Can we talk? Disrupting science circles with narrative-led dialogs

Leipold, Sina; Luo, Anran; Simoens, Machteld; Helander, Hanna; Petit-Boix, Anna

OPEN ACCESS at Environmental Science & Policy (2024) Volume 153, 103683

Sustainability scientists are increasingly expressing concerns about the lack of creativity and reflexivity, vital elements for driving sustainability transformations, in their profession. We argue that these concerns stem from established scientific practices of knowledge accumulation and interdisciplinary research, often neglecting the influence of group values and disciplinary paradigms. In response, we propose the narrative-led dialog as a tool for sustainability scientists to recognize, analyze and engage with such values and paradigms within interdisciplinary scientific practice. Building upon existing methods, the use of narratives offers scientists an additional way to identify and address the complexities of conflicts, overlaps, and uncertainties inherent in the values and paradigms that guide scientific research and collaboration. This process of revelation can assist sustainability scientists in disrupting traditional academic boundaries, fostering an environment that better nurtures sustainability transformation. Through the narrative-led dialog, scientists can achieve several crucial objectives; they can (1) deepen their scientific practice, (2) identify, discuss and negotiate the underlying values shaping their research, and (3) create an environment conducive to breakthrough ideas, both within their specific fields and across broader sustainability science communities.