Catherine Kilmartin

Project Title: Identify and analyse best practices in interactive innovation across Europe and the competencies required by advisors to support interactive innovation

Project Overview: Interactive innovation support represents a major shift from top-down knowledge transfer to a more collaborative user driven approach. Catherine’s research aims to identify a range of best practices, key actors and critical advisor competencies in interactive innovation across Europe, which would have particular relevance to Teagasc. The recommendations from this study and the pilot training designed will enhance the capability of our Teagasc advisors. In addition, Catherine’s findings will contribute to developing the existing interactive innovation support as part of Teagasc’s Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme for advisors and teachers.

As a 2020 graduate of Animal Science from UCD, Catherine’s research is significant as Irish (and global) agriculture are facing critical challenges. There are no simple or easy solutions that can be ‘transferred’ but there is increasing recognition of the need for multiple stakeholders to work together in finding creative solutions. The majority of advisors have had formation training in the science of agriculture but not in the soft skills of participatory and interactive innovation. This research will build a solid base of evidence to support this kind of upskilling and showcase emerging best practices

Supervisors:

Dr. Kay O’Connell (Teagasc)

Dr. Edel Kelly (UCD)

Location: Enniscorthy

Presentation: Catherine Kilmartin RT1 (PDF)