TCHANGE: the role of values and visioning in transformation science

• Transformation science explicitly addresses values and envisions desirable futures.
• Iterative, reflective learning processes facilitate the deliberation of trade-offs.
• Experiential learning and rigor can coexist in the co-design of knowledge.
• Imposing methodological formats may limit participatory co-created research.

There is growing recognition of the role of values and visioning for transdisciplinary co-production of knowledge and social transformation. Mapping and deliberating values and envisioning desirable futures are seen as important aspects of transformational learning. TCHANGE (Addressing the Climate Crisis through Value Transformation) aimed to examine how values and anticipating future pathways could be assessed in collaboration with transformational communities. Initially, researchers and practitioners from five countries had divergent views about methodological standards, reflecting distinct ontologies and asymmetrical power relations within the team. However, the emerging tension between scientific rigor, societal relevance, and experiential learning proved productive for flexibility in the problem framing and team building phase of the transdisciplinary co-design process.