Oxford Smith School academics feature in new Bodleian portrait series
Two portrait photos featuring Oxford Smith School academics have been added to the walls of the Bodleian Libraries this month. The photos are part of an initiative called Catalysts, which is celebrating Oxford University's leading innovators in the fields of health, society, and the environment worldwide. The initiative will add a total of 19 portraits to the Bodleian’s permanent collection. The Bodleian stated that the photographs would expand and diversify its “historic iconography while capturing the breadth and real-world impact of Oxford’s research.”
Alexis McGivern, Head of Stakeholder Engagement and Clarissa Salmon, Stakeholder Engagement Officer at Oxford Net Zero, feature together in a photograph celebrating their Global Youth Climate Training Programme, which trained 4,500 young climate activists from 177 countries in how to engage with climate policy and policymakers.
The photograph was taken by Francis Augusto who said on LinkedIn: “Before I photographed anyone, I listened. Each portrait session began with oral history interviews—conversations lasting up to an hour about transformation, about work that sparks something far bigger than the initial effort, about impact that unfolds across generations. These weren't transactional portrait sessions. They were exchanges built on trust. The photographs emerged from those conversations.”
“Clarissa Salmon and I are honoured to be a part of this project,” said Alexis McGivern. “Oxford has shaped me profoundly, but so has my identity as a “radical insider”: someone who gently (and sometimes forcefully!) pushes from within for greater accountability. Our Global Youth Climate Training programme rests on a simple belief: no one should need admissions to the University to learn from here.”
The REACH programme photo features Professor Katrina Charles, Dr Sonia Ferdous Hoque, and Professor Rob Hope, and was taken by Leia Morrison. REACH was a global research programme to improve water security for millions of vulnerable people in Asia and Africa. In 2025, the programme’s leaders Professor Katrina Charles and Professor Rob Hope announced the programme had exceeded its target of improving water security for 10 million people across Africa and Asia, demonstrating a scalable approach to tackling one of the world’s most pressing challenges.
The Oxford team behind REACH is now expanding its work globally to reach 100 million people by 2030 by piloting innovative funding models and forging new government partnerships.
Both the REACH programme and the Global Youth Climate Training programme were recognised in the 2024 Vice Chancellor’s Awards.
