233042 SE How to do Inter- and Transdisciplinarity? (2025S)

Collaborations that stretch beyond the confines of single disciplines and/or include knowledge from different stakeholders or civil society have the potential to tackle big societal challenges in an increasingly complex world. Therefore, a range of inter- and transdisciplinary practices have become more important within scientific research and knowledge production and have found their way into the academic landscape under various names such as knowledge co-creation and integration, participatory research, stakeholder involvement, open (innovation in) science or citizen science. Besides a higher potential of addressing societal and environmental problems, such collaborations also bear potential challenges and difficulties uncommon to disciplinary knowledge production. For instance, implicit epistemic hierarchies can lead to the perception that some forms of knowledge are more legitimate than others, participants may feel that their knowledge is exploited or different modes of knowledge production and circulation could come into conflict. So how to tackle these challenges and facilitate co-production of knowledge on equal terms? In this seminar we will look at the historic and disciplinary development of integrative practices of knowledge production, how potential conflicts and challenges of such collaborations are intertwined with the contemporary academic system and introduce some tools & methods to facilitate inter-/transdisciplinary collaborations. Besides lectures, discussions of readings, students will have the opportunity to practically engage with, and reflect on, various facilitation methods as well as collaboratively develop an Integration and Implementation Plan (IIP) for a fictional project. Students will continuously receive feedback and support by the lecturers.