Real world research
As a group the network is primarily interested in approaching real world problems in order to find solutions, rather than in tackling intellectual problems thrown up by specific disciplines. Individually and collectively in varying ways we have all come up against the limitations of disciplinary boundaries in our own individual research and the networks to which we all belong. Many of us have increasingly found the need to turn to colleagues in other disciplines to
The Network will have the following functions at first, with the possibility of expansion in time:
1. Production of public interest reports The network will function to produce public interest reports which focus on national and international issue of justice, inequity, environmental degradation, the quality of democracy and other issues.
2. the Creation of working groups within the network
3. the provision of expert advice and comment. The network will function as a clearinghouse for expert advice and research help and will work with: - Citizens, activists and NGOs campaigning to defend public interests.
- Policy makers and others engaged in democratic decision making
- Media personnel
The network will provide a source of:
- Expert comment
- Research help/advice
- Collaborative research work
The Network will work to build up a wide variety of members across disciplines, departments and universities who would work together in various combinations on the basis of problem solving research questions. The model for this aspect of our activity is the work of the Institute for Public Accuracy, an non profit NGO dedicated to disseminating accurate knowledge about global affairs.
The underlying philosophy is that there are significant numbers of researchers in a range of departments who are: - Working on similar problems (sometimes from differing and sometimes similar perspectives) who would find it advantageous to work collectively with other colleagues. At present contacts between researchers happen organically and as a result of individual networking. Often they are largely limited to disciplinary fora. The aim of the network is to transcend such limits and move beyond piecemeal and individual contacts by offering an interdisciplinary and cross university networking service.
- May be intellectually isolated or work on topics at the margins of their departmental or disciplinary interests. The network would aim to bring together a wide range of interests and to give them a critical mass so that two or three, or more, academics can collectively make a much more significant impact on academic and (more importantly) public debates than they could or would individually.
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