Beyond "Policy-Washing": Toward Genuine Policy Engagement in Human-Centered Computing

In recent years, researchers in human-centered computing and adjacent fields have increasingly found themselves encouraged to highlight "real-world impacts" in their work; by funders, by their departments, and by publication venues. But given low incentives to do so in practice, and especially compared to publication and other academic-focused requirements, most academics tend to spend time and effort within their own scholarly ecosystems, publishing at key venues and presenting to familiar faces. On the one hand, this produces deep, rigorous scholarship and a sense of professional community. On the other hand, the research itself also stays within the boundaries of the immediate academic community.