Challenge-Led Research Practices

There is increasing academic interest in ‘research on research’ - the nature, use, processes and practices of research itself, and the role of the university in knowledge production.  This work examines how academic research is used and how effective it is.  It explores the value of research and debates the function and responsibility of the university in society.  Questions of how research is used in policymaking and practice, the impact agenda, knowledge exchange and brokering, and public engagement are all addressed here.

Further, it is increasingly clear that academic knowledge practices are evolving and transforming as traditional approaches are viewed as no longer serving academia or society well.  New collaborations and ways of working have emerged, as part of a focus on challenge-led research.  It is accepted that global social challenges can only be solved using an interdisciplinary approach and through partnerships with experts of all kinds beyond the university.  The decolonial turn within academia heralds a long-overdue new compact between researchers in the global North and South, and a new engagement, by the North, with indigenous knowledge.

We have always championed publishing with a purpose and been a home for the best work on participatory research, and aim to become a home for work on challenge-led research practices, their value to society and how they are evolving.  If you have a proposal you wish to discuss, please see the Publisher information below.

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Browse 'Transforming Research' on our Transforming Society blog.