In this talk, John will present transdisciplinarity as a domain-relevant research methodology for tackling the complex societal challenges we are facing in the context of the Anthropocene today. This means, amongst other things, adopting a research approach that is not only interested in understanding (Verstehen) and explaining(Erklärung) complex problem situations, but also, very importantly, figuring out how to change (Verändern) these. In short, this is referred to as emergent, transformative transdisciplinary research (ETTDR). Please bring your own / current research ideas and experiences to this talk. John is looking forward to a lively, interactive discussion on this!
John van Breda is a Programme Manager at CST, an inter-faculty research centre at Stellenbosch University that offers a transdisciplinary doctoral programme in sustainable development. John holds post-graduate degrees in philosophy, theology and sociology and is currently working towards his PhD with a specific focus on developing context-relevant transdisciplinary research approaches for conducting solution-oriented research in a developing world context. His expertise is in transdisciplinary methodologies and methods for tackling complex social-ecological systems challenges. Prior to the CST, John has been actively involved in building and managing the TsamaHub and has been instrumental in raising international funding for conducting transdisciplinary doctoral programmes on food security and climate change on the African continent, known as the TRECCAfrica and ACCAI programmes.
Bring your lunch and join us in the CST conference room from 12:30 – 14:00 on Thursday 25 July.