Logo: to the web site of Uppsala University

In a time of sustainability predicaments and ‘grand challenges’, transdisciplinarity has been put forward as an approach through which researchers can engage with societal transformation for a better world. This study examines tensions that arise in the on-the-ground efforts of researchers to establish and manage a transdisciplinary research group within a Norwegian university. Tensions have been of interest in both studies of science and studies of organizations. Scholars have inquired into the ways in which tensions between interrelated, divergent demands influence the work of scientific knowledge production and organizational life. Transdisciplinary research groups, centers and institutes are proliferating, yet studies of the tensions and challenges they face at the micro-level remain nascent. Drawing on intermittent fieldwork over a two-year period, this dissertation analyses a local case in which climate and energy researchers took a transdisciplinary approach in establishing a “societally engaged” research group and research center in a social sciences department. Key questions are: which tensions do they encounter? How do they respond to them? 

The study makes use of concepts on tensions and paradox developed in organization and management studies to inform discussions on challenges in inter- and trans-disciplinary research in practice. The case study identifies, illustrates, and analyses several tensions salient for researchers: between the need for both consolidation and interrelation; between the need to grow and formalise the group while also maintaining its closeness and values; between ideas of researchers’ relationship to societal change as both distant and engaged; and between the need to maintain academic autonomy while providing usefulness to non-academic actors. Various responses to these tensions are identified and explored, including defending against, and actively embracing them. The findings allow for rethinking transdiscipclinary research in practice, with implications for research managers, practitioners, and policy makers.

Formalised knowledge systems, including universities and research institutes, are important for contemporary societies. They are, however, also arguably failing humanity when their impact is measured against the level of progress being made in stimulating the societal changes needed to address challenges like climate change. In this research we used a novel futures-oriented and participatory approach that asked what future envisioned knowledge systems might need to look like and how we might get there. Findings suggest that envisioned future systems will need to be much more collaborative, open, diverse, egalitarian, and able to work with values and systemic issues. They will also need to go beyond producing knowledge about our world to generating wisdom about how to act within it. To get to envisioned systems we will need to rapidly scale methodological innovations, connect innovators, and creatively accelerate learning about working with intractable challenges. We will also need to create new funding schemes, a global knowledge commons, and challenge deeply held assumptions. To genuinely be a creative force in supporting longevity of human and non-human life on our planet, the shift in knowledge systems will probably need to be at the scale of the enlightenment and speed of the scientific and technological revolution accompanying the second World War. This will require bold and strategic action from governments, scientists, civic society and sustained transformational intent.

Abstract of Dreams and Seeds book

The role of universities is changing, expanding from being purely education and research institutions towards one of being active partners in local and regional urban development. As incubators for knowledge development, critical thinking, and innovations, universities and campuses are becoming increasingly important for identifying, designing, and implementing pathways to sustainable urban development. The project Live Baltic Campus has explored how university campuses can serve as local living labs and guides for new planning and design approaches. The project has aimed to build capacity in urban planning and design to harness the potential of changing social, ecological and financial contexts. Six higher education institutes in cities around the Central Baltic area have collaborated to utilise participatory design methods in developing their local campuses, and to share the results on their findings. Campus development, much like urban planning in general, relates to the concepts of dreams and seeds: visions of the future, and a continuous flow of, often small, actions and decisions required for bringing the visions into reality. This book is a compilation of the insights, perspectives and practical examples encountered and produced during the two-year joint exploration to find the ingredients and the correct local measurements for sustainable urban campuses.