Bridging the Divide

Professor Mihaela Kelemen (PI)

The main aim of this collaboration is to explore collectively the strengths and limitations of individual AHRC projects in addressing and bridging the gap between academic knowledge and community relevance.

Objectives

1. To exchange ideas across collaborating projects and their respective community partners about the type of knowledge that communities find useful. For example, is it the content/substance or the format/packaging of knowledge that matters most to them?
2. To network nationally and internationally and across sectors in order to popularise our Pragmatist approach to bridging the gap between theory and practice;
3. To synthesise our collective learning on the cross cutting issue of bridging the gap between academic rigour and community relevance by drawing on multiple disciplines and approaches as endorsed by the project team members;
4. To explore existing experiences of working with community partners with a view to sharing best practices in the UK and Japan and consider how national culture shapes such practices;
5. To disseminate our collective views in both academic and practitioner circles (for example via a website, relevant conferences and journals, teaching materials and installations).