Research & Insights
Research that listens.
Insights that matter.
Research and stakeholder engagement designed to uncover insights, document lived experiences, examine systemic and industry issues, and support evidence-informed recommendations.
Why it matters
Evidence, gathered with care.
Our research activities include qualitative and community-based research, stakeholder engagement, interviews, consultations, focus groups, data gathering, analysis, and the development of reports and recommendations.
We work with communities, industry professionals, organizations, and other stakeholders to better understand issues affecting diverse and underserved populations — and to translate those findings into accessible knowledge, resources, and content.
Capabilities
How we work.
Ten connected capabilities, applied in the combination a project actually needs.
- 01
Qualitative Research
Research designed to understand experience, meaning, and context rather than numbers alone — the foundation of how NexWave approaches complex cultural and social questions.
- 02
Interviews
One-to-one conversations with community members, industry professionals, and subject-matter experts that document lived experience in people’s own words.
- 03
Focus Groups
Facilitated group discussions that surface shared experiences, points of tension, and perspectives that rarely emerge in individual settings.
- 04
Stakeholder Consultations
Structured engagement with organizations, institutions, and industry stakeholders to understand priorities, barriers, and opportunities.
- 05
Community Engagement
Community-based approaches that involve people in the questions being asked about them, and return findings to the communities who contributed to them.
- 06
Data Collection & Analysis
Systematic gathering and analysis of qualitative and quantitative material, with attention to rigour, ethics, and transparency.
- 07
Environmental Scans
Reviews of the current landscape — policy, programs, industry practice, and existing evidence — to establish what is already known and what is missing.
- 08
Report Development
Clear, well-structured reports that present findings in a form decision-makers, funders, and communities can actually use.
- 09
Recommendations
Evidence-informed recommendations that connect what the research found to what can realistically be done about it.
- 10
Knowledge Dissemination
Translating findings into accessible formats — briefings, educational resources, digital content, and public-facing storytelling.
In the room
Interviews, focus groups, consultations.
Much of what matters in our work is only visible up close: the language people use for their own experience, the barriers that never appear in an annual report, the difference between what a system says it does and what people encounter when they use it.
Interviews document lived experience in people’s own words. Focus groups surface shared experience and points of tension. Stakeholder consultations bring institutional perspective. Together they build a picture that no single method produces on its own.
Areas of interest
Where our research concentrates.
We are particularly interested in research at the intersection of media, culture, and representation.
- Media
- Culture
- Diversity
- Inclusion
- Representation
- Youth
- Women
- Creative Industries
- Underserved Communities
The NexWave advantage
Findings that don’t stop at the report.
By combining research expertise with storytelling and communications, NexWave can transform findings into accessible reports, educational resources, digital content, documentaries, campaigns, and other tools that reach audiences beyond traditional research environments.
- Reports
- Educational resources
- Digital content
- Documentaries
- Campaigns
- Editorial content
- Public-facing storytelling
Research inquiries
Discuss a research project.
Tell us the question you need answered, who needs to hear the answer, and the timeline you are working to.