Dissemination and impact

This WP is focused on securing the long-term economic, environmental and scientific impact of the research.  It coordinates efforts to maximise translation of research outputs into commercial practice and to support the wider decision-making that the sustainable use of these crops on marginal drought-affected land requires. The overall aim is to put a research users’ perspective at the heart of the project and coordinate how the SME partners shape the research. It delivers a comprehensive set of communication and dissemination actives prioritised in relation to what is needed to maximise impact.

At the heart of this work is a Communications and Delivery Strategy that prioritises communication, dissemination and exploitation activities to maximise impact. This will be updated during the project to include a Publication Strategy, Exploitation Strategy and Long-term plan for prolonged impact.  A Research Users’ Forum comprising the partners involved in exploitation is linked to a network of Local User Fora.  A Communications and Delivery Strategy frames and prioritise delivery activities focusing them on the impact sought.  Linked to this, the work package also brings together efforts to develop and exploit synergy with other relevant research projects.

The ideas and preliminary findings of the WATBIO will be communicated regularly to the relevant stakeholder groups.  The communication approaches include:

Project leaflets
General media – press releases and newsletters
Scientific conferences
Local User Fora linked to SME partners.
Interaction with the policy community, particular with respect to economic and environmental aspects
Academic publications

The delivery of the research in relation to SME participants’ needs and the exploitation of the outputs by SMEs, including IP, is coordinated and facilitated.  Much of the exploitation of specific results will be done on a bilateral basis between the main research teams involved and the corresponding SMEs. This
seeks to ensure that these exploitation activities are complementary, mutually supporting, and supported by
a common set of supporting communication materials.