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Centre for Sustainable Agrifood Systems

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STARTProject Development Toolkit

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About the toolkit

The START Triple-I project development tool kit: a handbook for initiating, building and evaluating high-impact interdisciplinary projects and converting them into successful funding applications.

Introduction to the START interdisciplinary tool kit

Transforming the agrifood system towards more sustainable food production and diets will contribute significantly to the green transition of our society. To succeed, society will need to be disrupted. Interdisciplinary research is the foundation from which these uncharted waters can be navigated.

This handbook is a guide and toolkit for START researchers who wish to initiate a truly interdisciplinary project and subsequently apply for research funding. Working across disciplines is not always easy. We hope the handbook helps you gain a common language and a shared understanding of the research problem you aim to address.

You will find a 6-step guide to project development using the Triple-I approach, from the initial concept idea, through finding collaborators and co-creating an impactful project, to creating work packages. Each step comes with a workshop and tools. Use all of them for a 360-degree understanding of your research problem, or cherry-pick the tool you need at any given time.

The toolkit also provides tools to assess various aspects of your project. Two well-known ones are the Technology Readiness Level (TRL) and the Societal Readiness Level (SRL), alongside more niche tools such as the Business Model Readiness Level and the User/Customer Readiness Level. Finally, we have developed a tool to assess your Funding Readiness Level (FRL): your project's fundability, your funding strategy and the progress of your grant writing.

If you are not comfortable using the toolkit on your own, please contact the AU-based Project Developers, who are more than willing to assist you or to facilitate a session with your project consortium.

Integration with the Triple-I approach

Over the past two years, START has built a structural foundation embodied by its novel Triple-I approach to address societal challenges within food systems and realise its vision of societal impact and transformation. This transformation can only be achieved by disruptive changes in our society and economy, with evidence-based, co-creative, world-class science.

  • Integrative: it mandates an integrative approach to technical innovation and societal transformation for the interlinked green challenges related to climate, environment, biodiversity, food, health, society, the bio-based economy and more.
  • Inclusive: it is founded on an inclusive approach that involves stakeholders and actors in science, society and business through novel methodologies such as living labs and citizen science.
  • Interdisciplinary: to achieve this meaningfully, an interdisciplinary approach is essential, one that enhances cooperation between researchers from a wide diversity of disciplines, from natural, technical and digital sciences to social sciences, humanities and arts.

To put this approach into practice, you need the proper tools. You will find them in this toolkit.

The Triple-I approachThree overlapping circles labelled Interdisciplinary, Integrative and Inclusive. Where all three overlap is the Triple-I approach.InterdisciplinaryIntegrativeInclusiveTriple-I
The Triple-I approach

A design approach to project development

You might not think of yourself as a designer, but chances are you design every single day. Design and Design Thinking are about seeing a problem and coming up with ideas to solve it, placing the problem at the centre of your project design phase. Paying more attention to how you develop and try out new ideas around the identified problem can turn good ideas into revolutionary ones. Moving from silent design to conscious design requires tools and guidance, which is what this toolkit provides.

Design Thinking is a non-linear, iterative approach in which your understanding of the problem is continuously improved by repeatedly testing it:

  • Empathise: explore the problem you want to address thoroughly.
  • Define: define the problem and test whether you have the right perception of it by including a design team of various disciplines.
  • Ideate: generate ideas for how you might address the problem you have defined.
  • Test: test your preliminary idea with the relevant stakeholders and listen to their feedback.

With the feedback you gain a better understanding of the problem, and the cycle continues. The toolkit follows this process: its tools help you continuously understand your research problem better while finding the right partners to help you understand and address it.

The Design Thinking cycleA non-linear, iterative cycle: empathise with the problem, define it, ideate solutions and test them with stakeholders. The feedback leads back to a better understanding of the problem.EmpathiseExplore theproblem thoroughlyDefineDefine it with ateam of variousdisciplinesIdeateGenerate ideas toaddress itTestTest withstakeholders andlistenIterative:the cyclecontinues
The Design Thinking cycle

Using the guidebook

The toolkit outlines a project development timeline of 6 steps. Each step proposes tools to achieve its objectives, with guides for each method so you can run workshops for yourself, your research group and your project partners.

  • Step 1: Creating a concept note for your project idea
  • Step 2: Identifying partners to co-create your project with
  • Step 3: Research problem exploration
  • Step 4: Research problem scoping
  • Step 5: Finishing work packages and developing SMART goals
  • Step 6: Initiating grant writing

How you approach the toolkit depends on the premise of your project development. Do you have a research idea, or does it stem from a funding call? Either way, you can use the same tools and guide. The only difference is the material you use as your core concept: your own, or the call guidelines.

The 6-step project development processThree phases, each with two steps and a workshop. Initial idea and consortium creation: Step 1 concept note (Workshop 1), Step 2 identifying partners (Workshop 2: collaborator mapping, stakeholder analysis, Give & Take matrix). Developing the project concept: Step 3 research problem exploration (Workshop 3), Step 4 research problem scoping (Workshop 4: gap analysis and Theory of Change). Preparing work packages and initiating fundraising: Step 5 finalize work packages (Workshop 5: SMART goals), Step 6 initiate grant application (Workshop 6).Initial idea and consortiumcreationStep 1: Creating a concept note for yourproject ideaWorkshop 1: Writing a concept noteStep 2: Identifying partners toco-create your project withWorkshop 2: Collaborator mapping,Stakeholder analysis and Give & Take MatrixDeveloping the project conceptStep 3: Research problem explorationWorkshop 3: Problem exploration andassumptions mappingStep 4: Research problem scopingWorkshop 4: Gap analysis and Theory ofChangePreparing work packages andinitiating fundraisingStep 5: Finalize work packagesWorkshop 5: SMART goalsStep 6: Initiate grant applicationWorkshop 6: How to write a great grantapplication
The 6-step process

Authors

Written and developed by

  • Jacob Thyrsted Jensen, Aarhus University
  • Christian Kvorning Lassen, Aarhus University

With advice and edits from

  • Kristine Howe Kjer
  • Mads Bennedsen

Centre for Sustainable Agrifood Systems (START). The handbook is a draft; sections still being written are marked “Content to be supplied by START”.

Download the full handbook (PDF)

Introduction to the toolkit

Introduction to the toolkitPlaceholder video

0:45· A short tour of the six steps, the workshops and the assessment tools.