Learning from community-university research partnerships: A Canadian study on community impact and conditions for success

Abstract

This article by Crystal Tremblay and Budd L. Hall, published in the International Journal of Action Research, looks at community-university research partnerships in Canada. It is based on twenty in-depth interviews with university and community partners who held grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. The authors describe how these partnerships have affected communities, through stronger relationships, greater organisational capacity, better services, policy change and extra funding. They also identify conditions for success, including shared governance, trust and mutual respect, flexible arrangements, participatory methods, and a fair sharing of power and resources. Drawing on knowledge democracy, the article points to a new architecture of knowledge and notes the challenges that remain, such as career pressures on academics and the limited research capacity of community organisation.