The Science Shop/Research Shop School: A workshop to build mechanisms for community-university research engagement

This workshop was aimed at those interested in creating and running Science/Research Shops or other community-based research offices to link researchers with civil society research needs. The workshop was led by Science Shop directors Henk Mulder (Groningen University, The Netherlands) and Norbert Steinhaus (Bonn Science Shop, Germany), who work with Science Shops around the world, and Linda Hawkins from CESI/the Research Shop at the University of Guelph. 33 participants attended from 11 Canadian universities, 1 American university & 2 foundations. 

The workshop: 

• provided examples of models of Science/Research Shop led by both university and community entities
• shared ideas on how to deal with practical issues in the research mediation process
• addressed strategic issues around institutional commitment, location, and funding
• gave strategies for addressing quality and impact issues 
• provided networking opportunities

For more information, visit the Science Shop/Research Shop School website.