Effective communication is reciprocal. It’s not just about getting your message across; it requires a back-and-forth between parties, where shared understanding and mutual commitments develop as both parties work towards a common goal. That kind of two-way communication is essential not just when research is ready to be shared, but from the very beginning of the research process.
At COMPASS, we believe communication and collaboration are not just tools for dissemination of research after it is published, but are key parts of improving how research is designed, conducted, and applied to better serve society. When communication and collaboration are prioritized from the start, research becomes more grounded, more relevant, and ultimately, more impactful.
One approach for this is transdisciplinary research (TDR), also known as use-inspired research or co-production. TDR integrates academic knowledge with community perspectives, resulting in research that is both responsive to human needs and efficient in terms of how quickly it can be applied. Unlike interdisciplinary research, which focuses on collaboration across academic fields, TDR has an explicit focus on ensuring that non-academic perspectives are brought into every stage of the research process — from experimental design to knowledge production and interpretation to research application. Communication and collaboration are the core.
In July, I was invited to a Train the Trainers workshop on transdisciplinary research led by Drs. Margaret Krebs and Susi Moser, funded by the Transdisciplinary Training Collaboratory National Science Foundation Foundation grant. I jumped at the opportunity to not only gain a few more facilitation and training skills, but also to better understand how COMPASS can support researchers and partners interested in TDR and help them integrate cross-boundary communication into the full cycle of their research.
Over the course of an intensive week-long workshop, I joined approximately fifteen other trainers and academics working at the nexus of community and academic science. Through case studies and group work focused on training design and implementation, we gained a more thorough understanding of the history of TDR and a coherent knowledge of how to facilitate its implementation.
As a non-academic, it was a novel setting for me to find myself in, but I quickly found my footing because the work we do at COMPASS is grounded in many of the same values of transdisciplinary research: boundary-spanning, relationship-building, and co-creation. We train and support scientists to communicate not just with clarity, but with empathy and openness to build shared understanding with others outside science, including policymakers, communities, and journalists. That’s exactly what TDR calls for.
TDR requires close, ongoing collaboration and reciprocity. It requires open dialogue to refine processes, recalibrate goals, and put novel approaches into practice. Strategic, inclusive communication from the outset, builds the trust and understanding needed for people with different perspectives to work together meaningfully. When communication flows both ways, co-produced knowledge can be more effectively and readily applied for real-world change.
When communication is treated as the last step, it’s often harder to build the trust and relationships that support meaningful, applied research. That’s why we believe communication is not only a tool for sharing science, but a way of shaping it—helping to determine what questions get asked, whose knowledge is included, and how results are understood and used.
Co-production requires shared investment in both the process and outcomes. COMPASS’s values-based approach to communication positions us to help with the development and implementation of TDR projects at all stages, from development, to research, to implementation and application. In our work across fields from wildfire, to marine carbon dioxide removal, to blue food and beyond, transdisciplinarity is always at play—even if the term isn’t always used.
In our vision for change, science isn’t just conducted for society—it’s created with society. Because that’s what makes it effective.
