3 things you didn’t know about community-partnered research projects

Research partnerships are a powerful way to foster meaningful relationships and create impactful solutions to common challenges. By building bridges with community organizations, innovators and people with lived experience, researchers can share decision-making, distribute power more equitably and create outputs that are practical and relevant to communities. 

Great examples of partnered research highlight reciprocal practices, meaning everyone can contribute to knowledge creation and learn new concepts or skills, and benefit from the partnership.

For researchers interested in getting started or those with specific research goals in mind, UCalgary's Knowledge Engagement team is excited to launch the 2024 Navigating Partnered Research webinar series all about partnerships. 

The series will also touch on specialized areas such as the ethics and practices of Indigenous research, patient-oriented health research, and the management of research data in partnered projects. Sessions will be co-hosted by experienced researchers or support units from across campus. 

Three key insights

1. They come in all shapes and sizes
   Partnerships are as varied as the challenges they seek to address. Ranging from short-term collaborations with grassroots groups to multi-year commitments with multiple parties, these projects provide researchers with the opportunity to work with a spectrum of partners locally, nationally or on a global scale.
2. Partnering increases impacts
   Meaningful, collaborative research with community can increase buy-in and uptake of research findings by those most impacted, and relevant decision-makers. The outcomes extend beyond scholarly publications, leading to system changes.
3. Support can come from unique funding streams
   UCalgary recently launched the Transdisciplinary Connector Grants, expanding the potential funding avenues for partnered research projects. This, along with the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council's Partnership Engage Grants, Partnership Development Grants, and Partnership Grants, opens up a range of possibilities for funding.

The webinar series is open to students, faculty, staff, postdocs and community partners. Register for the webinars

Join us for the 2024 series and explore:

• Grappling with Authenticity in Participatory Research (Feb. 15) 
• Knowledge Mobilization Planning and Strategy (Feb. 29)
• Partnering with Patients and Community Members in Health Research (March 19)
• Ethics and Relationships in Indigenous Research (April 10)
• Research Ethics Considerations When Working with International Partners  (April 24)
• Papering Partnerships  (May 6)
• Research Data Management in Partnered Research Projects  (May 23)
• Safeguarding Research Partnerships (June 5)