Georgia Bayliss-Brown discusses AquaTT's knowledge transfer strategy to achieve research impact at MEOPAR's Annual Scientific Meeting 2017.

1. Knowledge Transfer – Insights from European
marine and maritime research
Georgia Bayliss-Brown
MEOPAR Annual Scientific Meeting
22 June 2017

2. • Introduction to AquaTT
• What is Knowledge Transfer?
• The COLUMBUS Project and KT
Methodology
• Five simple steps
• Case Studies
• Insights

4. AquaTT
• Specialise in project management, dissemination,
knowledge transfer, education, training and stakeholder
engagement
• 10 EC-funded projects

5. What is Knowledge Transfer?
Dissemination: The act of spreading something, especially information,
widely (Oxford English Dictionary)
Definition (AquaTT, 2015)
• Knowledge Transfer describes how knowledge and ideas move between
knowledge sources to targeted potential users of the Knowledge.
• It consists of a variety of activities which aim to capture, organise, asses
and transmit on knowledge, skills and competence from those who generate
them to those who can use them.
Successful Knowledge Transfer can lead to measurable impact and value
creation.

6. What is Knowledge Transfer?

7. What is Knowledge Transfer?
IMPACT

8. What is value creation?

9. The COLUMBUS Project
BLUE GROWTH:UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF SEAS
AND OCEANS
BG11 – 2014: Monitoring, dissemination and uptake of
marine and maritime research
Specific challenge: The EU has been funding a large number of
marine and maritime R&I projects spread across different
programmes. Recent efforts have been made to monitor and
facilitate access to information on these projects or their results.
However, key tangible outputs are not always known or
exploited when they could be of use to marine and maritime
stakeholders, scientists and policy makers.

10. The COLUMBUS Project
Number of partners: 25
Duration: 36 months
(Mar 2015 – Feb 2018)
Budget: €3,998,488
(Flagship - Largest contribution to KT)
AquaTT: Strategic and Operational Leader
& Project Manager
WP leader for Methodology; and Legacy
“Ensure that applicable knowledge generated through EC-
funded science and technology research can be transferred
effectively to advance the governance of the marine and
maritime sectors while improving competitiveness of European
companies and unlocking the potential of the oceans to create
future jobs and economic growth in Europe (Blue Growth)”

11. Introductory video
Full length: https://vimeo.com/203077016 | Short length: https://vimeo.com/203088726

12. Step 0: Identify needs
Step 1: Knowledge collected or identified
Step 2: Knowledge is assessed (and prioritised according to need)
Step 3: Target User profiled
Step 4: Planning and framing Knowledge Transfer activities
Step 5: Carry out KT, and measure impact of, activities
Five Simple Steps
Collect
knowledge
Assess
knowledge
Profile
Target User
Develop KT
plan
Transfer and
measure

13. 9 Competence Node Profiles

14. Key Word Search

15. COLUMBUS in numbers
6,415 marine and maritime projects
810 “keyword” projects
312 relevant projects
111 Knowledge Output Tables
1,199 Knowledge Outputs
96 prioritised Knowledge Outputs (and potential pathways)
60 case studies of applied Knowledge Transfer Plans

16. “COLLECT”
Step 1: Knowledge collected or identified (according to need)
“ANALYSE”
Step 2: Knowledge is assessed (and prioritised according to need)
Step 3: Target User profiled
Understanding the landscape:
What are the needs? Does this knowledge fulfil the need in its current
form? Who are the influencers? Who are the actors? What are the key
events? Where do individuals look for information? How do they like
to receive information? How many steps do I need to take to reach
the end-user?
Five Simple Steps

17. Five Simple Steps
Often not delivering knowledge in the best location/format

18. “TRANSFER”
Step 4: Planning and framing Knowledge Transfer activities –
developed with the end-user in mind – to progress down the
pathway
Step 5: Carry out KT, and measure impact of, activities
Five Simple Steps

19. • Fish Texture Evaluation Tool – shelf-life of fish products
• Chitin-based material – coffee pods
• Clustered tools for pressures and indicators of
Environmental Status – application in port impact
assessments
• Experiences of Nagoya Protocol – Guidelines for users
• Experiences of interactions with industry – Guidelines for
sharing data with maritime industry
• UTOFIA camera for fish stocks – timing extraction of
aquaculture stocks
Example of KT

20. • KO description: Selektope anti-fouling paint
• Need/Relevant Knowledge Gap: Environmentally friendly anti-fouling coatings are still
missing. Market demand outside the shipbuilding sector, e.g. market for marine observation devices.
• Target User: Head of the Marine Technologies Unit at CETMAR (Centro Tecnológico del Mar)
• KT activity:
§ Face-to-face meeting with CETMAR, KO owner I-Tech and SME paint manufacturer to develop a
testing programme for Selektope for oceanographic buoys in Galicia
§ Main activity was carried out between September and November (testing is ongoing)
• Impact indicators:
§ Direct feedback to follow uptake and application of the knowledge
§ Positive interest to develop a plan to test Selektope
• Outcome:
§ Testing programme was used for real-life testing on two buoys (painted with Selektope and
traditional anti-fouling paint HEMPEL)
§ Performance of Selektope was demonstrated in a new market
§ First results available, but longer testing (incl. further maintenance visits) necessary
§ In case of positive results, further transfer to end-users (e.g. buoy manufacturers)
Detailed case study

21. Insights
MAKE SCIENCE COUNT
• Impact is driven by need
• Transfer isn’t just for technology, its knowledge too
• All new knowledge has potential
• Pathways lead to an eventual impact; and plans lead to an intended
impact
• Activities should be bespoke to the individual end-user
• Celebrating success gives organisations reason to incentive
researchers
• Funding agencies and evaluators are also responsible for success
• Communities can create impact via clustering and cross-sectoral
pollination
• Impact is a story, not just an indicator
• Failure is also a success
KT can be done retrospectively
but these same steps can be performed during project design,
preferably in co-creation with end-user

22. Thank You
Any questions?
Georgia Bayliss-Brown
georgia@aquatt.ie
www.aquatt.ie
www.columbusproject.eu