Annelli Janssen is committed to making an impact. As a researcher and advisor at DRIFT (Dutch Research Institute for Transitions), she strives to mainstream impact into her work by making her research as transformative as possible. We asked her: How do you do this?
First and foremost, Annelli told us, she considers research output beyond publications. She points out that many scientists have been taught that publishing their findings in academic journals would be enough to create change (in wider society). However, "we've seen that that's just not enough. People are not reading them. They don't feel the urgency from a piece of paper”, she argues.
That’s why Annelli asks herself, with each new project: "What would make the most impact?'" and " Who is going to read this?" At times, a traditional publication may be best suited, but at other times, different forms of communication may attract a larger audience and be more transformative.
Considering the big picture and adapting along the way
Second, Annelli constantly considers long-term perspectives and strives for long-term change. Transformative Research means “not only reflecting, analyzing, or studying, but also changing (society)”, she says. This starts at the beginning of a project with setting an intention. Annelli suggests researchers ask themselves: What can I offer (to society)?
What needs to change in the academic community?
Overall, Annelli would like more scientists to rethink their traditional roles, and to change the way they share knowledge. Annelli thinks that the Erasmus University’s strategy on making positive social impact is a positive first step. She hopes that it makes transformative research “more widely known, so it continues to gain traction within the university.” Without a doubt, there are challenges in doing research differently, Annelli adds. But she recommends researchers embrace their position as a “little cog in a whole system and try and really do the right thing though their work."
- CV
Annelli Janssen is a senior researcher and advisor at DRIFT, working mainly on agrifood and water transitions. She advises stakeholders on what their role can be in accelerating these transitions, using co-creative methods. Academically, Annelli is interested in how collective identity can influence the course of a transition, and how we can organize participation in a transition in a just way.
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This blog series explores the many facets of transformative research in practice and discusses the changes necessary in universities and the academic system to enable such research. We are interested in questions such as: How are people doing research that addresses societal challenges and/or contributes to making our societies more just and sustainable? In which ways are they innovating the way research is done? What are they struggling with in doing so? Why are they doing transformative research and what excites them about it? If you have a story to share about doing transformative research yourself, please reach out to the DIT platform.
About the Design Impact Transition (DIT) platform
The Design Impact Transition (DIT) platform creates infrastructures for transformative academic work at Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR). Read more about our work here.