Guidance for Genuine Collaboration: Insights from Academic, Tribal, and Community Partner Interviews on a New Research Partnership

Abstract

As community engaged research (CEnR) increases in popularity and recognition, specific guidance on partnership approaches that are more likely to lead to community benefits is needed. Here, we describe a qualitative interview study aimed at better understanding community and academic perspectives on elements of genuine collaboration within a project’s new community–academic partnership. This partnership involved a large, public, urban university, a tribal nation government program, a small, rural, community-based university, and a local high school working together to develop CEnR on air quality. Interview questions were formulated from a literature review examining the relationships between trust, cultural relevance, and community involvement in research with partnership processes, roles, and strengths. Twelve semi-structured interviews were conducted with individuals from the community–academic partnership: six University of Washington research team members and six community partners. Guidance for an authentic collaborative partnership supported by interview analyses includes incorporating elements of partnership and project sustainability from the earliest phases and throughout; promoting funding mechanism responsiveness to relationship building and community partner involvement in budget decision-making; acknowledging community strengths, knowledge, and expertise and applying them; establishing roles that reflect community partner capacity building goals; and recognizing community diversity and dynamics to promote representation.

Using personal narrative to promote person-centered values in aging, dementia, and caregiving

“…We realized that we spoke the same language regarding our shared values of empathy, social justice, and reducing stigma and that each organization brought expertise that the other could grow from. Themes that have been associated with building strong community partnerships include but are not limited to the creation and nurturing of trust, respect for knowledge, community-defined goals, flexibility, compromise, capacity building, and attention to sustainability ( 14 , 15 ). Values that promote partnerships include respect, communication, mutual benefit, and shared ownership with potential threats including power imbalances, lack of shared vision, and lack of time ( 16 ).…”

Northern Wild Rice (Zizania palustris L.) breeding, genetics, and conservation

“…It is important for researchers to think broadly about how to address the concerns and needs of diverse parties with differing interests, perspectives, and worldviews. Several papers have recently been written on the topics of inclusivity and equity in the academy, many of which have provided context for collaborations with Native peoples (Fitzgerald & Hinson, 2013;Lonczak et al, 2013;Matson et al, 2021;Stampfer et al, 2019) including some within public plant breeding spheres (Brzozowski et al, 2022;Khush et al, 1995). As a starting point, we highly recommend Brzozowski et al (2022) for plant breeders who aim to build a more inclusive and equitable plant breeding program; we relied on it heavily when evaluating our own work in cultivated wild rice.…”