TY - JOUR

T1 - Head in the clouds, feet on the ground

T2 - how transdisciplinary learning can foster transformative change - insights from a summer school

AU - Atienza Casas, Sara

AU - Calicis, Camille

AU - Candiago, Sebastian

AU - Dendoncker, Nicolas

AU - Desair, Jomme

AU - Fickel, Thomas

AU - Finne, Eirik Aasmo

AU - Frison, Christine

AU - Haensel, Maria

AU - Hinsch, Malte

AU - Kulfan, Tyler

AU - Kumagai, Joy A.

AU - Mialyk, Oleksandr

AU - Nawrath, Maximilian

AU - Nevzati, Fiona

AU - Washbourne, Carla

AU - Wübbelmann, Thea

N1 - Funding Information: Open Access funding enabled and organized by Projekt DEAL. This work was supported by the Alternet Mobility Fund, which provided funding for a self-organized winter school to facilitate work on this paper.

PY - 2023/9

Y1 - 2023/9

N2 - There is a pressing need for transformative change, with a vision of long-term human well-being within planetary boundaries. The lack of progress—despite increasing awareness and action—illustrates how challenging it is to foster change in our complex global society. Education and learning are needed to enable change. Transdisciplinary learning, which meaningfully integrates diverse knowledge and perspectives, contributes to developing an integrative understanding—a necessity for tackling complex challenges. We explore how transdisciplinary learning for early-career researchers can foster transformative change and lead to increased biodiversity conservation. This paper focuses on a case study of the authors’ shared experiences during the 2021 Alternet Summer School, which focused on transformative change for biodiversity conservation and human well-being. In this introspective research, we gained insights through an online survey for participants and organizers of the summer school (n = 27). Using qualitative content analysis, we identify seven crucial elements of transdisciplinary learning which can lead to transformative change on (a) a personal level, as the learning process shifts values and helps researchers identify their roles; (b) a research level, by rethinking science and providing tools for transdisciplinary approaches, and (c) a societal level, by moving from the individual to the collective and constructing a shared vision for a sustainable future. Participants highlighted how changes on all these levels could benefit biodiversity conservation. These insights point to the benefit of transdisciplinary learning opportunities that empower young researchers to take up their part in fostering transformative change.

AB - There is a pressing need for transformative change, with a vision of long-term human well-being within planetary boundaries. The lack of progress—despite increasing awareness and action—illustrates how challenging it is to foster change in our complex global society. Education and learning are needed to enable change. Transdisciplinary learning, which meaningfully integrates diverse knowledge and perspectives, contributes to developing an integrative understanding—a necessity for tackling complex challenges. We explore how transdisciplinary learning for early-career researchers can foster transformative change and lead to increased biodiversity conservation. This paper focuses on a case study of the authors’ shared experiences during the 2021 Alternet Summer School, which focused on transformative change for biodiversity conservation and human well-being. In this introspective research, we gained insights through an online survey for participants and organizers of the summer school (n = 27). Using qualitative content analysis, we identify seven crucial elements of transdisciplinary learning which can lead to transformative change on (a) a personal level, as the learning process shifts values and helps researchers identify their roles; (b) a research level, by rethinking science and providing tools for transdisciplinary approaches, and (c) a societal level, by moving from the individual to the collective and constructing a shared vision for a sustainable future. Participants highlighted how changes on all these levels could benefit biodiversity conservation. These insights point to the benefit of transdisciplinary learning opportunities that empower young researchers to take up their part in fostering transformative change.

KW - Biodiversity protection

KW - Education for sustainable development

KW - Lifelong learning

KW - Qualitative research

KW - Self-reflexivity

KW - Transdisciplinary education

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85159723357&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1007/s10531-023-02603-0

DO - 10.1007/s10531-023-02603-0

M3 - Article

AN - SCOPUS:85159723357

VL - 32

SP - 3533

EP - 3568

JO - Biodiversity and conservation

JF - Biodiversity and conservation

SN - 0960-3115

IS - 11

ER -