The training sessions, entitled “Transdisciplinary Research: Success Factors and Methods for Societal and Scientific Effectiveness”, were particularly aimed at postdocs planning to submit funding proposals under the FWF's #ConnectingMinds program. The one-day workshops took place as in-person and online events with the aim to introduce researchers to the basics of structuring transdisciplinary research processes and to deepen this knowledge through practical exercises. Each workshop was led by two experts from ISOE.
Research approach
With its #ConnectingMinds program, the Austrian Science Fund aims to encourage researchers to involve non-scientific actors in research projects. Funding is provided to teams that combine scientific and societal knowledge in order to meet the societal, technological, ecological, and economic challenges ahead. The focus is on transdisciplinarity, innovative research approaches and the support of social commitment as well as the promotion of collective learning spaces.
ISOE's training courses were therefore particularly geared towards postdocs aiming to acquire and lead future transdisciplinary projects, but also at those participants who used the training courses as an initial introduction to transdisciplinary research. The training sessions pursued different goals. For example, participants learned about the main principles and processes of transdisciplinary research to be considered when planning their own projects and they received suggestions for the conceptual and methodological development of their own research projects. Participants were also made aware of the societal impacts of research and explored possible transformation pathways as well as the added value of transdisciplinary research for science.
Another key component of the workshop consisted of performing practical exercises during which participants learned to creatively apply their new knowledge. Accordingly, the one-day workshops that took place both in person and digitally, alternated between inputs on the one hand and open exchanges regarding experiences as well as pending questions on the other. The inputs covered the ideal-typical transdisciplinary research process and the according tasks for researchers in each of its phases. Collaboration with actors from practice was discussed, as were specific methods for problem framing during the application phase of a project.
Background In order to be able to lead or coordinate transdisciplinary research projects, knowledge and skills are required that have so far only been sporadically taught at universities. Accordingly, further training opportunities for doctoral students or postdocs wishing to adopt the transdisciplinary research mode are in great demand and attract considerable interest.
Client
The training for the #ConnectingMinds program was commissioned by the Austrian Science Fund FWF.
