Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies

Call for Papers: IJPS volume 12, issue 1

Stephanie Gingerich — 2024-12-20

The importance of interdisciplinary partnerships to address interconnected local and global challenges has never been more pressing. The Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies (IJPS) invites scholars, practitioners, and thought leaders from all disciplines to submit original articles for our first issue in 2025.

We welcome submissions in a variety of categories including community voices, works of art, editorials, media reviews, case studies, reports of research and quality improvement projects, and practical frameworks. We encourage authors to engage with diverse perspectives and consider collaborative works that involve scholars from multiple disciplines or global regions. We especially seek articles that explore innovative interdisciplinary approaches to challenges locally and/or globally. These stories can be exemplars to others around the world tackling similar problems, enhancing global learning and the sharing of knowledge across borders.

The deadline for submissions for IJPS Vol. 12 Issue 1 is March 15^th, 2025. All submissions in all categories undergo peer review. Please refer to our submission guidelines at pubs.lib.umn.edu/index.php/ijps/about/submissions. Questions about submissions for this issue may be directed to article should be addressed to Stephanie Gingerich at ginge018@umn.edu or Stephanie Doscher at sdoscher@umn.edu.

Artist's Statement: REBIRTH

Angelica Walton — 2024-12-20

Artist’s Statement for the cover art of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies, Volume 11, Issue 2: Rebirth. Mixed Media

Finding Like Minds and Gaining Inspiration: A Conversation with Teddie Potter

Riane Eisler — 2024-12-20

Riane Eisler interviews Dr. Teddie Potter, Co-Founder and Executive Editor of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies and Director of the Center for Planetary Health and Environmental Justice at the University of Minnesota School of Nursing.

Territorial Rivalries in Humanitarian Work and Nursing: Critical Examination of Professional Identities and Delivery of Care

Janaka Jayawickrama — 2024-12-20

This article explores the challenges of professional identities and delivery of care in humanitarian work and nursing practices. Using a twofold methodology comprising a literature review and analysis of two case studies – humanitarian responses to the 2004 tsunami in Sri Lanka and responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in a hospital setting in the USA – the authors highlight how traditional education may fall short in preparing individuals to be compassionate and effective caregivers. This article suggests that drawing on ideas from ancient philosophies beyond the Euro-North American perspective could help to improve learning. By incorporating values like teamwork, joyfulness, openness, and humility, we might create better strategies for training and avoid conflicts within caring professions such as nursing and humanitarianism.

Building a Partnership World: Imagining a Future of Cooperation and Equity

Fang Lei — 2024-12-20

In a world dominated by narratives of control, conflict, and dystopia, envisioning a future based on partnership principles is both a revolutionary and a necessary endeavor. This paper explores the transformative potential of a partnership-based society, where cooperative relationships replace hierarchical structures, and mutual respect and collaboration become the cornerstones of social, economic, and environmental interactions. By drawing on cultural transformation work and Indigenous wisdom, this paper outlines a comprehensive vision for education, agriculture, urban development, governance, and social inclusion in a partnership world.

Foresight, Partnerships, and Cross Sector Collective Impact: Strategies to Build A Partnership World

Daniel Pesut — 2024-12-20

This article discusses the value of connecting foresight leadership with partnership practice to achieve cross-sector collective impacts. The dimensions of future consciousness and foresight literacy are described. Principles and practices to support foresight leadership development are discussed. The nature of partnership theory and practice is explained. The complex nature of different types of impact are described. Examples of organizations that are future focused with collective impact in mind are highlighted. Strategies and tactics to support the development of foresight, data with action, and collective impact efforts to build a partnership world are outlined.

Developing Global Leaders through International Partnership: A Collaborative Model for Graduate Nursing Programs

Stephanie Gingerich — 2024-12-20

This paper presents a collaborative model for developing global leaders in graduate nursing programs, specifically through an international partnership between the University of Minnesota (UMN) and the University of Iceland (UI). The model, which relies on an innovative week-long immersion course, addresses the growing need for globally-minded nurse leaders capable of responding to the unique challenges of today's interconnected world. The immersive component included lectures, field trips, and a group project focused on the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals. Evaluation data from the cohorts in the biannual programs in 2022 and 2024 (n=55) showed high satisfaction rates, with more than 90% of students rating the course as good or very good. Qualitative feedback highlighted themes of shared nursing experiences, a greater appreciation of global health-care systems, and the universal need for effective communication. The program aligned with competencies outlined by major nursing organizations. This model offers a promising approach for graduate nursing education to prepare leaders capable of addressing complex, interconnected global health challenges.

Co-Designing Future-Based Partnership for a University-Affiliated Organization Using a Futuristic Approach

Anne Namatsi Lutomia — 2024-12-20

This paper explores a futuristic approach to partnerships through the lens of a university-affiliated organization, focusing on how strategic collaborations can address evolving global challenges. By examining current practices and envisioning future dynamics, the paper provides insights into the role of partnerships in fostering sustainable development, particularly in education, agriculture, and governance. Drawing inspiration from systems learning and the cultural concept of reciprocity, the paper underscores the importance of mutual respect, trust, and collaboration in creating impactful, non-domination partnerships. It highlights the contributions of Scientific Animations Without Borders (SAWBO) by showcasing its innovative use of video animations and multilingual content to enhance knowledge dissemination and empower communities worldwide. The discussion integrates futuristic elements including artificial intelligence (AI) and digital platforms, emphasizing their potential to change partnerships by bridging digital divides and fostering inclusive knowledge-sharing. The conclusion offers recommendations for transformative approaches that prioritize sustainability in building partnerships for a more equitable future.

A Watershed Approach to Co-Creating Just Sustainabilities: Reflections from the Lake Superior Living Labs Network

Charles Z. Levkoe — 2024-12-20

Campus-community partnerships are well-positioned to play a role in advancing social and environmental justice in the context of our rapidly changing and increasingly inequitable world. Across the Global North, post-secondary institutions, civil society organizations, and communities are partnering to establish living labs by integrating research, teaching, and community engagement to advance regenerative social-ecological systems. Living labs aim to co-create innovative solutions to complex challenges through interdisciplinary, placed-based experiential learning and community-engaged action in the built and natural environments. In this paper, we focus on the potential for living labs to establish connections between people and communities and increasing the impact of place-based activities focused on social and environmental justice and sustainability, also known as just sustainabilities. We reflect on our collective experiences working with the Lake Superior Living Labs Network (LSLLN), a nested network of living labs collaborating across the Lake Superior watershed. The LSLLN was established in 2018 as a platform to connect academics and community groups across Canada, the United States, and multiple Indigenous territories, with the goal of developing and expanding partnerships and place-based collaborative initiatives grounded in the Lake Superior watershed as a social-ecological system. Drawing on these insights, we consider the possibilities for a watershed-based approach to living labs. We conclude with a discussion that suggests that nested and networked living labs have the potential to enhance relationships and increase the impact of place-based social justice and sustainability-related activities, while pointing to several limitations of working within existing institutional structures.

Restoring Planetary Health Through Partnerism

Teddie Potter — 2024-12-20

The continuation of life as we know it is currently threatened by human-caused disruptions to the Earth’s natural systems. Modern behaviors and attitudes orienting toward domination contribute to extraction, exploitation, and thoughtless disregard for the needs of future generations. The planetary health paradigm weaves together ancient Indigenous knowledge systems, traditional wisdom, and modern science. Planetary Health is a transdisciplinary field and a social movement that addresses human disruptions of Earth’s natural systems and the impact these disruptions have on human health and on all life on the planet. Planetary Health calls for global cultural transformation, a “Great Transition” that will require rapid structural changes across all human institutions. The scale and urgency of change that is necessary will call for a paradigm and set of values to guide thought and action. Partnerism is an alternative narrative to domination, and its emphasis on linking rather than ranking offers the essential thinking and economic model to drive massive cultural transformation around the world. This paper concludes with a vision for a future where planetary health and partnerism thrive.

Our First Ten Years of Leading With Love: Transforming Cultures Through Interdisciplinary Discourse

Riane Eisler — 2024-12-20

Editor-in-Chief of the Interdisciplinary Journal of Partnership Studies Riane Eisler writes about how much the tenth anniversary of this journal means to her. She thanks those who founded IJPS, as well as its global readership, for bringing international attention to the urgent need for a cultural transformation from domination to partnership at our time of mounting existential threats such as climate change and nuclear weaponry. Eisler tells us how the questions that led to her work are deeply rooted in her childhood experiences, explains how the new social categories of partnership and domination came out of her interdisciplinary research, and briefly outlines each of their core configurations. She connects the personal and the political, sharing her 45-year partnership with the late social scientist David Loye, appeals to us to do everything we can to accelerate the shift from domination to partnership worldwide, and shows the important role IJPS has in this needed social and cultural transformation.

Bridging to Caring Economics and a Changed World

Donald Gault — 2024-12-20

Bridging is a furniture bank located in Minnesota’s Twin Cities. Since 1987, Bridging has helped make the homes of close to 350,000 people places of dignity and hope. The work of Bridging is built around a remarkable series of partnerships that strongly aligns with Riane Eisler’s concept of caring economics, and Bryan Stevenson’s challenge to us all to take action to change the world. This paper will outline the origins of Bridging, how it operates, and how it represents an inspiring, tangible example of the power of partnership to transform individuals and communities.

Chalice and Blade: Dreaming a Partnership Future

Jonee Kulman Brigham — 2024-12-20

A new poem titled “Chalice and Blade” imagines how a partnership future might be envisioned as it grows from our partnership and domination history. The author describes the poem’s influences, including its primary inspiration that came from the ideas and themes in Riane Eisler’s seminal book, The Chalice and the Blade: Our History, Our Future.