Sharing co-design methods and tools for engagement, in July 2016 the Leapfrog Summer School aimed to develop Early Career Researchers’ (ECRs) capabilities in carrying out Action Research with communities and to stimulate discussion and debate around the academic and societal impact of these approaches. Taking place at the Institute of Design Innovation at The Glasgow School of Art in Forres, Moray, delegates took part in a series of paper presentations, discussions, and creative workshops to enrich
their understandings and applications of Action Research in community settings. Featuring presentations from the wider Leapfrog team, the Summer School also welcomed a series of international speakers who delivered keynotes and lightning talks across the event. Areas of discussion included:
• Action research, participation, and co- production with communities • Design-led methods and tools in Action Research
• Relationships, power, and ethics
• Engaging with diverse and minority communities
• Moving across disciplinary boundaries
• Case studies of research with the public, private, and third sectors
• Innovative research outputs; collaborative evaluation and dissemination • The value, impact, legacies, and sustainability of these approaches
This program of activities offered an inspirational and supportive space for a network of ECRs to exchange insights on broader aspects of research and career development, including approaches to generating research questions, writing research bids, and dissemination to diverse public audiences, and to consider how they might work together in the future.
In this report we re ect on the activities that took place across the event, the insights and themes that emerged, and how this has informed the development of the 2017 Leapfrog Summer School.