Exploring Knowledge Exchange with International Partners

The ‘impact’ agenda, processes of Knowledge Exchange and questions surrounding the value of Arts and Humanities research are currently the focus of intense scrutiny and debate. But until now the definition and practices of Knowledge Exchange have not been investigated in a comparative international context.

Professor Catherine Clarke (English) is currently leading a project with partners in Hong Kong to investigate the policy and practice of Knowledge Exchange, and to explore ways in which Knowledge Exchange can drive and enhance Arts and Humanities research. The project will draw on many of the exciting Knowledge Exchange activities driven by staff and students in the English Department at Southampton. The Southampton and Hong Kong teams will share examples of good practice, discuss the different vocabularies they use and the varied priorities and imperatives they bring to their work, and learn from each other about the intersections between research policy and scholarly practice.

The first project event is in January 2014, hosted by the Chinese University of Hong Kong (especially its Knowledge Transfer Office and Research Centre for Human Values) in partnership with the Hong Kong Academy of the Humanities. Graduate Associate Victoria Kearley (Film) will also be attending the workshop.

A second event is planned for Southampton in summer 2014. The project aims to inform policy, interrogate the intellectual framework for the ‘impact’ debate, and reflect on the ways in which new practices and collaborations are transforming traditional scholarship. The project is funded by the University of Southampton Global Partnerships Fund and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and builds on a successful international conference on ‘Knowledge Exchange and Arts and Humanities Research’ hosted by the University of Southampton in summer 2014.