Joint problem framing in sustainable land use research

CA has proven to be a suitable tool for organising processes of mutual understanding between heterogeneous actors and fostering social integration in inter- and transdisciplinary research groups. In ELaN the main benefit of the process was an adjustment and enrichment of problem framing which was formulated in the project proposal thus contributing to integrated system knowledge as a basis for the interdisciplinary project consortium and involved practitioners. The insights gained during this process led to changes in the design of some of the sub-projects as well as the targeted end products. This experience confirms the importance of a structured process of joint problem framing in inter- and transdisciplinary projects, especially for thematic fields of such high complexity as land use research.