Co-prodcution across cultural contexts

While participatory research and co-production are now well established across the world as important ‘non-conventional’ forms of qualitative inquiry, they can also be shaped by local and national policy agendas and priorities. UK funders, for example, encourage co-production as it offers ‘high potential’ for achieving research impact, with the latter being an important element in the country’s highly competitive and lucrative research assessment process, i.e. the Research Excellence Framework. ‘Participation’ and involvement of people with ‘lived experiences’ are also seen as important and valuable in government policy-making and service co-design. Culturally, in Britain co-production is understood in a broader sense to include not only involvement of research participants or 'service users' but also policymakers, community groups, third sector organisations, businesses and the public more generally.

In this international seminar we will explore the role that local and national contexts play in shaping participatory methods and co-production. We will do so by sharing experiences of doing participatory research across different countries including UK, Finland, and Poland.

The event is a collaboration between "On the Margins" and Faculty of Social Sciences at University of Helsinki.

The seminar will take place in person at Edinburgh Napier University. (Merchiston Campus, Room G09).

Lunch and refreshment will be provided.

Programme

12:00 – 12:15 Arrival

12:15 – 1:00 Lunch

1:00 – 2:00 Presentations – Finland

• ‘Co-research, co-production of knowledge, collaboration or being an academic ally - how to conceptualise different forms of working together with non-academic individuals, groups and organisations.’ Reetta Mietola, University of Helsinki

• ‘Overcoming barriers to democratic participation with minoritized and marginalized groups – a participatory project.’ Meri Kulmala & Reetta Mietola, University of Helsinki

• ‘Co-research as a research strategy to study peer support for mental health in social media.’ Anna-Maija Multas, Liinu Vento & Meri Kulmala, University of Helsinki

2:00 – 2:20 Presentations – Poland

• 'Trans liberation, trans* embodiments, and decentring radical praxis in Poland.’

Toni Kania, Edinburgh Napier University.

2:20 – 3:00 Presentations – UK

• From sequins to sewing: using arts-based methods to empower research participants with lived experience of sexual violence in England. Laura Bower, Edinburgh Napier University

• Co-designing and co-producing research with asylum seeking community in Glasgow, Scotland. Taulant Guma (Edinburgh Napier University) and Yvonne Blake (MORE)

3:00 – 3:30 Coffee break

3:30 – 5:00 Panel discussion

5:00 Close

Host or Publisher On the Margins