Stella Creasy is Head of Research and Development for the Involve organisation, a citizen advocacy group that works to promote public involvement in the public, private and voluntary sectors. She was previously a local councillor in East London, as Mayor and Chief Whip, and an adviser to Dougles Alexander, MP.  She wrote her doctorate on ‘Understanding the Lifeworld of Social Exclusion’, and specialises in the social psychology of public participation. She has written extensively on how to increase public involvement in a range of organisations. She is active within her own local area, as a school governor and member of several community action groups.