Engaging communities in research and biotech water quality and treatment innovation processes
Partnering Institute:Biotechnology Innovation Centre, Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网
Project lead: Professor Janice Limson, SARChI Chair
About the project: Aligned with the RU SARChI Chair in Biotechnology Innovation & Engagement’s objectives, the White Paper on Science, Technology and Innovation (DST, 2019) and Science Engagement Strategy (DST, 2015) provide calls for a more scientifically-literate public, one that is “able to evaluate the products of science”, and engage in debate on science related matters of public interest. The DST seeks “a critical public that actively engages and participates in the national discourse of science and
technology to the benefit of society”. Furthermore, in terms of innovation, DST recognises the “limits of using isolated scientific approaches to tackle societal challenges” calling for transdisciplinary research processes that link societal problem solving with scientific knowledge production (DST, 2019). Following guidelines and trends towards theorising and researching approaches to Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI), the Chair’s contribution to the CoP will be to share insights into how such approaches benefit students, leading to curriculum innovations in Higher Education Science and Innovation Studies. Additionally, we will research the impact and perceived value of engagement activities on the participating communities, expanding previous and ongoing research to ascertain benefits gained by the public during their participation in a range of science engagement activities, and in research and innovation processes. The Chair’s research will contribute to policy outcomes through models that help to realise the DST’s Science and Innovation policy intentions, to science outcomes via public engagement with innovations in water biotechnology development, and practice outcomes via curriculum innovation models and approaches, the development of which will be strengthened via co-engagement with the Chairs in this CoP who share an interest in science engagement, public participation in science studies, and curriculum innovation.
The research programme of the SARChI Chair in Biotechnology Innovation & Engagement in the RU Biotechnology Innovation Centre (RUBIC) at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 aims to develop and demonstrate
1) the beneficial role that engaging the public in the scientific research and innovation process holds
for science students, 2) the role that engagement can play in helping shape research and in the development of products and processes that improve lives, and finally, 3) the use of innovation and products as a means to help enhance the public’s appreciation of science and the role that they can play in realising its potential. Core questions include whether engaging the public on their views or perspectives about active scientific research or products could help shape scientific research and whether this engagement results in the co-development of successful prototypes aimed at benefiting the public.
The research principles of the Chair can be aligned with the EU Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) framework and model for science engagement that brings scientists closer to the public, with scientific research and innovation practices responsible, but also responsive to society’s needs. There are, however, significant challenges in embedding responsible research and innovation into the higher education training of science students as encapsulated in Tassone et al.,’s (2017) statement: “Fostering RRI in higher education curricula is about equipping learners to care for the future by means of responsive stewardship of research and innovation practices that address the grand challenges of our time in a collaborative, ethical and sustainable way”. Multiple approaches for integrating notions of RRI are evolving the core values of RRI learning internationally. An EU programme, HEIRRI (Higher Education Institutions and Responsible Research and Innovation) explores the integration of RRI into the training programmes of scientists in higher education (Cayetano et al. 2016, HEIRRI, 2016). RRI tools (http://www.rri-tools.eu/) provide a range of different ways to help support integration of RRI into education which will be further examined, worked with and shared in the CoP. The Nucleus Project (http://www.nucleus-project.eu/) (with a South African node hosted through the South African Agency for Science & Technology Advancement (SAASTA) and the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB)), is part of the Horizon 2020 programme focused on exploring the barriers and challenges of implementing RRI into research and tertiary education institutions.
Relevant to the theme on clean water and citizen engagement in this CoP, the Chair has sought to explore real examples of embedding RRI into the higher education training of science students (Limson, 2018) conducting research primarily in water biotechnology. Water forms a core component of research in biotechnology in terms of purifying drinking water or treating wastewaters, both domestic greywater and industrial wastewater. The Chair’s research focuses on the development of technology for purifying water at point of source as well as the remediation of brackish or wastewater. Through the work of the Chair and collaborators, most notably Dr Ronen Fogel in Biotechnology, several prototype water treatment devices have been produced and used as the basis for engagement. The Chair’s studies indicate that engaging the public directly about their needs and expectations holds substantial benefits for the public as well as for participating science students in terms of shaping students’ identities, motivation and confidence, while deeper forms of engagement unlocks higher order thinking, ethics, responsibility (of scientists), and a desire to conduct research that benefits society, essentially unlocking RRI learning opportunities. The engagement activities also shed light on the public’s expectations of water treatment devices, supporting future design iterations of prototypes.
The DST (2019) calls for the introduction of mandatory science communication programmes for all recipients of government research grants, and for training scientists “and researchers in science communication and science engagement skills”, with the aim being that these skills “be taken up in the curricula of SET students in the higher education sector”, the latter informing the Chair’s science engagement training in higher education via courses capable of achieving this (DST,2019).
A core part of the Chair’s ongoing research is the development of models for directly engaging the public around scientific research. Scant literature is available describing in real terms the engagement between scientists and the public. Research through the Chair has, to date, focused on the benefits of public engagement for students’ learning, demonstrating its value for the training of science postgraduate students. However, this work has not yet explored the impact and perceived value of engagement activities on the participating communities. It is therefore necessary to also ascertain whether any benefits are perceived to be gained by the public during their participation in a range of science engagement activities in research and innovation processes. The Chair’s team will focus in on this as a key contribution to the CoP. The success of this approach is dependent on developing effective models to meaningfully effect direct engagement between the public and scientists.
In the context of the CoP, the Chair will pursue this question at a wider level in co-engagement between the SARChI Chairs in Biological Control (Hill), and Global Change and Social Learning Systems (Lotz-Sisitka) at RU, and Chairs in Curriculum Studies (Le Grange) as these Chairs are all supporting science engagement literacy and practices for green skills (e.g. supporting teachers, teacher educators, and university educators to develop expertise in this area.
Professor Janice Limson
Professor Limson is SARChI Chair in Biotechnology Innovation & Engagement at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 and Director of the Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 Biotechnology Innovation Centre (RUBIC). She will bring expertise of public science engagement to the CoP with special reference to engagement of the public in responsible innovation research design, and science curriculum innovation within this
framework. She will undertake research on how engagement with science and technology innovation design conceptualisation can lead to transformative social learning amongst communities involved in such process, with emphasis on biotechnology related to water treatment and quality. She will also develop guidelines for other similar responsible design and innovation scientific processes.
Biotechnology Innovation Centre,
Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网
Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 Biotechnology Innovation Centre (RUBIC) provides for trans-disciplinary research and learning environment in the field. Core discipline staff are supported by Research and Professional Associates representing academia, industry and the private sector. In addition to teaching and research, the Biotechnology Innovation Centre is engaged in biotechnology innovation and the public engagement and communication of the field.
Last Modified: Fri, 10 Sep 2021 16:35:50 SAST