Call for Papers
ITS21 Conference #8
FROM COGNITION TO CAPACITY:
FOUNDATIONS OF EMPOWERING KNOWLEDGE
27–28 May 2026 - University of Southern Denmark (SDU), Odense, Denmark
Conference Overview
We are pleased to welcome you to the eighth conference in the ITS21 – Interdisciplinary Teamwork Skills for the 21st Century series.
This year’s theme:
"FROM COGNITION TO CAPACITY:
FOUNDATIONS OF EMPOWERING KNOWLEDGE"
...explores how knowledge—when internalized, contextualized,
and activated—can empower individuals, institutions,
and communities to initiate meaningful change.
In an era marked by complex and interconnected challenges—ranging from climate adaptation and resource equity to innovation in public services and inclusive governance—this conference investigates how agency emerges through knowledge, and how that agency can be cultivated and supported through collaborative frameworks that span domains of knowledge, governance, and lived experience.
This conference is part of the Nordplus Horizontal project Students as Change Agents in Grand Societal Challenges, which brings together Nordic universities, university colleges, and municipalities to investigate how interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral collaboration can support students in creating lasting societal value.
In connection with the conference there will be a special issue of "The Journal of Problem Based Learning in Higher Education".
The call will be announced in January 2026
ITS21 2026
- What kinds of knowledge empower individuals and communities to act with purpose and impact?
How do academic, experiential, cultural, and relational forms of knowledge contribute to agency?
- How is empowering knowledge cultivated, shared, and sustained across contexts?
What pedagogical, institutional, and collaborative practices support its development and circulation?
- How can knowledge be translated into capacity for action?
What models and mechanisms enable people to move from understanding to implementation?
- How do governance structures and lived experience shape what knowledge is considered empowering?
In what ways do power, participation, and context influence whose knowledge is valued and how it is mobilized?
- What frameworks support the co-creation of empowering knowledge across domains of expertise and practice?
How can institutions, communities, and networks collaborate to unlock the transformative potential of knowledge?
Exploring how diverse knowledge systems—academic, experiential, institutional, and community-based—shape agency and transformation. Empowering knowledge is not just about content, but about context: how it is situated, interpreted, and applied across disciplines and sectors.
2. Cognitive Processes and Learning for Agency
Examining how knowledge is cultivated and internalized through pedagogical models, institutional cultures, and collaborative learning. What kinds of environments foster agency, and how can education, training, and mentorship support individuals in becoming confident, capable contributors to change?
3. Translating Knowledge into Capacity for Action
Focusing on the mechanisms and models that enable knowledge to become actionable. How do people move from insight to implementation? What role do interdisciplinary teamwork, co-creation, and challenge-based learning play in transforming understanding into impact?
4. Knowledge, Governance, and Lived Experience
Examining how governance structures and lived experience shape what knowledge is considered valid, relevant, and empowering. How do participation, context, and inclusion influence the way knowledge is mobilized in decision-making and transformation processes?
5. Frameworks for Co-Creation and Collaboration
Exploring how institutions, communities, and networks can collaborate to generate and apply empowering knowledge. What kinds of frameworks support meaningful co-creation across domains of expertise and practice, and how can they be scaled or adapted to different settings?
We invite submissions of abstracts (300-500 words) that engage with the conference theme and core conceptual areas. Contributions may include:
• Theoretical explorations
• Empirical research
• Case studies
• Interdisciplinary approaches
Preferred mode of presentation: Please indicate whether you would like to present your work as a talk, poster, or workshop.
Deadline: March 31, 2026
• Researchers and educators
• Students and learning facilitators
• Public sector professionals and municipal leaders
• Business and industry partners• Community organizers and civic innovators
• Cross-sectoral collaboration networks
Whether you work in education, governance, sustainability, innovation, or enterprise, we invite you to join us in exploring how knowledge can empower meaningful change.
Associate Professor
Steffen Kjær Johansen
SDU Global Sustainable Production
Department of Technology and Innovation
skjo@iti.sdu.dk
Conference mail: its21@sdu.dk
For more information
Associate Professor
Steffen Kjær Johansen
SDU Global Sustainable Production
Department of Technology and Innovation
skjo@iti.sdu.dk
or
Conference mail: its21@sdu.dk