About Us

Our Story

Our organization was founded by a handful of science PhDs after their combined experiences navigating life in the laboratory, running for public office, and governing nonprofit organizations. Known as the Science & Policy Integration Network, or the SPIN, the goal was to connect scientists and policy makers to promote knowledge sharing and evidence-informed decision making.

The SPIN gained public recognition in 2018 by hosting the inaugural BC Science & Policy Conference, held at the University of British Columbia and featuring several notable public servants and academics as speakers. We took this opportunity to listen to our local community on the current status of science and policy in BC. We came to appreciate the many ways that addressing policy challenges is not easy, and that contributions from science are only one piece of the solution. Solving complex problems requires bringing awareness and understanding to the many different elements connected to a given issue.

As we immersed ourselves further in these conversations, we realized that it was time to broaden our focus on policy and scientific evidence.  More and more, our most successful events were about starting conversations between any groups of people from any background affected by the complex issues that we face as a society. Each group brings a unique and valuable perspective for addressing challenges in our community. This led us to relaunch as Cofactor Conversation Lab in 2020 – a name that reflects our roots in science but also our desire to contribute in a real-world context.