Transdisciplinary research

Transdisciplinary research describes research that transcends disciplinary-specific ways of working, integrating academic research from unrelated disciplines and non-academic participants, leading to the creation of new knowledge to achieve a common goal relevant for our communities. The OECD describes six defining characteristics of transdisciplinary research:

• A wide breadth/diversity of interdisciplinarity
• Deep disciplinary integration
• A high degree and quality of interaction with non-academic participants
• A diverse composition of non-academic partnerships
• Early participatory engagement
• Diverse types of knowledge

Source: OECD (2020)

Jo Bailey, a designer and design researcher based at Massey University in Wellington, has created a way of understanding transdisciplinarity using food as a metaphor.

Funding opportunities are available to encourage and enable transdisciplinary research. This reflects the commitment to transdisciplinary research in Taumata Teitei.

• The Transdisciplinary Ideation Fund (TIF) seed fund encourages research staff from across the University to develop cross-disciplinary research partnerships.
• The Global Research Engagement Fund (GREF) is available to University of Auckland researchers and professional research staff to foster the development of new and emerging research partnerships with international collaborators.
• International Central Networks and Partnership Grant (ICNPG) is a grant available for academic and professional staff who wish to engage with our international network partners such as network-branded conferences and international collaborations.
  

In addition to these funds, the University brings together researchers from all disciplines in Transdisciplinary Ideation Workshops and networking opportunities.

Building intra-, cross-, multi- and interdisciplinary foundational collaborations start at the University. We encourage researchers to explore potential collaborators, experts, faculties and University Research Centres (URCs) at Waipapa Taumata Rau by doing the following:

• Update your Discovery Profiles and Te Waka Huia Rangahau | Research Outputs.
• Discuss routes to Transdisciplinary research with your FIRST team [staff intranet].
• Discover the transdisciplinary University centres that focus on pioneering research.

Building institutional collaborations enhances the diversity of perspectives, resources and methodologies in transdisciplinary research enabling the pursuit of complex challenges. Explore New Zealand’s eight universities and three Public Research Organisations to discover their research strengths and collaboration opportunities:

• Introducing NZ’s eight universities | Universities New Zealand - Te Pōkai Tara
• Public Research Organisations | Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment

Transdisciplinary research requires engagement and collaboration with non-academic partners. Discover various resources available to connect with non-academic partners via:

• Community engagement
• He Korowai Mātauranga
• Industry engagement and business development

True transdisciplinary work requires collaboration, co-design of research projects, and co-production of research outputs. See the resources available to build your understanding of how to build and design collaborative research projects by exploring Development opportunities for researchers.

The University hosts various networking opportunities through collaborations both nationally and internationally. Explore the related collaborations for further opportunities:

• National Research Collaborations (NRCs)
• Association of Pacific Rim Universities (APRU)
• Universitas 21 (U21)
• Worldwide Universities Network (WUN)

For more details, you can also refer to global partnerships and strategic partnerships.

• Global Research Engagement Fund
• Transdisciplinary Ideation Fund

UniServices (UniS)
At UniServices, we bring ideas to life. We partner with the best minds at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland to apply intelligent thinking to ideas that have the potential to change the world.

Te Puna Tiketike | Research and Innovation Office
We support the Deputy Vice-Chancellor Research and Innovation and the University Research Committee by developing and implementing strategies and policies to enhance our research environment.

• Institutional investment in transdisciplinary research, such as the Transdisciplinary Ideation Fund
• Other collaboration metrics, such as co-funding and co-supervision
• Academic dissemination and attention metrics
• Innovation and entrepreneurship, such as patents, licenses, and start-up companies
• Co-authorship and other bibliometrics. For example, a review of Scopus-indexed publications by University researchers between 2018-2022 showed that 74% of publications were either associated with two or more Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) or published in journals covering two or more discrete disciplines (as measured by Australia New Zealand Standard Research Classification Codes (ANZSRCs) and all Science Journal Classification (ASJC) subject areas).
• Societal outcomes and impacts

To support the realisation of societal impact from our research entities, we focus on creating an environment with relevant support systems and infrastructure for impact to thrive. We also work with research teams to create bespoke impact indicator frameworks, encompassing relevant qualitative and quantitative indicators, to support them to drive meaningful impact.

If you have any general queries about transdisciplinary research at the University, email Te Puna Tiketike, Research and Innovation Office at rio@auckland.ac.nz.

For project management support to assist you in building and designing a collaborative research project, see research project support.