Seeds Grow…

By Peter Levesque, CEO Institute for Knowledge Mobilization and Knowledge Mobilization Works

It has been my pleasure and privilege to work on issues of knowledge mobilization for more than 15 years.

It was not called “knowledge mobilization” at first.  It was called “getting people to work together so we actually use the things we learn from research to create solutions to complex problems that no one person or sector has the answer to”.

In 1998, I started working at the Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada on a little project called CURA.  The Community-University Research Alliances program was a way to get people to work together on complex problems that persist in our society – poverty, homelessness, pollution, child welfare…you get the picture.

In 2000, we started to notice things emerging from this collaborative research process.  Things like new conversations, new ideas for solutions, new partnerships – things that are not normally measured as a product of research but were having an important influence on the research process and the utilization or research findings process.

We called this complex mix of effects “knowledge mobilization”.

There was more movement.  There was more interest in research – not the methods and theoretical frameworks – but what could we do with what was discovered.

The knowledge mobilization work at SSHRC was part of a significant change in the research landscape at the end of the 1990s and early 2000s.  A movement from passive pushing out – or even an aggressive pushing out – of research results to a more collaborative process that linked people together and supported ongoing and regular exchange to create new value and benefits – informed by the results of research.

This movement has been slow.  During the 3 years as Deputy-Director of Knowledge Products and Mobilization at SSHRC, while we had many conversations with the larger research community, I cannot say that my efforts were a certified success. Rather, I would say that I failed in most of my efforts to shift the conversation to considering knowledge mobilization as a normal and important part of the research process.

However, seeds were sown amongst researchers, administrators, funding agencies and various research intensive institutions.

Fast forward to today – the issues are still complex and people are still having difficulty working together; however, the shift is happening.  Many universities have built infrastructure and programs to support knowledge mobilization.  A great example is the Research Impact consortium of 10 institutions in Canada.

There are dedicated funding programs to support knowledge mobilization such as the one at the Networks of Centres of Excellence.  There are training opportunities such as the certificate programs at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto or the University of Ottawa. There are communities of practice emerging across Canada and internationally – the Knowledge Brokers Forum is one of my favorite.

Most importantly, there are people having conversations about how to get better at doing this work – how to be more effective, more efficient, more humane, more creative…just better.

In 2007, I started a consulting company called Knowledge Mobilization Works because people were asking for help to think through the issues associated with getting their problems into the research cycle and how to use the results of existing and emerging research in implementing solutions.

In 2012, we launched the Canadian Knowledge Mobilization Forum as a way to gather collective intelligence and creativity on how to do this better.  The success of the 2012 event led to several things: the crowd funding of a new non-profit organization called the Institute for Knowledge Mobilization; the continuation of the Canadian Knowledge Mobilization Forum as an annual conversation; and the growth of international connections and mutual learning.

The United Kingdom Knowledge Mobilisation Forum is an important initiative.  It is a recognition that if we want seeds to grow – and partake of the accompanying harvest – we need people to do the hard work of surveying the landscape, tilling the soil, planting the seeds, and nurturing their growth.

On behalf of the Board of Directors and the Founders of the Institute for Knowledge Mobilization, I wish to congratulate everyone who helped organize and will participate in the inaugural UK Knowledge Mobilisation Forum.

Our conversations are about creating value.  Our conversations are about improving systems to make them better.  Our conversations are about making a positive difference in the lives of people struggling with complex issues.

The seeds we plant in London this February will grow.  They will grow at different paces in various climates and soils.  These seeds however will lead to new programs, perspectives, products, policies and other valuable harvests.  I look forward to rolling up our sleeves and getting down to the business of making what we know ready for others to use.

See you in London next week.

Peter Norman Levesque