934303 Scientific communication and impacts

Type
Lecture and seminar
Semester hours
2
Lecturer (assistant)
Melcher, Andreas , Bauer, Andreas , Lemke, Stefanie
Organisation
Offered in
Sommersemester 2025
Languages of instruction
Englisch
Content

This course, formerly Applied Development Research, is for students with an international development cooperation and SDGs interest in theory and practice. It is also intended for bachelor, master and doctoral students who return from the field and wonder how research findings support SDGs regarding food sovereignty, poverty reduction, climate impact and international cooperation. It is aimed at students who desire to cross disciplinary boundaries and makes scientific knowledge available to a broader audience, including the public. The course integrates research insights with the ongoing SDGs discourse, especially on “what makes your food sustainable”. Seminar units and term activities are geared towards the organisation and implementation of a public event at BOKU (in June) and the possibility of attending an international conference. The (cooking) event at BOKU is for sharing and discussing the latest research findings with a more comprehensive scientific and development-oriented audience, stakeholders, experts and politicians.
Course content:
• Preparation: Introduction of course goals, outline and participants; course modalities and grading; literature and essential reading;
• Exploration: selection of international case studies (Europe, Asia, Africa, Latin America); formulation of the event, interdisciplinary integration of research findings;
• Planning: self-organised preparation and planning of a public event at BOKU aimed at knowledge sharing and implementation, public relations, and invitation of stakeholders;
• BOKU (cooking) event: implementation of “What makes your food sustainable?” viewpoints and cross-disciplinary observations; derivation of conclusions on traditional food;
• Reflection: consolidating lessons learned during preparing and implementing local and national SDGs; discussing policy-relevant conclusions.
By the way, we have already won a BOKU sustainability award with this course …
Previous knowledge expected

National and international students who pursue a doctoral degree provided that their research is related to applied development issues; Master and bachelor students who are concerned about ‘research for development’ in Africa, Asia or Latin America.
Objective (expected results of study and acquired competences)

•Define multi-stakeholder knowledge-sharing UN SDGs (Agenda 2030) mechanisms in research for development.
• Describe how research findings support SDGs as #2no hunger, #1poverty reduction, #13climate action and #17partnership for the goals.
• Bridge disciplinary boundaries in research for development.
• Moderate interdisciplinary learning processes and discussion.
• Analyse needs for bridging disciplinary boundaries.
• Debate needs for interdisciplinary learning and international knowledge exchange
• Organise a small event as a multi-stakeholder knowledge-sharing mechanism.
• Relate disciplinary research findings with practice and insights to the local/national/global sustainable development discourse.
•Evaluate one’s ability to conceptualise, organise and moderate interdisciplinary learning and knowledge exchange.
You can find more details like the schedule or information about exams on the course-page in BOKUonline.