Knowledge exchange in the arctic environmental studies: Bridging science and the local community in dialogue

Abstract

In the context of accelerated climate dynamics and uncertainties surrounding climate change research, collaborative approaches to knowledge generation are increasingly cited as a pathway needed for navigating the complexity of challenges. There is a widespread consensus that researcher-community joint expertise deepens our understanding of climatic changes. However, how this unfolds in practical settings lacks rigorous empirical support in the landscape of contemporary environmental studies. The article focuses on the intrinsic process of expert knowledge exchange and creating knowledge-in-action space for meaningful community-researcher partnerships. Addressing these issues draws upon experiences facilitating public events for diverse audiences in different countries and varying settings of scale, format and level of engagement. This account refers to the essential role of dialogue, interactivity, culturally sensitive devotion and visualization as powerful tools in building a platform for knowledge co-creation. It analyzes different ways of designing knowledge exchange that give access to a spectrum of experimentation, self-reflection and liaison with art but also requires mobilizing ethics and flexibility.