30. Teaming up for Translation: Dr Kenneth Strahan and Danielle Teychenne on building collaborations that drive research impact

View the full show notes, including a summary of practical tips on the Amplifying Research website: https://www.amplifyingresearch.com/podcast/30-ken-and-dani

 

When Dr Kenneth Strahan developed research-backed archetypes to help understand how different people respond to bushfires, Danielle Teychenne and her colleagues saw an opportunity to create real change. Together, they embarked on an ambitious project to translate this research into practical tools for communities. In this episode, they share candid insights about what it takes to build successful research translation partnerships - from finding the right collaborators to navigating real-world implementation challenges.

Ken is a researcher with 30+ years of experience in bushfire research in Australia, and Dani is currently a learning designer at BehaviorWorks, and she has a background in digital learning.

 So in this episode, we'll hear from Ken about how his work identified seven distinct archetypes that reflect different ways people respond to bushfires — research that could save lives if effectively implemented.

We’ll then discuss the implementation or translation piece, how Danielle and her colleagues tapped into Ken's research, collaborated with him and put together a new project centered on helping communities better prepare for bushfires.

"People wanted to see tailored education... They wanted to feel empowered. They didn't want to have their autonomy taken away from them. They didn't want to be told what to do." – Danielle Teychenne

Whether you're a researcher hoping to see your work create change, or someone looking to adapt research for real-world use, this episode offers valuable lessons on building bridges between research and practice — including frank discussion of what worked, what didn't, and how to navigate the challenges that emerge along the way.

 

Our conversation covers:

• The journey from research insight to practical application

• Creating archetypes or user profiles as part of your research

• Build productive research translation partnerships

• Strategies for tailoring research for different audiences

• Navigating implementation challenges and roadblocks

• Tips for measuring real-world impact

• The importance of starting small and building incrementally

• Balancing rigour with practical constraints

 

Find Dr Kenneth Strahan online:

• Linked In — https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-kenneth-strahan

Find Danielle Teychenne online:

• LinkedIn — https://www.linkedin.com/in/danielle-teychenne

• Bluesky — https://bsky.app/profile/lisagiven.bsky.social

More details on the project:

• https://climatethrive.com.au/bushfire-tool

• https://climatethrive.com.au/noosa

• https://climatethrive.com.au/penrith-cald