Articles
TRANSDISCIPLINARY KNOWLEDGE TRANSFER FOR SUSTAINABLE HORTICULTURE – A REGIONAL APPROACH FROM GERMANY
Article number
920_13
Pages
103 – 111
Language
English
Abstract
Knowledge and technology transfer is traditionally considered as the two-sided relation between science and practice.
Newer approaches consider it more broadly as expert-laymen communication in the sense of transdisciplinarity.
While inter- or transdisciplinary research approaches are more and more common, development of an effective cross-disciplinary transfer of knowledge and technologies in the field of landscape use is still missing.
The horticultural industry is renowned as an innovative but also intensive form of landscape use.
The region Berlin-Brandenburg is charac¬terised by a long horticultural tradition and high diversity of research institutes and universities aiming at the field of landscape use.
With the transition of the former east the organisational structure and scope of these research institutes was reorganised, as were other parts of the system such as small and medium-sized companies in the land use sector have also undergone transition processes.
As a result, new and transformed networks for knowledge and technology transfer have evolved.
The research question of this paper is twofold: 1) how is knowledge and technology transfer embedded in the regional system of research and innovation and how is it organised for horticultural companies? and 2) how can the transfer be improved and adapted to user needs and organisational prerequisites of the horticulture industry in the region? These questions are exemplified on the basis of two cases: i) development of a biological plant protection method and ii) an emission free aquaponic system for fish and plant production.
Both solutions were developed in institutes which originally did not belong to the traditional horticultural innovation system and therefore required a trans¬discplinary transfer approach.
This paper is based on semi-structured interviews and a series of transdisciplinary transfer workshops and presents the mid-term results for analysis of state of the art of knowledge and technology transfer in Berlin-Branden¬burg and for transdisciplinary transfer development.
Newer approaches consider it more broadly as expert-laymen communication in the sense of transdisciplinarity.
While inter- or transdisciplinary research approaches are more and more common, development of an effective cross-disciplinary transfer of knowledge and technologies in the field of landscape use is still missing.
The horticultural industry is renowned as an innovative but also intensive form of landscape use.
The region Berlin-Brandenburg is charac¬terised by a long horticultural tradition and high diversity of research institutes and universities aiming at the field of landscape use.
With the transition of the former east the organisational structure and scope of these research institutes was reorganised, as were other parts of the system such as small and medium-sized companies in the land use sector have also undergone transition processes.
As a result, new and transformed networks for knowledge and technology transfer have evolved.
The research question of this paper is twofold: 1) how is knowledge and technology transfer embedded in the regional system of research and innovation and how is it organised for horticultural companies? and 2) how can the transfer be improved and adapted to user needs and organisational prerequisites of the horticulture industry in the region? These questions are exemplified on the basis of two cases: i) development of a biological plant protection method and ii) an emission free aquaponic system for fish and plant production.
Both solutions were developed in institutes which originally did not belong to the traditional horticultural innovation system and therefore required a trans¬discplinary transfer approach.
This paper is based on semi-structured interviews and a series of transdisciplinary transfer workshops and presents the mid-term results for analysis of state of the art of knowledge and technology transfer in Berlin-Branden¬burg and for transdisciplinary transfer development.
Authors
B. König, A. Kuntosch , W. Bokelmann, K. Diehl
Keywords
innovation system, user needs, participatory innovation process
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