The Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research, which is currently being founded, will consolidate the tdAcademy, its concerns and tasks. It addresses German speaking actors from science and society. With the professional society, a central space for networking and exchange as well as bundling of quality assurance activities will be created.
The goals of the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research are (translated sections from the statutes):
- Networking of transdisciplinary and participatory researchers – while the focus is on German-speaking regions there will also be offers in English;
- Support of young researchers as well as capacity building of a broad spectrum of researchers at different career stages and with different professional background;
- Professionalization, consolidation and establishment of transdisciplinary and participatory research and teaching in German-speaking countries, but also in international networks; this also includes the (further) development of quality criteria for research and teaching, the structuring and discussion of methods and formats, as well as the implementation of transdisciplinary teaching formats and their curricular embedding;
- Representation of the interests of the community of transdisciplinary and participatory researchers in Germany with the aim of providing impulses for research policy in the direction of politics, ministries, and funding institutions (including discussion of adequate criteria, among other things, for the evaluation of the achievements of transdisciplinary and participatory researchers).
Mission
We invite institutions and individuals from German-speaking countries who work in a transdisciplinary and participatory way or who want to become more active in these areas to become members. The society is open for members from science, teaching and practice.
Networking and the content-related discussions take place via conferences, workshops and publications, but also by means of educational offers on transdisciplinary and participatory research - also in cooperation with national and international associations that pursue similar goals. The society offers an overview of the diverse research expertise of its members as well as training offers. Science policy impulses are formulated from within the society.
Background
Despite numerous developments and advances in the field of transdisciplinary and participatory research, there is still a need for more intensive networking, enabling, consolidating and strengthening so that these research approaches and modes can fully develop their potential in terms of societal and scientific impact. The exchange with societal actors who are involved in transdisciplinary and participatory research is also gaining importance. As a consequence, key points for science policy are formulated in the paper "Strengthening transdisciplinary and transformative science for innovative and successful shaping of a sustainable future" (in German), which was prepared and signed by numerous actors in the German-speaking science landscape. In this paper, the foundation of a "Fachgesellschaft" (professional society) is also announced, among other things, as a point of contact for science and funding policy.
With the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research, this professional society has now become real. It was initiated by the project tdAcademy, funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, and its circle of supporting partners. The society will be established as an inclusive "space" that offers opportunities for a convergence of transdisciplinary and participatory research approaches, as they share many conceptual and theoretical features. In addition, with its German-language focus, it also sees itself as a hub for international exchange.
Furthermore, an open access article on the foundation of the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research (funded by SÖF) has recently been published in GAIA - Ecological Perspectives for Science and Society: Matthias Bergmann , Daniel J. Lang , Melanie Mbah , Martina Schäfer (2023). Networking, promoting, consolidating, strengthening – on the foundation of the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research (2023). GAIA 0/0 (2023), 1-3. Available online via: https://gaia.oekom.de/index.php/gaia/libraryFiles/downloadPublic/38
First activities
On March 9, 2023, the formal constitution meeting of the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research association (in formation) took place at the Technische Universität Berlin. In this context, the statutes were adopted and a founding board was elected, which will remain in office until the first general meeting in the fourth quarter of 2023. Prof. Dr. Daniel Lang (KIT/ITAS) and Dr. Susanne Hecker (Museum für Naturkunde) were elected as chairpersons of the board. Other board positions are held by Prof. Dr. Matthias Bergmann (ISOE), Anke Herold (Öko-Institut e.V.), Prof. Dr. Christine Ahrend (TU Berlin), Prof. Dr. Matthias Barth (HNE Eberswalde), Jun.-Prof. Dr. Andreas Bischof (TU Chemnitz), Dr. Steffi Ober (Plattform Forschungswende, NABU), Prof. Dr. Ortwin Renn (RIFS) as well as Prof. Dr. Flurina Schneider (ISOE).
Participants of the formal constitution meeting: from right to left - front row: Prof. Dr. Aletta Bonn (Helmholtz/UFZ), Dr. Steffi Ober (Plattform Forschungswende, NABU), Prof. Dr. Flurina Schneider (ISOE), Prof. Dr. Daniel Lang (KIT/ITAS), Dr. Gabriele Wendorf (ZTG, TU Berlin), Prof. Dr. Sophia Becker (TU Berlin); back row: Prof. Dr. Matthias Bergmann (ISOE), Anke Herold (Öko-Institut e.V.), Dr. Susanne Hecker (Museum für Naturkunde), Jun.-Prof. Dr. Andreas Bischof (TU Chemnitz), Dr. Josefa Kny (ZTG, TU Berlin), Prof. Dr. Matthias Barth (HNE Eberswalde), Dr. Audrey Podann (TU Berlin), Dr. Virginia Engels (TU Berlin).
A formal founding event will take place in Berlin on May 10, 2023. >> More information about this event (in German)
You could not attend? Read our short report on the course and contents of the founding event (in German)
If you are interested in becoming a member of the German-speaking professional society, you can join the information mailing list by sending an email to tdacademy@isoe.de. Please include your name and an email address. Your data will be forwarded to the executive secretary of the Society for Transdisciplinary and Participatory Research at the TU Berlin. You will be informed as soon as a formal membership application is possible.