Impact in interdisciplinary and cross‐sector research: Opportunities and challenges

Impact is embedded in today's research culture, with increasing importance being placed on the value of research to society. In interdisciplinary and cross‐sector projects, team members may hold distinct views on the types of impact they want to create. Set in the context of an interdisciplinary, cross‐sector project comprised of partners from academia, industry, and the nonprofit sector, our paper unpacks how these diverse project members understand impact. Our analysis shows that interdisciplinary projects offer a unique opportunity to create impact on a number of different levels. Moreover, it demonstrates that a lack of accountable design and collaboration practices can potentially hinder pathways to impact. Finally, we find that the interdisciplinary perspectives that such projects introduce encourage a rich gamut of sustainable outcomes that go beyond commercialization. Our findings support researchers working in these complex contexts to appreciate the opportunities and challenges involved in interdisciplinary cross‐sector research contexts while imparting them with strategies for overcoming these challenges.