Conference Agenda

The integration of arts, social sciences, and humanities (ASSH) into energy modeling has gained significant traction over the past years, with researchers increasingly recognizing their potential to enhance reality and transparency in energy models. Efforts of energy research and inter- and transdisciplinary research communities have started to produce results seen in the institutional changes towards transdisciplinary energy research as in Switzerland. To assess the possible contribution of ASSH into energy modeling and potential benefits of it, in this poster I aim to answer the questions what is current representation of social aspects in the energy models, what social aspects are not yet represented sufficiently in models, and what implications for imaginable energy futures it brings? My research is framed in the project Co-evolution and coordinated simulation of Swiss Energy System and Swiss Society (CoSi, funded by the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, period 2023-2033), which aims to deliver energy models integrating social sciences and humanities within techno-economic research, to address the complexities of the energy transition.

Within Cosi, I conduct a systematic literature review to identify social aspects of the energy transition that are contributed by AHSS. After identifying sets of keywords, I created query using Boolean and proximity operators and gathered data from Web of Science and Scopus. The selected 60 records represent the most relevant articles which were subjected to a qualitative content analysis.

Social aspects, referred here as social factors of the energy transition, typically encompass quantifiable parameters integrated into models at various stages of the modeling process or narratives used in scenario preparation. These parameters and narratives are predominantly grounded in economics, with occasional inputs from behavioral and political sciences. This reliance emphasizes a positivist view of human behavior and optimization for least-cost solutions, and shapes many energy models' assumptions and outcomes.

In my research, I enquire on an alternative approach to this narrow understanding of social factors, i.e., a cultural perspective on energy transition. The cultural perspective focuses on the human dimension of the energy transition. It delves into the symbolic meanings, but also cognition and motives of societal actors. It allows, among others, insight into socio-cultural context and power structures. Moreover, the cultural perspective encourages a more reflexive and critical approach, and examining differences between dominant and alternative energy narratives and imaginaries.

In this poster, I will present the findings of the literature review and provide a rich picture of the social aspects that are identified as main contributions from AHSS in energy modelling. I will elaborate on a classification that shows the relevance of the cultural approach to better understand how to integrate AHSS contributions into energy research. The application of the cultural perspective suggests a broader and more critically oriented role for ASSH in future energy modeling. This broader perspective enables the exploration of diverse energy narratives and imaginaries, shedding light on complex socio-cultural aspects and power structures influencing energy transition.

In the dynamic landscape of contemporary research, fostering transdisciplinary collaboration and cultivating a synergistic environment are imperative for advancing knowledge. This poster presents the methods of transdisciplinary thematic workshops as a series of events designed to co-explore topics within a research field as well as in an integrated research environment. The workshops were carried out by the Berlin University Alliance’s TD Lab – Laboratory for transdisciplinary research with the aim to strengthen transdisciplinary research within the core research areas of the newly established alliance.

Transdisciplinary thematic workshops are dynamic forums that transcend traditional disciplinary boundaries, fostering an inclusive and collaborative ethos. They function as incubators for ideas, providing a platform where researchers from various domains can converge to explore shared interests, methodologies, and potential avenues for collaborative projects. These workshops serve as catalysts for innovation, bringing together diverse expertise and perspectives to address complex challenges. This presentation will shed light on the key attributes and methodologies employed in organizing and executing successful transdisciplinary thematic workshops.

During the thematic workshops, a variety of interactive formats and tools are employed, such as a thematic card game, plenum discussions, breakout sessions, and collaborative exercises. These formats are strategically designed to stimulate engagement, foster dialogue, and encourage the cross-pollination of ideas. Participants are encouraged to share their expertise, insights, and challenges, fostering a culture of open communication and mutual learning.

One distinctive feature of thematic workshops is their iterative nature. Rather than standalone events, they are organized as a series, allowing participants to build upon previous discussions and delve deeper into specific aspects of the overarching theme. This iterative approach not only strengthens the collaborative bonds formed during the workshops but also facilitates the development of sustained, long-term collaborations that transcend the confines of individual events. In between-workshop communication channels are established to facilitate networking among participants and to encourage the exchange of preliminary ideas, setting the stage for a vibrant and productive workshop.

The impact of thematic workshops extends beyond the immediate research community, influencing policy, practice, and future research directions. This poster will showcase case two series of thematic workshops by the TD-Lab of the Berlin University Alliance that have initiated transdisciplinary research collaborations, both as an example and as a concept to build on.

How can we bridge the gap between social science and policy? Public policy design and implementation benefits greatly from knowledge about citizens’ attitudes, living conditions and behaviour. The Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP) is a governmental research institute that has a mission to contribute to policy with social and societal knowledge, by conducting and collecting research. Collaboration with academic researchers from universities and with policy makers is vital for this mission, but no easy task. In the current project, researchers from academic and governmental institutes were interviewed to collect experiences from participants’ previous collaborative projects and extract important lessons for the future. Why do researchers set up transdisciplinary collaborations, what are important barriers to overcome and which factors lead to successful collaborations?

From a combination of interviews and scientific literature, we have comprised a number of key insights to take into account when bridging the gap between social science and policy. Namely, 1) the importance of knowledge of the policy domain, 2) taking differences between institutes into account, 3) appreciating different perspectives, 4) looking for a shared goal and 5) creating commitment in all parties. Difficulties arise when differences in goals and priorities between organisations are overlooked, and commitment and appreciation for the collaborative effort are lacking. These important lessons are considered in further shaping the collaboration between the SCP and social psychology at Utrecht University, which is the focus of my postdoc project. In this poster presentation, I give examples of how academic and policy research can strengthen each other in the shared goal of contributing to better social policy and a resilient society.

This project is funded by the gravitation project Sustainable Cooperation (SCOOP), and the Netherlands Institute for Social Research (SCP).

Interdisciplinary science and education are essential to tackle complex societal and academic problems. With increasing complex problems such as globalization, climate change and digitalization, the call for interdisciplinary approaches is pressing. Moreover, interdisciplinary collaboration is key to inspiring new research approaches and education. However, many research and education structures in Dutch academia are organized in a monodisciplinary manner. The monodisciplinary origins are explained by disciplinary departments often being the administrative units within universities on which financing structures are based.

The monodisciplinary structures could hamper interdisciplinary ambitions and ultimately jeopardize impact. First insights into potential barriers show that these pertain to be practical, epistemological, and are constituted by power structures. In a practical sense it might be difficult to find academics from a different discipline. Once you work together it is difficult to continue collaborations due to varying schedules, time-allocation for research and teaching, or physical distance. Interdisciplinary projects require explanation of its relevance to disciplinary colleagues and supervisors to make sure you receive support, time, or funds. This might be complicated due to differences in epistemologies that are present in different disciplines. Due to varying epistemologies, fields may use and value certain topics, methods or approaches differently (Oudenampsen, 2024). This can lead to conflicting or diverging beliefs about the quality of research or scientific rigor. Ultimately, this can result in or facilitate differences in power structures and power imbalances (Looman et al., 2022). Potential enablers on an individual level can be found in different coping strategies (Woiwode and Froese, 2021). We expect enablers to exist also at team, faculty, university and national level. An example are the Radboud Young Academy Cross-Faculty Catapult Grants.

In this project, we aim to explore the enablers and barriers of interdisciplinary collaboration in a monodisciplinary setting. We take a system perspective and focus particularly on cross-faculty interdisciplinary collaborations. Moreover, we aim to find possible angles to approach this issue given the monodisciplinary environment. By researching these aims we envision empowering researchers both at individual and group level to find pathways to successful interdisciplinary collaborations. Additionally, we plan to advise university and faculty boards on how to support interdisciplinary collaborations in a monodisciplinary environment.

We start with developing a mapping of enablers and barriers of interdisciplinary collaboration based on a purposeful selection of literature in which we consider individual, team, and structural factors. In short interviews with academics from different faculties, who are currently working in networks or on projects that have an interdisciplinary nature but take place in a monodisciplinary environment, we expand, refine, and verify the mapping. This will enable us to consider structural factors at the between-faculty level.

The mapping is a starting point for suggestions and interventions. The poster is an extension of the study itself. We will present an update of the theoretical framework and present the findings from interviews. Conference participants are invited to contribute to this by adding novel enablers, novel barriers, ways to address the barriers and ways to implement the enablers.

The new Master of Materiomics (started in the academic year 2022-2023) aims to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to confront some of the most complex and urgent societal challenges, including climate change, energy transition, global pandemics, …. Rooted in the nexus of physics and chemistry, this interdisciplinary programme fosters the creation of innovative and sustainable materials through integration of experimental and theoretical approaches. At the heart of the master’s lies a commitment to interdisciplinary learning, realized through an interdisciplinary learning line, building on the principles of boundary-crossing theory (identification, coordination, reflection, and transformation). This theoretical framework guides the programme’s design, implementation, and assessment.

This contribution reports on the first results of a larger design-based research aimed at monitoring and refining the implementation of interdisciplinary education, and more particularly the interdisciplinary learning line, within the Materiomics’ programme. The key research questions addressed in this study are: a) How do teachers experience (the implementation of) interdisciplinarity in the programme? What can be improved?, b) How do the courses position themselves regarding the four learning mechanisms of boundary-crossing theory?, and c) Which factors and teaching methods can hinder or promote the implementation of the interdisciplinary learning line? To address these questions, the study employed a qualitative approach, combining focus group discussions with teachers and input from students enrolled in the Materiomics master's programme. Throughout these interviews, several themes emerged, offering valuable insights into the complexities and opportunities inherent in interdisciplinary education.

This study confirmed that the courses within the Materiomics’ master's are positioned along the interdisciplinary learning line as conceptualized during the programmes’ design phase. While most courses focus on identification and coordination, there are opportunities to broaden the scope toward reflection and transformation already in the first master’s year. In the second master’s year, the curriculum contains elective courses aiming at all of the four interdisciplinary learning phases. It depends on the student's own programme to what extent they progress on the interdisciplinary learning line, although enough opportunities are provided for the students to grow towards reflection and transformation. The master thesis, in particular, is an important course in this aspect, as here, the students need to integrate their acquired knowledge from different disciplines to solve a particular material problem.

Teachers and students shared challenges and successes in teaching and learning in this interdisciplinary master’s programme. Challenges stemmed primarily from the diverse disciplinary backgrounds of teachers and students, as well as difficulties in balancing the breadth of knowledge and depth of specialization. Teaching methods such as team teaching, expert lectures, and interdisciplinary projects are identified by teachers and students as effective means of fostering interdisciplinary competencies and enhancing the overall learning experience.

The findings of this study contribute to further understanding of a) the teachers’ and students’ views on issues to be tackled when implementing a new interdisciplinary curriculum, and b) promoting factors and good practices in this regard, which may also generalize, irrespective of the study programme at hand.

Many of today's grand challenges, such as climate change, social and gender inequalities, disruptive technologies, urbanization and migration, pose wicked problems: pressing societal issues characterized by their inherent complexity, uncertainty and political dimension. Wicked problems are ill-structured, involve diverse interest groups, cut across various disciplines and sectors as well as public and private spheres. They can jeopardize transdisciplinary research projects in the initial phase of joint problem framing. Stakeholders’ (including researchers’) divergent perceptions, values and worldviews may not only significantly constrain the space of possible outcomes, but also thwart any progress due to disagreements on a problem definition. In the worst case, political dynamics intensify or the project comes to a halt. Faced with this challenge: How can we facilitate joint problem framing to expand or transform the space of possible outcomes?

A common practice is to employ dialog-based workshops that foster mutual understanding and learning. Dialog-based approaches rely mainly on rational discourse and methods to articulate and elaborate different stakeholder perspectives. However, rational discourse can be severely limited when values and worldviews of stakeholders strongly diverge. In addition, the potential of non-rational ways of knowing may not be realized and their proponents marginalized.

To address these shortcomings, we draw on insights from recent developments in cognitive science and propose to understand joint problem framing from a radical enactive view of cognition. We thus challenge the priority of rationality by shifting attention to basic, i.e., non-linguistic/non-conceptual forms of cognition. In this way, we include non-rational factors like bodily feelings, emotions and intuitions as well as experiential, presentational and practical knowledge.

According to a radical enactive view of cognition, knowledge is not the result of information about the world that is processed inside people’s brains. Rather, knowledge emerges through people’s dynamic bodily interactions with their material and social environment. Technically speaking, an agent and its environment co-emerge and co-develop through interaction as a complex dynamical system. An agent enacts its own lifeworld and is simultaneously shaped by it in a circular process.

Adopting this view of cognition has immediate consequences for facilitating joint problem framing: There are no ‘mental models’ inside the brains of the stakeholders that ‘represent’ their perspectives on ‘the’ wicked problem in the outside world. Rather, there are as many wicked problems as there are different stakeholders; they exist only together as dynamical systems. Thus, methods for externalizing and updating mental models to better correspond to reality do not make sense anymore. Instead, the goal of joint problem framing becomes finding ways to coordinate new interaction patterns between stakeholders in fruitful ways. Facilitating this process means to employ methods that support stakeholders in jointly exploring and learning new ways of interacting and thereby transforming and coordinating their lifeworlds.

Beyond a theoretical elaboration on joint problem framing from a radical enactive view of cognition, we will derive general design principles that can be applied and tested by workshop facilitators.

The frequency and intensity of weather extreme events are increasing worldwide. Vulnerability to heat waves, heavy rains and flash floods is heightened by mismanagement of local governments, institutional vulnerabilities, lack of implementation plans, ineffective warning systems. To face these social and environmental challenges is fundamental to coproduce organisational and institutional capacities for extreme events preparedness. One way to enhance capacities is through people-centred warning systems. This presentation shares interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary methods (participatory mapping, educommunication, citizen science) to engaging various audiences (high schools students, graduate students, NGOs representatives, and local civil defence units) in four axes of local warning systems ( risk knowledge, monitoring, communication and emergency response). There is a lack of comprehension of data and information used in warnings. People are developing their own networks of risk communication. There is a need for intergenerational dialogue to enhance people’s preparedness for extreme events, since experiences and memories about previous disasters are not being shared between young and older people. This action research project aims to finding ways to enhance institutional capacities to be prepared for extreme weather events.

Interdisciplinary collaboration is difficult, and it requires explicit training to prepare students for addressing wicked problems in an interdisciplinary team (Di Giulio & Defila, 2017). Students underestimate interdisciplinary work (Velthuis & van Harmelen, 2021). Therefore, it is important to provide students with an insight into what interdisciplinary collaboration entails, why it is important to learn, and to teach students interdisciplinary skills like: (1) setting a common goal; (2) understand and value different relevant disciplinary understandings; (3) integrating relevant insights; and (4) maintaining critical towards different (and one's own) disciplines (Boix-Mansilla et al., a.o., 2010, 2016). Several toolboxes have already been developed with various examples of learning activities/tools that teachers and students can use to support interdisciplinary collaboration (e.g. Edelbroek et al., 2014 Educational Consultancy & Professional Development, 2021 & The Twente Toolbox, 2024). Despite all these tools, it appears to be difficult for teachers to support learning in interdisciplinary teams (Visscher-Voerman & van Harmelen, 2019). Therefore, the research question in this study focuses particularly on the teacher. Based on what reasons do teachers choose learning activities to enhance interdisciplinary collaboration in interdisciplinary teams? How should interdisciplinary learning activities be designed so that they suit teachers' needs? And how do they experience the implementation of the learning activity and has it contributed to interdisciplinary cooperation of students?

For this research, we selected activities from various toolboxes that meet the following criteria: the learning activity (1) can be used as a mean to enhance collaboration while working on a wicked problem within different modules, (2) supports the learning of an interdisciplinary skill and (3) encourages dialogue between students. The research is conducted with teachers within modules in various years of study (year 2, 3 and 4) in which students work in interdisciplinary teams on wicked problems.

The selection and implementation of learning activities and the redesign so that the learning activities suits the needs of teachers within their modules will take place from now until the summer 2024. The execution of the modules with the interdisciplinary learning activities will take place from February 2024 till December 2024.

The first experiences show that teachers have a strong need to strengthen their interdisciplinary teaching. In particular, learning activities to get to know each other's discipline better are chosen, such as knowledge-based concept mapping task (The Twente Toolbox, 2024) or spending a day with students from another discipline. Knowledge-based concept mapping asks students (individually or in the group) to visually represent their existing knowledge relevant to the wicked problem. This can help students make connections between disciplines and identify contradictions. The poster will share results about teacher needs in using learning activities in interdisciplinary teams and first experiences will be shared of performing the learning activities and whether it actually resulted in students getting to know each other’s discipline better and integrating knowledge from different disciplines. In addition, we expect to have a better view on how we will further develop the learning activity so that teachers and students will use it properly.

Initiated in 2018, the Sustainability Methods Wiki (sustainabilitymethods.org) at Leuphana Center of Methods offers a broad overview of the multiverse of inter- and transdisciplinary methods. It is written and curated by an extensive team with diverse disciplinary backgrounds and experience ranging from students to professors. The ambition of the wiki is to foster a postdisciplinary agenda, i.e. contributing to a radical yet constructive change to the current scientific agenda in recognizing the normativity of scientific methods. Within the growing plurality of methodological toolboxes, there is a need to systematically discuss the “better” or “worse” of certain methods within a given context and to make sense of the variety of terms and concepts used differently and in overlap creating a messy discourse. With the Sustainability Methods Wiki, we present an integrative, diverse, reflexive, and interactively accessible platform to support a new generation of scientists that can navigate the plurality of methods representing inter- and transdisciplinary approaches. Entries in the wiki bridge practical advice for the empirical use of specific methods and critical perspectives on the philosophy of science. Addressing linguistic challenges between disciplines in the wiki, we set different contexts of empirical research in relation to each other and discuss the drawbacks, challenges, and benefits of the diverse methodological approaches and their potential combinations. Structured by design criteria for methods and defined methods competencies, the wiki provides a platform for students, researchers, and teachers to systematically reflect on learning, applying, and teaching methods beyond the boundaries of disciplines and academia.

The poster presents an overview of the wiki landscapes of methods and introduces the underlying systematizing logic as well as access points for using the wiki’s potential.

To move towards a sustainable society, significant transitions are needed within industry, ranging from greening energy consumption to using more sustainable raw materials and products. The multi-faceted nature of this industry transition poses complex questions of justice regarding aspects such as intergenerational justice, decision-making procedures and the redistribution of profits. Despite a flourishing scholarship on just transitions, these questions have so far not been precisely investigated in the context of the industry. As policymakers are currently developing new policy instruments to accelerate the sustainable industry transition, now is the time to uncover relevant justice implications. Instead of only addressing justice issues once they have materialized, it is necessary to find ways in which justice implications can be identified to inform and guide policies beforehand.

I propose that the creation of a transdisciplinary dialogue can function as a tool to do so. Dialogues allow for knowledge co-production and can foster collaboration in a participatory and inclusive way. The Sustainable Industry Lab, a transdisciplinary initiative that brings together different stakeholders to unlock and synthesize knowledge, is thus organizing a dialogue on the justice implications of the sustainable industry transition. The dialogue will be held between the Dutch government, industry and societal as well as environmental organizations. As the sustainable industry transition presents a wicked problem, which means that its inherent complexity and uncertainties do not allow for clear-cut solutions, the main goal of the dialogue is identifying and structuring justice-related issues, rather than solving them. Accordingly, the dialogue utilizes problem structuring methods, which are participatory modelling approaches for addressing complex problems that entail multiple actors who may have conflicting interests. My research focuses on (i) how transdisciplinary dialogues should be organized to ensure fruitful collaboration and (ii) how the outcomes and impacts of this dialogue can be evaluated and utilized. Therefore, it aligns with the conference stream ‘enhancing the foundations of inter- and transdisciplinary’ and addresses the topic ‘harnessing experience and knowledge gained from inter- and transdisciplinary projects and programs’.

The first round of the dialogue will be held from March-September 2024. Afterwards, further dialogue sessions will be held on more specific topics that have emerged out of the first round. The ITD Conference would be a great opportunity to present the insights and results of the first round of the dialogue and discuss how these insights can be evaluated and used for the next round of dialogue sessions.

The enduring impacts of colonialism and slavery have become prominent themes across various academic fields, prompting the need for interdisciplinary efforts. As society grapples with contentious monuments and the restitution of colonial artefacts, the discipline of heritage studies has assumed a crucial role in confronting these issues and fostering novel collaborations across disciplinary boundaries and global divides. By drawing upon methodologies and perspectives from anthropology, cultural history, and art history, heritage studies have devised strategies and guidelines for addressing colonial heritage through collaborative and inclusive approaches. Acquiring the requisite skills and expertise necessitates hands-on experience and experimentation, posing challenges for integrating such practices into the current educational frameworks of heritage studies and cultural history.

Using an international community-engaged educational (iCEL) framework, we formulated a teaching format for teaching decolonial heritage practices and fostering collaborative skills among students. Through collaboration with a heritage partner in the Global South (Terramar Museum), we devised a museum-based project centred on exhibition design and co-curation. The project's focal point was navigating the complexities of colonial heritage, requiring students to negotiate their roles as trained experts in heritage and museum studies while acknowledging their position within the context of colonial power.

Through seminars, pressure-cooker sessions, and fieldwork conducted in collaboration with our partner, we developed an educational framework with several key objectives:

a) Training students to acquire intercultural reflexive and collaborative skills;

b) Assisting lecturers in establishing and learning from interconnected networks with partners in the Global South;

c) Integrating critical systems thinking and visions of societal transformation within the academic program;

d) Supporting the development of resilient cultural heritage institutions in the Global South.

Our model originates from participatory involvement in a collaborative project involving students and lecturers from Utrecht University, the Terramar Museum in Bonaire, and Bonairean formerly enslaved communities. Operating within the framework of a Cultural History and Heritage Master’s programme at Utrecht University, we collectively crafted a teaching model for decolonial heritage practices in an intercultural setting, utilizing CEL as both a method and a tool. Through the integration of diverse bodies of knowledge—ranging from academic to societal, and from personal to professional—all project participants adopted fluid identities as both educators and learners. Additionally, they encountered intersectional challenges, leading to instances of 'misunderstandings and confusion' (Cf. Agar), yet also yielding 'rich moments' of cultural immersion and profoundly meaningful learning experiences (Cf. Agar, Deardorff, Onosu).

By exploring and analysing this iCEL project, we aim to present an inspiring and illuminating example of a transdisciplinary model for education in the field of heritage studies. We hope that this project, in which confrontational sensitive topics were at the centre of the academic context, and this educational format, in which cross-cultural co-creative collaborations were at the heart, can function as an educational design of change.

Key readings

Agar, M. (1994). Language shock. Understanding the culture of conversation. New York: HarperCollins.

Deardorff, D.K. (2006). Identification and assessment of intercultural competence as a student outcome of internationalization. Journal of studies in international education, 10(3), 241-266.

Onosu, O.G. (2020). Cultural immersion: a trigger for transformative learning. Social Sciences, 9(20), doi:10.3390/socsci9020020

We all know the nature of card games from our individual experiences: They strengthen the sense of community, the ability to communicate, concentration and, depending on the card game, increase vocabulary or specific knowledge. Why not using these positive characteristics to foster the integration of different stocks of knowledge – from specialist knowledge and everyday experiential knowledge to scientific knowledge? Knowledge integration poses to be the core of transdisciplinary research. At the same time, the step of knowledge integration is a major challenge: How can we create new knowledge on complex societal challenges that goes beyond the addition of existing knowledge and that, in particular, leads to action?

The card game was a tool that we developed for a complex process in which scientific and non-scientific actors from the field of urban health came together to jointly define challenges of urban health in the Berlin living space and to explore research topics in an early, initiating stage of transdisciplinary research. The poster outlines the origins of the card game as documentation of a previous process stage. In addition, the poster shows the exact instructions for the game, highlighting the individual phases of the game reflecting different stages of knowledge integration: from individual understanding, through shared explanations and shared understanding, to the co-production of new knowledge and the development of research ideas.

We have had very positive experiences with the use of the game - and received very encouraging feedback from both academics and practitioners. The card game was able to make different professional and disciplinary languages and styles of thinking visible as a basis to create a common understanding. Above all, the card game addressed the cognitive level in particular in order to move beyond habitual ways of working and to promote creativity.

While literature exists on challenges facing transdisciplinary research practices (Lang et al., 2012; Scholz & Steiner, 2015), group dynamics is rarely mentioned as a significant factor for the outcome and success of transdisciplinary processes. Group dynamics is a complex social phenomenon described as the interpersonal relationships that emerge in small groups of people engaging in a common activity (Merlin et al., 2020). Research shows that group dynamics has a clear impact on level of creativity and overall group performance in collaborative settings (Chung & Meenely, 2012; Dörnyei & Malderez, 1997). Thus, this study aims to explore the interrelation between group dynamics and quality of outcome in transdisciplinary processes, as well as how group dynamics can be influenced to improve problem-solving for sustainability.

Through ethnographic field research, this study explored the working processes and outcomes of five student groups applying the so-called modular participatory backcasting (mPB) framework (Pereverza et al., 2019) to an urban sustainability challenge within a transdisciplinary-oriented university course at KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden. By learning from the ongoing work of Stockholm municipality, students were to formulate a vision, creative solutions and a pathway for achieving a sustainable city center by 2050. Qualitative data about the students’ group dynamics, performance, and creativity was collected through observations, interviews, surveys, and workshops. For the evaluation of group dynamics, a theoretical framework was constructed, involving factors such as group composition, engagement, leadership, and communication, which were observed using qualitative indicators. The theoretical framework was based on literature on group dynamics related to performance and creativity. Evaluation of group performance and creativity was done through the course teacher's judgment based on grading criteria.

The results indicate that group dynamics are in fact related to the creativity and performance of transdisciplinary student groups. For example, groups displaying lower engagement, unsupportive communication and negative-dominant behavior were associated with poorer task outcomes, while groups applying shared leadership, intermember positive reinforcement and high engagement performed higher. Further, the study concludes that while it is hard for individual group members to fundamentally change the group dynamics of a group, increased awareness about the significance of group dynamics could help groups foster group dynamics that are favorable to problem-solving.

Naturally, the fact that the study takes place in an educational setting limits the transferability to real-life transdisciplinary research processes. However, the particular focus on group dynamics and the theoretical framework proposed in this study can be of interest for deepening the insights into what factors contribute to successful transdisciplinary collaborations.

Chung & Meenely (2012), ‘Profiling Group Dynamics Within Business and Design Student Teams: Relationships Among Personality Traits, Problem-Solving Styles, and Creative Performance’, Journal of Interior Design, 37(3), pp. 23–45

Dörnyei & Malderez (1997), ‘Group dynamics and foreign language teaching’, System, 25(1), pp. 65-81

Lang et al. (2012), ‘Transdisciplinary research in sustainability science: practice, principles, and challenges’, Sustainability Science, 7, pp. 25-43

Merlin et al. (2020), 'Elements of group dynamics that influence learning in small groups in undergraduate students: A scoping review', Nurse Education Today, 87, pp.104362

Pereverza et al. (2019), 'Modular participatory backcasting: A unifying framework for strategic planning in the heating sector', Energy Policy, 124, pp.123–134

Scholz & Steiner (2015), ‘The real type and ideal type of transdisciplinary processes: part II—what constraints and obstacles do we meet in practice?’, Sustainability Science, 10, pp. 653–671

User experience (UX) designers familiar with Jakob’s Law understand that users tend to value the familiar over innovations, even when those innovations are useful, beneficial, and necessary. In response to the expected challenge of familiarity bias, UX designers have often implemented what they call progressive disclosure design. For example, advanced features in software may sometimes be hidden from beginning users, only to be revealed as users gain more expertise. Similarly, video games are often designed in much the same way: gamers advance through levels such that skills are learned and acquired as the game progresses. Otherwise, beginners may initially feel overwhelmed with too much information and may not adopt the software or continue playing the game.

When practically realizing theoretical aspirations, inter- and transdisciplinary work can encounter something similar to familiarity bias. If researchers have been trained in a particular discipline, then they may not realize that they prefer to apply discipline-specific methods to problems for which those methods may not be (or may no longer be) best-suited. Put differently, even though more useful methods may exist, researchers might gravitate toward the disciplinary comfort of the already known. A strength of inter- and transdisciplinary work, then, is to seek to offer useful, beneficial, and necessary innovations. As such, could something like progressive disclosure design be used in inter- and transdisciplinarity? If so, can this principle be applied when teaching and learning methods and methodologies in higher education, as well?

Here, there seems to exist a classic chicken and egg challenge. When training new researchers, an efficient solution is to make new researchers very saliently aware that methods and methodologies are problem-specific, and that particular tools are designed to accomplish particular aims. However, if not trained under these inter- and transdisciplinary approaches to curricula, the problem is that the designers of inter- and transdisciplinary curricula will have their own familiarity biases to overcome, as many of us have advanced degrees in very narrow disciplinary content areas. So if an overarching goal of higher education is to move toward inter- and transdisciplinary work in this historical present and what is yet to come—and we know that Jakob’s Law still applies—then buy-in will most likely be accomplished successfully through something like progressive disclosure design alongside change management and change leadership approaches.

This presentation will outline several sequential actions toward achieving inter- and transdisciplinarity in higher education, including inviting all of the interested parties to create a shared and collaborative vision; involve task-oriented (versus discipline-oriented) workgroups; design an integration of the workgroups; implement the design; and then evaluate the design. This sequence of actions, too, draws on something very close to UX design with modifications: program evaluation. In other words, to overcome the challenges of implementing inter- and transdisciplinarity, we should always already be inter- and transdisciplinary ourselves, drawing on anything we know to be useful, beneficial, and necessary along the way.

Since the Ottawa Charter (World Health Organization, 1986) a core argument for health promotion action is the need for collaborative efforts in order to change existing social structures which are harmful for population health (Potvin & Jourdan, 2022). Despite the importance of structural change as key health promotion strategy, however, there is little consensus about what structural change is. Moreover, there is a lack of theory-driven approaches on how to implement it. To our understanding, such approaches should be able to explain why to do what and when in order to achieve structural changes. Therefore, this presentation introduces a cooperative planning approach as an innovative practice of community action that functions as a driving force for changes in both everyday life practice (e.g. creating healthy environments) and political practice (e.g. developing healthy public policies) (Rütten et al. 2023). The aim is to show how a “cooperative planning”-approach works as a mechanism of structural change.

We apply a theory-based conceptual model that covers fundamental dimensions of health promotion action and position cooperative planning as a driving force within the model. Data from a case study in the field of community-based health promotion with a focus on people in difficult life situations are used to explain how health-promoting structural change can be achieved through this collaborative intervention approach.

Cooperative planning takes into account the intervention context and the participation of relevant stakeholders as “inputs”. The “process” itself is participatory, collaborative and moderated towards concrete actions. The "outputs" of cooperative planning are various measures implemented to improve both everyday life practice (e.g. through infrastructure development) and political practice (e.g. healthy public policies). We distinguish the effects of cooperative planning on individuals and populations (e.g. enabling of participating stakeholders) as "outcomes" from the structural effects that we call "impact". The latter refers to changes in rules and resources that underlie social practice. For example, those “structural changes” are decipherable from the changed patterns of behavior and social interaction that different stakeholders employ as new or modified routines in their everyday life practice.

The cooperative planning approach has been proven an effective mechanism of structural change in certain case studies. Future research and application should further test and develop this approach on a broader basis and in new application areas.

References

World Health Organization (1986). Ottawa charter of health promotion. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/teams/health-promotion/enhanced-wellbeing/first-global-conference

Potvin, L., & Jourdan, D. (Eds.). (2022). Global Handbook of Health Promotion Research, Vol. 1: Mapping Health Promotion Research (1st ed. 2022). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-97212-7

Rütten, A., Semrau, J. & Wolff, A. R. (2023). Entwicklung gesundheitsförderlicher Strukturen durch kooperative Planung. Prävention und Gesundheitsförderung. Onlinepublikation. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11553-023-01045-4

Navigating a world that constantly bombards us with images of individualistic practices, fragmented thinking, exclusion, dominant perspectives, separation, and polarization will affect how view the world, affect our aptitude for connecting, and even weaken our ability for integration. Clearly, this may happen without being fully aware of it. There is a great deal of literature stating how easy is to end up aligning with individualistic practices, exclusion, separation, and the imposing of dominant perspectives. As a matter of fact, individualism has been categorized as a global megatrend and polarization as tendency that is spreading globally.

As someone who has been able to see and experience the beauty of differences, I have been exploring creative ways to expose the people with whom I relate in my academic, professional, ministerial, and personal life to the beauty of integrating, connecting, including, etc., i.e., the beauty of interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity.

In this presentation I will share the creative strategies and ways that I have been developing and using to expose and inspire the students of our online Doctoral Program in Interdisciplinary Leadership to interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary images/practices/thinking. Because of the nature of online programs, it becomes a bit more challenging to instill interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity in students. Thus, one has to be rather intentional about exposing them and inspire them to see the beauty and the need for interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity. In this presentation I will share my efforts to be intentional about living out interdisciplinarity and transdisciplinarity.

Climate change presents severe challenges to the German forestry sector, impacting ecosystems, biodiversity, and overall forest vitality. Efforts are underway to elevate public awareness and collaboration to effectively respond to climate change impacts. Our research adopts a comprehensive interdisciplinary approach, integrating transdisciplinary processes and co-creation, to understand stakeholder needs and develop climate service products. Focusing on climate extremes such as drought, heat, strong wind/storm, and heavy rain, we investigate diverse perceptions among authorities, scientists, and forest users. Drawing insights from the ClimXtreme project (cf. Conference talks), we engaged in a collaborative case study with stakeholders from the city forest Karlsruhe. The transdisciplinary research aims to address specific climate information needs, inform society about climate change impacts and adaptation strategies, and facilitate communication with various forest users.

The resulting first climate service product – an easy understandable and scientifically sound informative flyer of eight pages - covers a range of topics from climate scenarios to specialized climate indices for forestry as well as practical adaptation measures initiated by the city forestry office of Karlsruhe. To support the usability and enhance the societal and scientific impacts based on our case-study, a multi-level approach has been chosen. Thus, in addition to the published flyer, all data and methods used are comprehensively explained and additional indices, analyses, methods, data, and literature will be made freely accessible online.

The outcome of our efforts emphasizes the important role of co-creation to enhance inter- and transdisciplinary capacities for climate change adaptation in a city forest. By fostering dialogues with key stakeholders and co-creating practice-specific climate information, particularly tailored for a city forestry office in southwestern Germany, our efforts inform society about climate change impacts and adaptation strategies and facilitate communication with diverse forest users (e.g. local forest visitors or hunters). This integrated approach ensures a meaningful contribution to climate resilience in the German forestry sector and beyond.