About the Team

Our Story

How a group of Early Career Researchers came together to build a toolkit for food systems impact.

1. The Story

The concept for this toolkit was developed by a group of Early Career Researchers (ECRs) from the Transforming UK Food Systems (TUKFS) programme during the Annual TUKFS ECR Conference in Sheffield (23–24 October 2024). This event provided a platform for ECRs to explore strategies to amplify the impact of their projects and engage with policymakers.

We collectively recognised the need for increased support for current and future food systems researchers to improve the impact of our research and to develop more inclusive methods for engaging local stakeholders. Research aimed at transforming food systems requires transdisciplinary approaches (Bhunnoo & Poppy, 2020) that merge natural and social sciences and involve external stakeholders. This effort entails co-production, aligning with the broader 'participatory turn' in academia (Facer & Enright, 2016).

The project team has continued to meet regularly since then, refining the concept and obtaining funding for further development of the toolkit through the TUKFS Synergy Grant 2025–26.

ECR Brainstorming Workshop in Reading, October 2025. From left: Dr Manik Puranik, Dr Emma Hunter, Dr Victoria Norton, Dr Marta Lonnie (in-person), and Dr Brenda Mogeni, Dr Hannah Greatwood and Bramble Gardiner (on screen)
ECR Brainstorming Workshop in Reading, October 2025. From left: Dr Manik Puranik, Dr Emma Hunter, Dr Victoria Norton, Dr Marta Lonnie (in-person), and Dr Brenda Mogeni, Dr Hannah Greatwood and Bramble Gardiner (on screen)
2. The Challenges

TUKFS ECRs collectively identified key challenges in advancing this transdisciplinary approach:

To guide research in such a complex system, it was crucial to develop tools that provide a clear semantic structure and key concepts, ensuring that transdisciplinary teams move beyond historic disciplinary boundaries to formulate relevant questions and generate meaningful insights for food systems transformation.