Developing Transdisciplinary Research Capacity: Lessons from a Case Study-Based Summer Academy

Oregon State University hosted a Transdisciplinary Academy on Marine Resource Sustainability during the summer of 2014 during which case studies were used as a tool to educate and train participating graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in the process of conducting transdisciplinary science.  Here we will present the findings of a participant-led evaluation of the case study-based approach for training.  We highlight three key trade-offs that affected the educational outcomes of the academy: (1) between emphasizing the process or product of the research during the Academy, (2) between providing more structure or flexibility in the case study design, and (3) between delegating tasks or creating shared learning opportunities during research within the case study groups.  These trade-offs were amplified by the time constraints of a two-week summer academy but are likely representative of trade-offs that are faced in most transdisciplinary research endeavors.  This evaluation is based on semi-structured participant interviews conducted during the academy and online participant surveys administered six-weeks after the Academy and the discussion of these findings is further enhanced by incorporating the perspective of the Academy organizers.