Example 1
Lunch-bag talk (1 hour) – Sustainability transformations: What roles can scientists play? (in German)
Context
A draft version of the Talk was tested with scientific staff employed at the Swiss Academies of Sciences in September 2023.
Target audience
Such a talk is suitable for scientists who have a general interest in sustainability transformations (there is no need for them to be involved personally in research on sustainability transformations), and for professionals working with evidence from science and collaborating with scientists.
Workshop teaser
Is the role of scientists in sustainability transformations clear? Does research mainly provide analysis and evidence, or should researchers also engage in transformation processes – putting their conceptual and methodological skills at the service of those who strive for change? We will first provide some concrete examples of Swiss change-makers – people who strive for societal transformation towards sustainability. Then we’ll explore the spectrum of roles people expect scientists to play and the roles that scientists themselves perceive they are playing. We invite you to join the discussion, to extend your vocabulary with a view to achieving role clarity, and to improve your work as a scientist, based on a strengthened awareness of role variety.
Outline
| Minutes | Content | Material |
|---|---|---|
| 5’ | Introduction: organizer presents her/himself, why s/he invited the participants, quick presentation round | |
| 15’ | Input on Sustainability Transformations: What roles can scientists play? | Powerpoint presentation (in German) |
| 25’ | Open discussion If needed, briefly highlight why we think reflection on the spectrum of roles is important and ask participants to what extent they agree | |
| 10’ | Debrief: Discuss what you’ve learned from this experience and in what contexts you would like to do a similar reflection session. | Questions for debriefing, Step 3 |
| 5’ | Concluding remarks & sharing of links to resources | Website and reflection guide |
Facilitation tips
- Adapt the title and first slide of the presentation so that it suits your specific audience.
- In the test run, the presentation induced discussions at several levels, from comparing disciplines to questions on where to draw the boundary between the scientific and the political system. This can be read as a sign that in a randomly gathered group, we do not have a joint vocabulary to easily channel and structure the discussion on roles. Participants may refer to specific concepts to structure the discussion, which are then challenged by others. For example, some find the distinction between applied research vs. basic research helpful, others would argue that there is (use-inspired basic) research inspiring both. Or: some might argue that the role of science is legitimated by the notion of truth whereas politics is legitimated by majorities/votes; whereas others would challenge the notion of truth and argue that there is no single objective truth.
> Collect these concepts to make it visible that there are different strategies to develop a vocabulary to talk about roles of scientists. - Be prepared for participants discovering that they have more questions at the end of the session than they started with! You may link this experience/finding to the goal of the presentation, which is to induce reflection.
- Think of how you will close the session. We propose that you reserve a time slot to talk about some of the participants’ main take aways (debrief).
- If participants do not actively engage in the discussion, you can use the backup slide (slide 17) to ask participants to what extent they agree with certain aspects that influence specific roles performed by scientists.