CIDAPE Meeting at the University of Tartu
© Maarten Hajer
Consortium partners met in Tartu, Estonia, for productive cross-fertilisation sessions and in-depth interdisciplinary exchange.We received a warm welcome at the University of Tartu, which hosted our mid-term conference and organised two and a half days of intensive program. The agenda fostered deep discussions and exchange across working groups.
Our colleagues from the University of Utrecht kicked off the meeting with a role-playing workshop titled "Policy as Tragedy? Joint Exploration of Emotions & Drama". The session simulated citizen engagement processes in political decision making. We were assigned different characters within society - farmers, managers, politicians, activists - participating in a public hearing for an energy transition project.
As the play unfolded, we observed the different dynamics, emotions, and inequalities that surface during such debates in the context of the green transition. Reflections on the interactive exercise showed many similarities with our preliminary research findings: If people are not feeling heard, negative emotions can arise and potentially escalate. Politicians may prioritise their next election results over meaningful face-to-face communication with the public.
© Tartu Ülikool
© Zita Zeberer
Following this engaging and insightful workshop, we continued in smaller groups to discuss ongoing and new collaborations. Harnessing our "swarm intelligence", we drafted the roadmap for our upcoming documentary aimed at bringing our research to a wider public. On the second day, we exchanged perspectives on our diverse methodologies and worked to synthesise common approaches. A lively dataset-speed-dating session opened new avenues for more collaborations. Finally, different working groups shared insights into their work-in-progress research, sparking fruitful discussions. The meeting concluded with valuable feedback from our advisory board and an outlook on the next steps.