The aid sector is in a pivotal moment of transformation triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and increasing demands for donors, recipients, and aid organizations to “decolonize” and “localize” aid. AU’s Changing Aid Signature Research Initiative (SRI) grapples with these challenges by providing a unique space for aid actors, scholars, and policymakers to come together to learn, communicate, and problem-solve. The Changing Aid initiative spearheads innovative, ethical, and participatory research within the most challenging contexts, such as migration, violence, peace, healthcare, and even disastrous environmental and climate changes. We engage with a variety of aid actors (both international and domestic, from the Global North and South, and from bilateral, multilateral, non-governmental, and private institutions) and facilitate difficult discussions and practical training to help aid workers better manage the challenging realities of aid work today. Informed by evidence and in partnership with policymakers and aid industry actors, we work to help find solutions to improve and inform future aid.