouble team
This policy has been created to provide guidance for crediting the people that author and contribute to all of our outputs. It is designed to ensure that everyone who contributes is recognised, and that we do this transparently and fairly.