Pathways to participatory research and knowledge co-production: notes from the ‘field’

Transformative action towards a more sustainable future depends upon a firm knowledge base that is built collaboratively by researchers and communities together. There are several ways to involve people in knowledge creation, depending on how deep the involvement should be – from simple one-way information-gathering to full participatory research co-creation where stakeholders themselves are involved in developing the research questions. We present as a case study two research projects from the recently established Nordhordland Biosphere Area which each contained several elements of varying degrees of public and stakeholder participation. Biosphere Areas are meant as testbeds for sustainable development and as such are perfect for testing and studying pathways to knowledge co-production. The workshop will begin by describing how we involved different groups; how effective the process was and the challenges we had to overcome. We will invite workshop participants to give us feedback on our choices but equally this workshop will be an effective introduction for those who are new to involving a wider community in knowledge co-creation. Finally, we will challenge all participants to reflect on their own research approaches and develop a roadmap towards a more participatory model in future research and collaboration.