Societal Impact Stories
Photo: Claudia Mendes
The University of Hamburg creates excellent and relevant knowledge in, with and for societal actors, always with impact goals. It therefore sees itself not only as an institution for research and teaching, but also as a corporate citizen. Its members are not only researchers and teachers, but also academic citizens. And what is at stake is more than knowledge – it’s about the, in part co-creative, production of public goods.
In this context, societal impact stories provide comprehensible reporting to third parties, such as stakeholders, media people or colleagues from other disciplines, and strengthen legitimisation vis-à-vis various stakeholder groups (e. g. funders, multipliers, media). In addition, societal impact stories can provide inspiration for one's own (transdisciplinary) research by expanding the range of methods, reflexive design and the attraction and commitment of practice partners. We regularly organise workshops on this topic for members of all departments. If you need advice, please do not hesitate to contact us.
1. Everything starts with W-questions!
This is how you consistently think your project through from the intended impacts: You carried it out because …, in that place because …, with those partners because …
Why? What purpose drives the engagement and supports the claimed impact?
What impact do you aim to achieve? What difference does the project make – for the problem, for the participants, for science, and for the relationships between them?
What? What is the significance of the project beyond academia – who should it be relevant for?
When? Why now? How do the timing and duration relate to the potential impact of the project?
Where? What characterizes the selected non-academic field? Why this particular setting?
With whom? Why these project partners? What are their interests, motivations, and expectations for the collaboration?
How? What (co-creative) methods are being used? How are they tailored to the purpose, context, and intended public?
What impact(s) have you achieved? The desired ones, unexpected ones, surprising ones … Are there further indicators, such as visitor numbers, enthusiastic guestbook comments, or a political initiative?
2. From the answers to the W-questions: Generate Societal Impact Stories
Nota bene: From a project, event, or program, multiple stories can be developed, depending on:
- who is writing (e.g., researchers and/or practice partners)
- for what purpose (e.g., documentation, informative-promotional, etc.)
- for which audience (e.g., researchers from other disciplines, practice partners)
- in which medium (e.g., transfer website or article)
3. Societal Impact – don’t just report it, plan for it from the start!
Using the guiding W-questions, you can plan your knowledge exchange activity with an impact-oriented approach right from the start and make adjustments throughout the process. This is how it will be handled in the Knowledge Exchange Fund from now on.
Examples: W-questions and a possible Societal Impact Story
So lonely? Loneliness despite Digitalization
What? Secondary analysis of a brand-new but highly underused dataset on Corona & digitalization — particularly valuable because it includes older adults, a group often underrepresented in such data.
Where? In Mainz, home of Stiftung Lesen (the dataset owner), and in Hamburg, where we focus on digitalization and adult education — but have so far lacked suitable data on older adults.
With whom? Stiftung Lesen, adult education centers (Volkshochschulen), the workers’ welfare association (AWO), and 56 participants at the first results presentation.
Why? To shift attention to the educational needs of older adults. The current "Decade for Literacy and Basic Education" relies on data representing only 18–65-year-olds — thus overlooking older generations.
When? The most recent dataset used in the Decade dates back to 2018 — before the pandemic. The Stiftung Lesen dataset was collected in 2020, during the pandemic, making it uniquely relevant.
How? Research questions were developed in workshops with adult education providers. These led to statistical secondary analyses — over 40 graphics so far — which are now being discussed in practitioner-focused talks.
With what impact? A novel exchange of ideas for new program formats — for example, collaborations between AWO and adult education centers focusing on “silver surfers.”
The outcome is a story like the one below:
Transferring recent survey results into innovative educational concepts for adult education and welfare organizations
During the COVID-19 pandemic, it became more evident than ever that vulnerable groups are often excluded from digital services and offerings. The project “So lonely? Loneliness despite digitalization” (2021–2022) by Prof. Dr. Anke Grotlüschen and Joshua Wilhelm (Vocational Education and Lifelong Learning, Faculty of Education, Universität Hamburg) focused on transferring recent study findings into practice. These studies reveal that older adults — a group often overlooked in comparable research — are particularly affected by digital exclusion and fear being left behind. In collaboration with educational and welfare institutions (e.g., adult education centers and AWO), the project laid the groundwork for targeted learning opportunities.
The starting point was literacy survey by Stiftung Lesen in Mainz from 2020. The data shows that many seniors without access to digital tools for social contact, online sports classes, or digital public services experience significant anxiety about isolation in a digital world. At the same time, empirical evidence highlights that, during the pandemic, education providers were able to spark interest in digital learning formats among older adults — even after students and working adults had grown weary of them..
To make the complex raw data usable in practice, the researchers analyzed and translated it into accessible formats — paired with broad public outreach: from Twitter posts (@LLLatUHH) to blog entries, articles, and presentations. The project also emphasized co-creative collaboration with its partners. Research questions emerged from workshops with adult education centers, followed by statistical secondary analyses and the creation of over 40 data visualizations, which were discussed with practitioners. The shared outcome: a well-founded basis for more innovative educational concepts that explicitly promote digital participation and learning opportunities for older adults.
Jupiter Campus
What? A temporary, cross-university campus serving as a platform for encounters, exchange, and productive disruption between academia and both intentional and incidental actors from Hamburg’s urban society — with a focus on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).
Where? (And why there?) In a former department store on Hamburg’s Mönckebergstraße, currently used for interim projects in art, culture, design, and gastronomy. The space intentionally contrasts with traditional university environments and thus appeals to non-academic audiences. Located in the heart of the city and frequented by both invited guests and walk-in visitors, the setting was characterized by diversity, openness, unpredictability, and improvisation.
With whom? (And why these partners?) With over 80 researchers, lecturers, students, and science communicators from various Hamburg universities, along with municipal and civil society initiatives. All participants shared two traits: (1) their contributions supported ESD, and (2) they showed a willingness to take risks and engage in non-formal learning and transdisciplinary collaboration.
Why? The project, implemented from October to December 2023, contributed to two key strategic goals: supporting the implementation of Hamburg’s ESD Master Plan 2030 and strengthening the University of Hamburg’s transfer activities as part of its Excellence Strategy.
When? (And why then?) In 2023, the department store was available for low-cost interim use, thanks to public funding and reliable coordination by the Hamburg Kreativgesellschaft. The three-month timeframe was long enough to build visibility and generate impact during the project period, but short enough to maintain energy and enthusiasm among participants.
How? (And why this approach?) A deliberately open and low-threshold Call for Contributions (via mailing lists, news announcements, and flyers at university and ESD-related events in Hamburg) encouraged a wide range of contributors across disciplines and career stages. Thanks to a strong infrastructure — central space, flexible equipment, a curated program, and coordination by the Co-Creation & Engagement Center team — a broad variety of formats and activities on sustainability topics were realized, including on evenings and weekends. This enabled the project to reach and engage highly diverse audiences over its entire duration.
With what impact? The project yielded a wide range of intended and emergent outcomes, as it followed an exploratory rather than instrumental approach. Academics were encouraged to step outside the protected university environment and engage with artists, curious visitors, and other interim users of the department store. Researchers and students gave up a degree of control and privilege to allow space for new interactions and negotiation processes. Non-formal and transformative learning formats were tested, and participants made their work more visible to the public. This promoted competencies in dealing with complexity, uncertainty, and diversity, and helped strengthen both personal and collective resilience.
Visitors experienced university and science as approachable and socially engaged. They contributed their own knowledge and perspectives on sustainability transformation, which were expanded and connected to locally relevant research and teaching. In addition to sharing and exchanging knowledge, the project encouraged reflection on ESD and generated new contacts, ideas for future cooperation, networks, and concrete follow-up projects.
This leads to the following story:
Between October and December 2023, the third floor of the JUPITER building (formerly Karstadt Sport) near Hamburg Central Station became home to a temporary, cross-university campus: the JUPITER CAMPUS. It served as a platform for encounters, exchange, and productive disruption between Hamburg’s universities and the urban public, centered around Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). The project aimed to contribute both to the implementation of the Hamburg Master Plan ESD 2030 and to strengthening the University of Hamburg’s transfer activities as part of its Excellence Strategy.
The JUPITER building was chosen deliberately: since 2022, it has been used for interim projects across art, culture, design, and gastronomy, and attracts a steady stream of interested and incidental visitors thanks to its central location on Mönckebergstraße. With its open, diverse, and improvisational character, the space offered a conscious alternative to traditional university environments such as lecture halls, seminar rooms, or labs.
An explicitly open and low-threshold call for contributions enabled the involvement of over 80 researchers, educators, students, and science communicators from different Hamburg universities, across all disciplines and career levels. All participants met two key criteria: their contributions supported ESD, and they shared a willingness to experiment with non-formal learning formats and transdisciplinary collaboration. Thanks to the infrastructure — a central space, flexible equipment, curatorial strategy, and coordination by the Co-Creation & Engagement Center — a wide range of formats and activities on sustainability topics could be realized, including during evenings and weekends. As a result, highly diverse audiences were reached and engaged throughout the entire project period. Participants brought in and expanded their own knowledge and perspectives on sustainability transformation, while connecting academic research and teaching with locally relevant sustainability issues. The University of Hamburg was perceived as open and engaged with societal challenges. In addition to sharing and exchanging knowledge, new contacts, cooperation ideas, and concrete follow-up projects emerged. Finally, the unpredictable interactions and negotiation processes strengthened participants’ competencies in dealing with complexity, uncertainty, and diversity — boosting both personal and collective resilience.
The three-month duration was long enough to gain visibility within the city and create impact during the project’s course — yet short enough to maintain momentum, energy, and enthusiasm among all involved.
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