Lindsey B.

Payne

Page 1


Undergraduate
Education


Service-
Learning

Transdiscipinary
Knowledge
Research Statement
Building Sustainable Communities
Transdisciplinary Approaches in Engineering Education

Current Research
My current research is focused upon integrating transdisciplinary knowledge into decision-
making support processes to generate useful knowledge for engineering students and
practitioners participating in community-based design projects. This research responds to calls
for educational experiences for engineering students that promote understanding of the
relationships between the environmental, social, political, and economic spheres of sustainability
and how they affect design solutions (Brewer et al. 2008; Sheppard et al. 2009). Specifically, the
ABET Engineering Accreditation Commission states that engineering graduates should
understand the impact of engineering solutions in a global, economic, environmental and
societal context (EAC 2011), and the National Academy of Engineering, The Engineer of 2020,
suggests that engineers should develop an awareness of sociocultural issues that will impact
engineering practice (NAE 2004). Unfortunately, engineering education has traditionally focused
on technical problem solving, with non-technical dimensions often viewed as distinct, unrelated,
or excluded altogether (Downey et al. 2006; Baker et al. 2010). This traditional approach can
distort problem definition and lead to inappropriate solutions for the communities and users for
which they are created (Baker et al. 2010). Additionally, strong historical drivers promoting the
compartmentalization of knowledge in higher education have left researchers and practitioners
with inadequate frameworks to address todays highly complex societal issues (Ramadier 2004;
Max-Neef 2005), and better decision-making processes are needed that integrate multiple
knowledges, diverse needs, and interests of society (Hirsch Hadorn et al. 2006; Mobjork 2010;
Stock and Burton 2011). As a result, there is opportunity to create effective community-based
project design strategies for engineers and practitioners that can enable shifts from traditional,
business-as-usual approaches to socially engaged, context-sensitive, and transdisciplinary
approaches.

The first phase of my current research is focused broadly on how transdisciplinary knowledge is
understood and generated across academic fields of study, while the second phase involves the
design and case study of an educational intervention focused on increasing engineering students
awareness, understanding, and ability to apply transdisciplinary knowledge in community-based
design projects. I utilize mixed methods approaches in my data collection and analysis to
capitalize on the advantages of both qualitative and quantitative research, including multiple
pieces of evidence for triangulation and more nuanced results.

Future Research
My future research program will capitalize on my desire to
create sustainable communities and my passion for teaching
and learning and community engagement, and be thematically
focused at the intersection of transdisciplinary knowledge,
undergraduate education, and service-learning, and how they
can collectively contribute to building sustainable
communities (Figure 1). The motivation for this program
continues to address the need for educational experiences for
students that promote an understanding of the multiple
dimensions of sustainability solutions, as well as the need for
Figure 1:
Sustainable
Communities
Lindsey B. Payne

Page 2


frameworks for knowledge production in real-world settings to meet todays sustainability
challenges (Hirsch Hadorn et al. 2006; Mller-Christ et al. 2014). Recent scholarship has also
shown that courses with more community-oriented, civically engaged, active learning
environments increase students knowledge of sustainability (Segals et al. 2010; Powell 2012),
and my current research demonstrates that the integration of transdisciplinary approaches into
service-learning, community-based design courses can support rich, meaningful learning
experiences for students and generate appropriate design solutions for users.

In my future research endeavors, I want to continue investigating student learning in the
classroom, but also move beyond the four-walled, academic setting to investigate broader
impacts of engagement in local communities. To address the collective contributions of
transdisciplinary knowledge, undergraduate education, and service-learning toward building
sustainable communities, my future research program will be focused upon three areas of
inquiry. The first will include semester-long investigations to be conducted within the first few
years. The second and third will include long-term, multi-case studies to be conducted in the
third, fourth, and fifth years. In the interest of strengthening interdisciplinary pursuits, these
projects will involve partnerships with interdisciplinary faculty, students, and community
partners.

1. Transdisciplinary Approaches to Community-Based Design
Overview: Of key interest to my scholarship in transdisciplinary knowledge and undergraduate
education is whether transdisciplinary approaches to knowledge generation increase
students ability to design context-specific projects in service-learning courses. I
am also interested in investigating how those skills impact students in their future
professions.
Funding: Related funding opportunities for this area of inquiry include: the EHR Core
Research Grant Program for Undergraduate Education focused upon the
enhancement of student learning for undergraduates, and the Division of
Undergraduate Education Grant Program, specifically, the Improving
Undergraduate STEM Education grant focused upon addressing immediate
challenges and opportunities facing undergraduate STEM education.

2. Transdisciplinary Approaches for Sustainable Communities
Overview: The second area of inquiry is focused more broadly on examining how
transdisciplinary approaches can increase the quality and effectiveness of higher
education for sustainable communities. Teams of researchers, practitioners,
policymakers, and community stakeholders that transcend traditional knowledge
production boundaries are needed to address todays highly complex challenges in
sustainability. This requires individuals with the ability to forge partnerships, not
only across academic disciplines, but also with practitioners, policymakers, and
stakeholders, to design context-specific research projects that have direct, relevant
impacts on local communities and policies. As a faculty member, I will seek to
advance such research and engagement opportunities by leading partnership
formation building upon my previous relationships with the non-profit and
industrial sector, as well as research expertise in transdisciplinary approaches to
problem solving.
Lindsey B. Payne

Page 3


Funding: Related funding opportunities for this area of inquiry include: the Division of
Undergraduate Education Grant Program, specifically, the Sustainability Research
Networks grant, focused upon bringing together research teams to conduct
collaborative research addressing fundamental challenges in sustainability; the EPA
Environmental Education Grant Program focused upon projects that increase the
public's awareness of and ability to take responsible actions for environmental
issues; and EPAs P3 - People, Prosperity, and the Planet Student Design
Competition for Sustainability in which I would serve an advisory role to
undergraduate students.

3. Collaborative Networks for Sustainable Communities
Overview: My last area of inquiry will explicitly address the frequent absence of expertise in
the effective design of education and outreach components for the broader impacts
requirement of large, federally-funded grants. Serving as a co-investigator in large,
collaborative research projects, my goals will be to create components that 1) help
transform teaching and learning environments for students and society, and 2)
produce broader, more impactful results toward building sustainable communities.
To do so, I will integrate my own research; experience establishing networks
between campus, community, and industry partners; deep knowledge of effective
teaching strategies; and experiences as a graduate assistant at Purdues teaching and
learning center to design education and outreach components, that would not only
contribute directly to my research program, but ultimately the goals of the
university.
Funding: Related funding opportunities for this area of inquiry would be similar to proposed
grants programs in the first.

In closing, I am eager to challenge myself and expand my current research portfolio by tackling
larger, collaborative research projects that have broader societal benefits and directly impact
undergraduate education through scholarly pursuits. Through these efforts, I hope to help create
high-impact results for, not only the students and faculty at the university, but for local
communities as well.
Lindsey B. Payne

Page 4



References
ABET Engineering Accreditation Commission. (2011). Criteria for accrediting engineering
programs: effective for reviews during the 2012-2013 accreditation cycle. Baltimore.
Baker, D., et al. (2010). "Community development and engineering: perspectives on
interdisciplinary projects in Honduras." ASEE 2010 Annual Conference & Exposition,
Louisville.
Brewer, G., et al. (2008). "Educating for urban sustainability: a transdisciplinary approach."
Proceedings of the ICE - Engineering Sustainability 161(3): 185-193.
Downey, G., et al. (2006). "The globally competent engineer: working effectively with people
who define problems differently." Journal of Engineering Education 95(2): 107-122.
Hirsch Hadorn, G., et al. (2006). "Implications of transdisciplinarity for sustainability research."
Ecological Economics 60(1): 119-128.
Max-Neef, M. A. (2005). "Foundations of transdisciplinarity." Ecological Economics 53: 5-16.
Mobjork, M. (2010). "Consulting versus participatory transdisciplinarity: a refined classification
of transdisciplinary research." Futures 42(8): 866-866-873.
Mller-Christ, G., et al. (2014). "The role of campus, curriculum, and community in higher
education for sustainable development a conference report." Journal of Cleaner
Production 62(0): 134-137.
Powell, F. (2012). "Think globally, act locally: sustainable communities, modernity and
development." GeoJournal 77(2): 141-152.
Ramadier, T. (2004). "Transdisciplinarity and its challenges: the case of urban studies." Futures
36(4): 423-439.
Segals, J., et al. (2010). "What do engineering students learn in sustainability courses? The
effect of the pedagogical approach." Journal of Cleaner Production 18(3): 275-284.
Sheppard, S., et al. (2009). Educating engineers: designing for the future of the field. San
Francisco, Jossey-Bass.
Stock, P. and R. J. F. Burton (2011). "Defining terms for integrated (multi-inter-trans-
disciplinary) sustainability research." Sustainability 3(8): 1090-1113.
The National Academy of Engineering. (2004). The engineer of 2020: visions of engineering in
the new century. Washington, DC, The National Academy Press.