"Where we are now is profoundly unstable. The world is going to change enormously in the next few years. We need researchers to be part of that," said Baroness Bennet of Manor Castle during the Parliament for Researchers with the House of Lords online session on 9th October 2024.
Initially the participants discussed the channels for potential collaboration between the academic world and policymakers. The speakers outlined the key opportunities that the parliamentary knowledge sharing system offers researchers, the importance of addressing disinformation and following the evidence, and using understandable but not politicised language (“Do not take sides, follow the evidence, do not aim for political point-scoring”). You can find some key resources here. You can find some key resources here:
- Online resources and ‘how to’ guides:
- The Knowledge Exchange Unit on X (formerly Twitter):
- Contact email: keu@parliament.uk
- Weekly round-ups:
In addition to describing the standard avenues for the utilisation of academic research, such as , , and the , the speakers also highlighted the possibility of proactive engagement by individual researchers: "Reach out to your local MP, explain your research. Reach out to us," they emphasised. They also pointed to the possibility of shadowing work of topical units in Parliament, although arranging such opportunities may take time due to the high workload within these units.
The audience raised some interesting questions, including on how to avoid politicised language in the context of complex issues, as the debate on immigration facilities. The response was "Go to the facts. You’ve got the facts, you’ve got data. But then the way of bringing it home to people, perhaps energising them, might be done differently," said the Baroness, mentioning the importance of speaking about the lived experiences.
Participants also listed the valuable resources available through collaboration with the House of Commons Library. Ana-Lise Harding mentioned some interesting briefings that have recently been published, including the latest:
Here is the summary of the tips for engaging with Parliament, prepared by the debate organisers:
- Understanding: Know that the body of parliamentary staff is relatively tiny
- Building connections: Know that parliamentary staff speak to and know each other and share contacts
- Timing: Engage early to have more impact
- Framing: Know the ‘so what’ of your research, and make it clear
- Timeliness and relevance: This determine Members’ and staff priorities
- Audience: Write for an intelligent and informed non-expert audience, and hook them in
- Language: Make it clear and accessible, avoid jargon, acronyms, and heavily politicised language
- Profile: Make sure your online profile is up to date and findable, if possible, link to a video of you speaking about research to a non-specialist audience
- If at first you don’t succeed… [don’t give up - ek]
- It’s not what you know, it’s who you know…and now you know the KEU [Knowledge Exchange Unit]