Interdisciplinary Knowledge Sharing

Most of my academic career was dedicated to working on interdisciplinary research projects. In the early days, I found there was little consideration for the inherent challenges of this type of work, particularly in managing power dynamics across the STEM/social science disciplinary divide. While there is a lot to be gained from interdisciplinary research, it can be a hard road to walk. It’s so refreshing to see interdisciplinary research gaining more prominence from funders, and critically, a more intentional approach to creating supportive spaces for people to communicate across disciplinary divides. Here are some key lessons I learnt along the (sometimes rocky) journey: 🔹Language Matters: Ensure everyone on the team understands the key terms used to articulate the research. For instance, on an antimicrobial resistance project I was working on, the term ‘driver’ meant different things to different academics. Spending time interrogating this helped the team to have a shared understanding of the objectives of the project. 🔹 Regular Knowledge-Sharing Sessions: Building an understanding of what each team member is doing to contribute to the project can help to foster a positive working environment. Facilitated sessions, where each team member presents their work, can help to foster a shared understanding. For me, learning about how microbiological sampling techniques worked was helpful when developing my own ethnographic study. 🔹 Foster a Culture of Mutual Respect: Post-docs and project administration staff, often the hardest working, sometimes see their contributions rendered invisible. I cannot stress enough how vital it is to create an environment where all disciplines and team members are valued equally. Avoid empty platitudes; good leadership comes with actively listening to each other and recognising that the project wouldn’t happen without every member of the team. 🔹 Utilise Facilitation Techniques: Don’t assume that a group will naturally come together; intentional facilitation, such as round-robin discussions, ensures everyone has a chance to contribute. This can also help to manage power dynamics and give voice to quieter members. 🔹Create a Psychologically safe space: When people do not feel safe to share their ideas, they will not take risks and experiment. Safe spaces for learning are essential; public criticism and shaming can deter people from sharing. Encourage team members to explore ideas outside their comfort zones in a way that is supportive. Creating safe spaces is the only way people will experiment together. Interdisciplinary research can indeed be a hard road to walk, but the journey is enriched with diverse perspectives and the potential for groundbreaking discoveries. It's about managing the complexities with care and ensuring every voice is heard and respected. Let's continue to push the boundaries of knowledge, together. #interdisciplinaryresearch #academicresearch #power #facilitation

Are We Speaking the Same Language? 💡 Insights on Interdisciplinary Science Communication A few years ago, I was asked to help scientists communicate with… each other. This surprised me a bit because I usually train researchers to engage with the public, high school students etc. But why help scientists communicate among themselves? The answer lies in the rise of interdisciplinary research: Today’s complex problems require knowledge from many different research fields, making effective communication within interdisciplinary research projects crucial. Despite limited literature on this, I took on the challenge and have since conducted numerous rewarding workshops. This autumn I moderated a workshop for Carlsberg Foundation Semper Ardens Accelerate grant holders and in later summer we had a productive ITEASc workshop in Middelfart, where PhD and master’s students developed and pitched interdisciplinary research projects. Here are some key takeaways for successful interdisciplinary research and scicomm from the workshops: 📣 Have a clear aim: Well-motivated research questions are essential. 📣 Start a dialogue, not a monologue: Listen to your audience (in this case: your peers). 📣 Be transparent: Share your uncertainties. 📣 Train in a safe environment: Positive feedback culture is important. 📣 Be playful and reflective - but hold on to your core scientific skills and projects. 📣 Have patience: Developing a common language takes time. As we learned from ITEASc keynote speaker Andreas Roepstorff, interdisciplinary work might even slow down publication rates. But we need better papers, not more papers. We need to listen more and talk/write less! So… how do we train this in a workshop? 1) We start with fun and safe activities to spark conversation. It might look chaotic in photos, but it’s well thought out :-) 2) We aim for clear end products, like poster presentations. 3) Everyone literally writes down their core scientific skills on a piece of paper and presents it to the others. Three trivial points? Yes, perhaps. But highly efficient! AND it’s fun. What more could you ask for? Here what participants said when evaluating the workshops: “The workshop was really enlightening. It provided a toolbox that I will for sure use in the future to establish collaborations and submit multidisciplinary proposals with colleagues with different backgrounds!” “It was a friendly and validating environment.” “The ice breaker gave me the feeling that this was well organised, this was something new, and this was going to be fun. It did wonders for networking throughout the day.” “Amazing ideas in 3h. I can only imagine what could we do with months!” “It significantly shaped me to a better science communicator :)”   What are your experiences – good or bad – with Interdisciplinary Science Communication?  

Launching a new series: #PhDHindsight 🎓 Every Thursday, I'll share what I wish I knew during my Economics PhD - lessons that transformed my journey from academia to tech leadership 🤔 First lesson? The most valuable conversations happen outside your department. I spent years laser-focused on economics, surrounded by fellow econ PhDs. Looking back, I missed countless opportunities to connect with computer science, sociology, and psychology students working on fascinating intersections of our fields ✨ Key insight: No field exists in isolation. The most innovative solutions often come from unexpected connections 💡 Today's tech challenges require understanding both economic incentives AND human behavior AND computational methods. 5 actionable steps I wish I had taken: 🔹 Schedule one coffee chat per week with a PhD from another department 🔹 Join cross-disciplinary reading groups or seminars monthly 🔹 Attend thesis defense presentations from related fields 🔹 Partner with students from other departments for university workshops/events 🔹 Create study groups for shared methodology courses (like advanced statistics) Bonus tip: Most universities have interdisciplinary research initiatives with funding. These are perfect opportunities to collaborate AND get paid for it. More PhD insights coming next Thursday! Hit follow + 🔔 to join the journey ✨ Current PhD students: How are you building relationships across disciplines? And experienced professionals: What interdisciplinary connections have proved most valuable in your career? 👇 More PhD insights coming next Thursday! Hit follow + 🔔 to join the journey ✨ #PhDHindsight

Interdisciplinary collaborations on campus should be more than a buzzword. Working on a college campus means being surrounded by brilliant minds from diverse fields. And having the opportunity to explore the synergies that exist between our areas of expertise. But turning ideas into action isn’t always easy. Why? 🛑 Silos: Faculty and departments operate in isolation, with little cross-communication. 🛑 Competing Priorities: Teaching loads, research demands, and budget constraints often take precedence. 🛑 Lack of Incentives: Many institutions still reward individual achievements over collaborative efforts. So, the big question is: How can college and department leaders break down these barriers and facilitate the great work of faculty?**👇 1️⃣ Host Interdisciplinary Networking Events: Faculty can connect through mixers, panels, or informal lunches. 2️⃣ Simplify Administrative Processes: Remove barriers like teaching load conflicts or grant-sharing complexities. 3️⃣ Provide Seed Grants: Fund small-scale interdisciplinary projects to jumpstart partnerships. 4️⃣ Recognize and Reward Collaboration: Include team efforts in performance reviews and tenure criteria. 5️⃣ Encourage Team-Teaching: Support faculty in designing and delivering cross-disciplinary courses. 6️⃣ Facilitate Cross-Departmental Communication: Share opportunities and success stories via newsletters or intranet platforms. 7️⃣ Develop Interdisciplinary Curriculum: Co-create programs blending diverse fields. 8️⃣ Host Cross-Disciplinary Speakers: Invite speakers who bridge fields to spark collaboration. 9️⃣ Create Cross-Unit Committees: Form committees with representatives from different departments to identify opportunities One thing is clear:  👉 Collaboration doesn’t happen on accident. It takes intentional leadership to break down barriers and build bridges between faculty. Collaboration isn’t without challenges, but neither is isolation. The question is how you choose to grow. ---------------------------- ♻️ Repost this to help other academic leaders.  💬 Follow for posts about higher education, leadership, & the arts. #LeadershipGoals #HigherEdSuccess #HigherEducation #departmentchairs #deans #programmanagers #academicleadership #LeadershipSkills #HigherEdLeadership #Collaboration #InterdisciplinaryResearch #FacultySupport #StudentSuccess #Innovation