Social science – STEM collaborations in agriculture, food and beyond: an STSFAN manifesto

Abstract

Interdisciplinary research needs innovation. As an action-oriented intervention, this Manifesto begins from the authors’ experiences as social scientists working within interdisciplinary science and technology collaborations in agriculture and food. We draw from these experiences to: 1) explain what social scientists contribute to interdisciplinary agri-food tech collaborations; (2) describe barriers to substantive and meaningful collaboration; and (3) propose ways to overcome these barriers. We encourage funding bodies to develop mechanisms that ensure funded projects respect the integrity of social science expertise and incorporate its insights. We also call for the integration of social scientific questions and methods in interdisciplinary projects from the outset, and for a genuine curiosity on the part of STEM and social science researchers alike about the knowledge and skills each of us has to offer. We contend that cultivating such integration and curiosity within interdisciplinary collaborations will make them more enriching for all researchers involved, and more likely to generate socially beneficial outcomes.

Will Migrant Pacific Workers Be a Part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s Farming Futures? A call to design future agritech industry transformation plans with a reciprocal framework

“…Engaging in co-design with agricultural workers requires special care and attention, given access issues and power imbalances (Burch and Legun, 2021). Thus, we recommend including humanities and social science scholars in these processes to ensure that questions of power are adequately acknowledged and attended to when including agricultural workers in co-design processes and when considering the social dimensions of agritech innovation (Burch et al, 2022(Burch et al, , 2023Fielke et al, 2022).…”

Energy system changes in the agricultural sector: testing a value-congruent communication approach to foster positive attitudes

“…However, the successful transition of the sector toward electrification requires the interplay of micro and macro factors, in which public acceptance is crucial (Vogeler et al 2021, Olvermann et al 2023. The social sciences, particularly the field of psychology as an empirical discipline with its core competencies in understanding human behavior and attitudes, provide diverse starting points and high-utility methods for it (Weber 1997, Burch et al 2023. The relevance of public acceptance for energy transition has crystallized from decades of extensive research, especially in environmental psychology; underlying attitudes and positive emotions are linked to acceptance of and support for policies, energy system changes, and associated energy technologies (Steg et al 2015, Abrahamse and Schuitema 2020, Emmerich et al 2020.…”