Social Media as a Tool to Disseminate ASD Mental Health Research

Jonathan Weiss, Faculty of Health and CIHR Chair in Autism Spectrum Disorders Treatment and Care Research, York University
Michael Johnny, RIR York

A commitment to social media can help support important messages in research being shared to diverse audiences.

Jonathan Weiss

Social media is not a new medium for disseminating academic research but it is one that is relatively new and not widely utilized by academic researchers. Dr. Jonathan Weiss of York University and CIHR Chair in Autism Spectrum Disorders Treatment and Care Research has adopted social media as an important component of his collaboration, engagement and dissemination efforts. His rationale is embedded in the title of an early blog entry on his recently created ASD Mental Health blog, “Why Focus a Blog on Mental Health and Autism Spectrum Disorders? How Could We Not“? An understanding that research is only part of the continuum of desired changes to policy and practice around Autism, social media was determined to be an important tool to support engagement with project partners, research dissemination to diverse end users, and an opportunity to access additional information and contacts to continue to support the ongoing research agenda.

This is all aligned with a clear and comprehensive knowledge translation (KT) strategy for the project team. Simply put, the objectives of KT for this project are to enable research to inform decision making along the spectrum of Autism service. Informed by the leading work of Melanie Barwick who had led Scientist Knowledge Translation Training courses, an integrated KT strategy has been employed. This means ongoing engagement with stakeholders. Information will be shared in a timely manner and in relevant formats allowing for easy access to research to encourage specific recommendations to enable research to meet its objectives of helping inform policy and practice.

The Chair website and blog have been combined with the work of numerous project partners, to create a web of engagement that meets the needs of all involved. For ResearchImpact, this is an excellent example of how social media can be effectively used as part of a KT strategy. For the project team, it is an important tool to disseminate and access relevant information related to Autism and Mental Health research.

Visit the Chair in Autsim Spectrum Disorders Treatment and Care Research website at asdmentalhealth.ca,  the ASD Mental Health blog at asdmentalhealth.blog.yorku.ca and the complete list of research summaries at asdmentalhealth.ca/research-summaries. And watch the ResearchImpact twitter feed @researchimpact for the rest of this week, where we will be tweeting about ASD Mental Health ResearchSnapshots.

Collaborating for Social Good / Collaborer pour le bien collectif

David Phipps, RIR-York

What happens when 88 people get together to talk social innovation? You get the start of a Regional and systems level response to address persistent social challenges. You also get to dance!

Que se passe-t-il lorsque 88 personnes se rassemblent pour discuter d’innovation sociale? Vous obtenez l’émergence d’une réponse à des défis sociaux persistants, et ce, à l’échelle régionale et systémique.

Collaborating for Social Good was sponsored by the conference series “Business Innovation in Changing Times” a capacity building series for York Region designed to accelerate innovation and business growth. On April 18, delegates from the private, public and non-profit sectors came together to discuss how to collaborate to create social benefits. There were 29 delegates from the non-profit sector, 35 from business, 11 from education and 13 from government. York’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit was pleased to be part of the steering committee. We also were an exhibitor and presented on a panel with Women’s Centre of York Region and ventureLAB.

Much of the day was spent mind mapping to identify drivers, issues (“burrs”) and opportunities. Maps were developed and shared and commented upon. In the end the maps were synthesized into opportunities/challenges for York Region. A group of 25 participants came together on May 13 to continue the dialogue. These 25 were comprised of 10 from business, 6 from government, 3 from education and 6 from the nonprofit sector. This group came together to begin to address the two social innovation priorities derived from the mind map synthesis: 1) knowledge transfer; and, 2) taking risks.

Mind maps

Three things were striking from this event:

1. There were more private sector than non-profit sector participants: often the non-profit sector dominates the discourse of social innovation. This has been true at York’s Knowledge Mobilization Forums and at many of the knowledge mobilization events we have held in York Region. Collaborating for Social Good seems to be the start of a new conversation where business has an equal voice.
2. This was a Region wide conversation: there was no dominant sector or municipality.
3. Knowledge transfer – sharing across sectors – was identified as a priority for the Region.

Huge shout outs to Kirsten Eastwood (Women’s Centre of York Region) and the York Region Social Innovation Collaboration for their time and talents in organizing and executing this wonderful event.

We also embedded some arts based activities. Two poets from York University attended and interpreted the day in poetry. Sara-Jane Gloutnez composed “Cubism” and she collaborated with Christian Quaresma on an “Untitled” poem. These poems capture some of the thoughts and themes of the day in a style that is both foreign and familiar at the same time.

And thanks to Seneca College we danced. Seneca sent three students who led us in some Zumba and Latin dance. This was an amazingly successful activity. You have to trust each other when dancing. You also need trust for a successful collaboration.

Dance may just be a novel vehicle for knowledge mobilization!

Dancing for collaboration

Social Media for Research / Les médias sociaux pour la recherche

David Phipps, RIR-York

Can you use social media in your research? Yes! Can you build capacity among research administrators to help researchers use social media in you research? Yes, and Krista Jensen (@atomickitty) shows you how.

Pouvez-vous utiliser les médias sociaux dans vos recherches? Oui! Pouvez-vous développer les compétences des administrateurs de la recherche afin d’aider les chercheurs à employer les médias sociaux dans leurs recherches? Oui, et Krista Jensen (@atomickitty) vous montre comment cela peut être fait.

York’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit has been actively building capacity for social media as a tool for research dissemination and engagement. In 2012, we published a book chapter that presented some social media tools and how they can be used in research and knowledge mobilization. Last year we also provided a variety of social media workshops including on overview of social media, a 2.5 hour twitter for learning and research workshop, a wordpress workshop as well as a workshop on building a social media strategy.

Krista Jensen (@atomickitty)

This year we were invited by the organizers of the annual Canadian Association of University Research Administrators (CAURA) to host a workshop on social media. The audience was research administrators but the objective was supporting social media strategies for research projects (even though we frequently delved into social media as a tool to support the research services office). Increasingly granting agencies are demanding knowledge mobilization or knowledge translation strategies for grant applications. In February 2012, we gave a knowledge mobilization webinar for CAURA. Increasingly these knowledge mobilization strategies involve social media. Hence the CAURA workshop this year.

We had 13 people show up, which was ideal. There was some hands on group work that would not have been feasible with a larger group. The presentation is available below or here on the KMbYork Slide Share account.

Some of the issues raised by the group included:

• Resourcing – who does this and how do you pay for it?> Make it someone’s job and ensure research grant budgets have line items for social media including for purchasing pro accounts (an eligible expense on many granting programs)
• Risks – do you need policies to manage risk created by social media?> Social media is just another channel… have policies to manage risk and ensure that social media use is anticipated in those policies
• Role of corporate communications?> A great ally so long as they serve for more than brand stewardship
• Volume – how to manage the volume when you already can’t get through all your e mail?> See resourcing and make it someone’s job for the research office or the research program.

The audience was very engaged. Krista Jensen put the session together and presented 95% of it. The audience appreciated her experience and wisdom. Everyone came back after break (in fact, we picked up one person!). Email and blackberries were almost wholly absent from the session (always a good sign) and evaluations were more than positive. Respondents were asked 5 questions with a maximum score of 5. We received 10 evaluations for a total possible score of 250. Krista received a score of 243/250, a score of 97.2%. And when asked who was thinking differently after the session every hand went up. When asked who will be acting differently after the session about 80% of the hands stayed up.

Thanks Krista for the excellent workshop. And thanks to Gary Myers (@kmbeing) who came along as a social media and knowledge mobilization expert to lend his experience to the discussion.

Still Trying to Keep it Simple / Toujours essayer de garder les choses simples

David Phipps, RIR-York

Is a picture worth a thousand words? David Phipps tries to explain knowledge mobilization and social innovation more succinctly than that.

Une image vaut-elle mille mots? David Phipps tente d’expliquer la mobilisation des connaissances et l’innovation sociale de façon plus succincte que cela.

On March 13, 2013, I published that knowledge mobilization helps make research useful to society. I tried to make it simple so anyone can understand why we do what we do. And now for another over simplification but one that hopefully explains how we do what we do.

In 2009, we published that knowledge mobilization is a process that enables social innovation. Knowledge mobilization (the how) enables social innovation (the what). I recently took

Naomi Nichols and Fiona

this one step further with my colleague and new mom, Naomi Nichols. We have a paper about to come out in the Canadian Journal of Nonprofit and Social Economy Research. SSHRC gave me and Allyson Hewitt (Advisor, Social Innovation and Director, Social Entrepreneurship, MaRS) a small grant to explore methods to leverage investments in higher education and research. Our synthesis (thanks to Johanne Provencal for the heavy lifting) mapped out the theoretical relationships between knowledge mobilization, community campus collaborations and social innovation. We identified literature and practices that took “the how” and “the what” above one step further. Our analysis shows that knowledge mobilization is a process that produces community campus collaborations and some of those community campus collaborations enable social innovation. In a logic model framework:

• activity = knowledge mobilization
• outcome = community campus collaborations
• impact = social innovation

We were asked by the reviewers to provide a diagram of this relationship. This was a daunting task. Many diagrams of knowledge mobilization type activities are necessarily complex reflecting the multi-directional, multi-stakeholder, multi-disciplinary (mutli-everything!) nature of our work. On the left is a model from: Bennet, Alex and David Bennet. 2008. Knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities: moving from research to action. Frost, West Virginia, USA: MQI Press. On the right is the KTA model from: Graham Ian D. et al. 2006. “Lost in knowledge translation: time for a map?” J Contin EducHealth Prof 26(1):13-24.

But remembering the post on March 13, 2013 … keep it simple stupid.

So we came up with the following. A drastically oversimplified diagram illustrating a complex process but it does show that knowledge mobilization is a process that brings communities and campuses into a shared space so they can collaborate and hopefully enable social innovations.

Knowledge mobilization is a process that produces community campus collaborations which can enable social innovation.

In this case a picture is worth only 15 words.

KMbuddies for Life / Des amis mobilisés pour la vie

Michael Johnny, RIR YorkU

Michael Johnny reflects on his seven year working relationship in knowledge mobilization with Joaquin Trapero from University of Victoria.

Michael Johnny témoigne de sept années de travail en mobilisation des connaissances en collaboration avec Joaquin Trapero de l’Université de Victoria.

I had to look back to see, but the first communication was an email on February 16, 2006.  It was an introductory email from Joaquin Trapero, the new Knowledge Transfer Specialist at the University of Victoria.  So it makes his career in KMb span over seven years.  And now because of the formal launch of the Research Partnership and Knowledge Mobilization (RPKM) office at the University of Victoria, Dr. Joaquin Trapero no longer has KMb within his portfolio of responsibility.  It has been a few years since he has worked as a KT Specialist, moving on to manage the Institutional Portfolio program.  Now this is his full-time responsibility.

I had wanted to write this blog for almost four days now, and even now while I write, I am staring at the screen looking for words to capture my feelings.  I remember very clearly the early days of this journey and our work together where we’d meet four times a year– twice here in Toronto and twice in Victoria.  Our Intellectual Property Mobilization grant supported this initial ‘experiment’ of institutional knowledge mobilization services.  Capably led by Dr. Richard Keeler (former AVP Research, University of Victoria) and Dr. David Phipps (Executive Director, Research Services and Knowledge Exchange, York University), Joaquin and I were exploring what it meant to be knowledge brokers and helping lead the development of a national network.

So many memories poured back over the past few days while reflecting back on seven years:  our first Congress at University of Saskatchewan back in 2007 (which was the source of infamous beer, pizza and KMb planning talks); one of Joaquin’s first trips to Toronto to visit with us (where we naively planned a day-long event which began with a breakfast at 7:30 am EST… that’s 4:30 PST… oops); a decision to leave the KTS portfolio to take on UVic’s Institutional Portfolio (but fortunately allowed him to retain working responsibilities in KMb); and the success of KMb within our institutions which has helped enable the growth of ResearchImpact-RéseauImpactRecherche.

Congress this year is going to be held in Victoria.  How fitting!  While Joaquin will not be involved in the RIR booth at the book fair, David Phipps and I are going to make sure we meet up for one last beer, pizza and KMb planning talks!  And with that to look forward to, I am happy to share how I am feeling now and that is grateful.  What I have learned from Joaquin over these seven years?  Sharing a commitment to develop strong KMb programs and support RIR, attention to detail and planning, shared values around processes for successful KMb, and having fun along the way!

Joaquin, my friend, I appreciate all you’ve done to make this work in KMb a success and a pleasure.   I wish you success and happiness!  Thanks for a great seven years!

Joaquin Trapero, David Phipps and Michael Johnny

Welcome New ResearchImpact Universities / Le Réseau Impact Recherche accueille ses nouveaux membres

“On behalf of my colleagues, it is my pleasure to welcome four new universities to ResearchImpact, Canada’s knowledge mobilization network”, says Robert Haché, vice president research & innovation at York University.

The Université de Montreal, Carleton University, Wilfrid Laurier University and Kwantlen Polytechnic University now join the existing six ResearchImpact-RéseauImpactRecherche (RIR) university members following a national call. Membership involves a commitment to participate in and support the network. New members identified a full time equivalent knowledge broker and a Director who would coordinate knowledge mobilization activities. The VP Research or equivalent at each university endorsed the application for membership.

ResearchImpact was originally funded by SSHRC and CIHR through an Intellectual Property Mobilization grant held by York University and partnered with the University of Victoria. Memorial University of Newfoundland and Labrador, University du Quebec a Montreal, University of Guelph and University of Saskatchewan joined ResearchImpact in 2010. Today the 10 member network acts as a community of practice, sharing tools and building capacity for institutional knowledge mobilization services. By supporting research engagement and dissemination, knowledge mobilization helps to maximize the economic, social and environmental impacts of university research and learning.

Here’s what the new RIR members are saying:

“I mobilize, you transfer, we apply research-based knowledge… and the whole society benefits. Knowledge mobilization is a necessary tool if we intend to increase the impact of our research. Both research on knowledge transfer and experience gained in the various fields of excellence of our institution demonstrate the importance of linking knowledge mobilization activities to the reality of each sector and integrating them to research from the onset.  At the University of Montréal, because knowledge mobilization is at the core of our concerns individually as well as collectively, we are happy to join the ResearchImpact network to improve our practices and share our expertise. “

Dominique Bérubé, Deputy Provost, Research, Operations and Consultation, University of Montréal

“Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) is excited to be joining such a distinguished pan-Canadian group of universities committed to community knowledge mobilization. KPU has deep roots in the communities we serve. Authentic community engagement, through the development of applied community research and by offering service learning to all students, is a cornerstone of our new Strategic Plan. We look forward to a long term and mutually beneficial partnership with other RIR member universities.”

Gordon Lee, Provost and VP Academic, Kwantlen Polytechnic University

“Community engagement is a part of Carleton’s DNA, whether it is based in our history of being built by the community for the community or our flagship research centres such as the Carleton Centre for Community Innovation. Now, more than ever, Canadian communities seek to maximize and mobilize results of locally driven, cross-sector solutions to the complex problems. RIR facilitates access to a leading-edge community of practice that will provide tools and resources to help Carleton take its commitment to working with communities to the next level.”

Carleton University

“Knowledge mobilization is a critical element in the research process. Knowledge mobilization forges critical connections between research and society I am excited by the opportunity to enhance the connection between the university and the community through participation in the ResearchImpact network. We have successfully encouraged faculty for many years to maximize the impact of their research through appropriate community involvement and look forward to working with ResearchImpact to increase this impact.”

Abby Goodrum, VP Research, Wilfrid Laurier University

Welcome on board! RIR is delighted to have 10 university members from across Canada.

For more information please see www.researchimpact.ca or contact info@researchimpact.ca

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« Au nom de tous mes collègues, c’est avec grand plaisir que j’accueille quatre nouvelles universités dans le Réseau Impact Recherche, le réseau canadien de mobilisation des connaissances », a déclaré Robert Haché, vice-recteur à la recherche et à l’innovation de l’Université York.

À la suite d’une invitation lancée à l’échelle nationale, l’Université de Montréal, l’Université Carleton, l’Université Wilfrid-Laurier et l’Université polytechnique de Kwantlen se joignent aujourd’hui aux six universités déjà membres de ResearchImpact–RéseauImpactRecherche (RIR). Pour être admis dans le réseau, les adhérents se sont engagés à participer activement à ses activités et à les soutenir. Ils ont désigné un courtier ou une courtière de connaissances qui se consacre à temps plein à cette tâche, ainsi qu’une directrice ou un directeur qui coordonne les activités de mobilisation des connaissances (MdC). La candidature de chaque université avait reçu l’appui du vice-rectorat à la recherche (ou de l’unité équivalente).

À l’origine, le Réseau Impact Recherche a été financé par le Conseil de recherche en sciences humaines du Canada (CRSHC) et les Instituts de recherche en santé du Canada (IRSC), grâce à une subvention à la mobilisation de la propriété intellectuelle accordée à l’Université York, en partenariat avec l’Université de Victoria. En 2010, l’Université  Memorial de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador, l’Université du Québec à Montréal, l’Université de Guelph et l’Université de la Saskatchewan se joignaient au Réseau Impact Recherche. Aujourd’hui, nos 10 membres forment une communauté d’échange de pratiques au sein de laquelle ils diffusent leurs outils et leurs ressources, ce qui leur permet de renforcer la capacité des services de MdC de leur établissement respectif. En optimisant l’engagement envers la recherche et sa diffusion, la MdC aide à maximiser l’impact économique, social et environnemental de la recherche et des études universitaires.

Voici ce que les nouveaux membres du RIR ont à dire au sujet de leur adhésion :

Dominique Bérubé, Vice-rectrice adjointe à la recherche, opération et concertation, Université du Montréal

« L’Université polytechnique Kwantlen (KPU) est très enthousiaste à l’idée de se joindre au prestigieux groupe d’universités canadiennes qui se sont engagées envers la mobilisation communautaire des connaissances. KPU est solidement enracinée dans les communautés qu’elle dessert. L’engagement communautaire authentique, au moyen du développement de la recherche communautaire appliquée et de l’apprentissage par le travail bénévole, est la pierre d’assise de notre nouveau Plan stratégique. Nous sommes enchantés d’amorcer avec les autres universités membres du RIR un partenariat que nous souhaitons long et mutuellement bénéfique. »

Gordon Lee, Vice-recteur et vice-président aux affaires universitaires, Université  polytechnique de Kwantlen

« L’engagement communautaire est inscrit dans les gènes de Carleton! On le voit dans le passé de notre établissement, bâti par la communauté et pour la communauté, mais aussi dans nos centres de recherche de tout premier plan, comme le Carleton Centre for Community Innovation. Aujourd’hui plus que jamais, au Canada, les communautés cherchent à maximiser et à mobiliser les résultats des solutions intersectorielles locales à des problèmes complexes. Le RIR nous ouvre les portes d’un réseau d’échange de pratiques d’avant-garde, grâce auquel nous aurons accès à des outils et des ressources qui permettront à Carleton d’aller plus loin encore dans son engagement à travailler avec les communautés. »

Université Carleton

« La mobilisation des connaissances est un élément essentiel du processus de recherche. Elle forge des liens vitaux entre la recherche et la société, et je suis très enthousiaste devant cette occasion qui s’offre à nous de renforcer la relation de notre université avec la communauté grâce à notre participation au Réseau Impact Recherche. Depuis de nombreuses années, nous encourageons nos professeurs à maximiser l’impact de leurs recherches en favorisant de leur part un engagement communautaire adéquat. En collaborant avec Réseau Impact Recherche, nous augmenterons encore cet impact, et nous avons très hâte de travailler en ce sens. »

Abby Goodrum, Vice-rectrice à la recherche, Université Wilfrid-Laurier

Bienvenue parmi nous! Le RIR se réjouit de pouvoir compter désormais sur dix universités membres, réparties dans tout le Canada.

Pour de plus amples renseignements, visitez le www.researchimpact.ca ou contactez-nous à info@researchimpact.ca.

Knowledge Mobilization Simulation / Une simulation de mobilisation des connaissances

David Phipps, RIR-York

Simulation can help understand the barriers and enablers for implementing research evidence into policy and practice. A knowledge mobilization simulation sponsored by Children & Youth in Challenging Contexts illustrates that context is important when simulating knowledge mobilization. And it draws into question the role of knowledge mobilization tools.

La simulation peut permettre de comprendre les contraintes et les facilitants relatifs à l’emploi de données de recherche dans la pratique et la politique. Une simulation de mobilisation des connaissances commanditée par Children & Youth in Challenging Contexts illustre l’importance du contexte dans la mobilisation des connaissances. Elle mène également à s’interroger sur le rôle des outils de la mobilisation des connaissances.

sim·u·la·tion

[sim-yuh-ley-shuhn] noun

1. Imitation or enactment, as of something anticipated or in testing.

What is a knowledge mobilization simulation?

• Participants in the knowledge mobilization simulation will work through different knowledge mobilization scenarios and see how knowledge moves across different sectors.

Why hold a knowledge mobilization simulation?

• A knowledge mobilization simulation will help identify the barriers to disseminating evidence and as a group, participants will problem solve and come up with innovative strategies

That was the goal of Children and Youth in Challenging Contexts (CYCC), a Network of Centres of Excellence Knowledge Mobilization initiative focused on child and youth mental health. As an NCE-KM they “feature collaborations between academia, industry, government and not-for-profit organizations across many sectors, with a specialized focus on the transfer and application of new knowledge that brings social, health and/or economic benefits to Canadians”. After completing three co-created knowledge syntheses on: 1) youth exposed to violence; 2) technology; and, 3) youth engagement, CYCC wanted to understand how best to get the evidence from the knowledge syntheses into policy, practice and programs of agencies working in child and youth mental health.

Angie Hart

By planning simulations over two days on March 11-12, 2013 at the Atlantica Hotel & Marina Oak Island, Nova Scotia, 60 of us equally split among researchers, service providers, policy makers and youth sought to maximize the dissemination.  My wonderful knowledge mobilization friend and colleague Angie Hart (Community University Partnership Program at the University of Brighton) and I were asked to wrap up after the two days. My wrap up went something like this:

What is the problem to which simulation is the solution?

I asked this question after seeing a common thread linking some seemingly unconnected content.

Promoting Action on Research Implementation in Health Services: the PARIHS framework. This framework outlines that getting evidence implemented into practice is dependent on three elements: 1) the evidence; 2) the context; and 3) facilitation. The evidence for the knowledge mobilization simulation was the three knowledge syntheses. The evidence didn’t change in the different simulations; therefore, evidence was not the problem to which simulation was the solution.

Both context and facilitation could be modeled through simulation. But which one is (better) addressed by simulation?

Then I reflected on a recent knowledge mobilization journal club on complexity science. Complexity science looks at the whole system of research use. It does not take a reductionist approach and examine only one component. Because two complex systems are never the same the context is always different. The same tactics (ie facilitation) to enhance knowledge mobilization and implementation of evidence won’t work in different contexts. We can agree on principles but not necessarily on the same tools and facilitation.

So if it isn’t evidence and it isn’t facilitation then perhaps context is the problem to which simulation is the solution.

The final piece I wove into this thinking was my experience at the K* (Kstar) conference where I joined colleagues from Vanuatu, Ghana and Argentina to present on the building blocks of knowledge mobilization with civil society. See my blog from our presentation.  Our conclusion was that despite vastly different contexts we were able to identify building blocks of knowledge mobilization. While we implement (i.e. facilitate and use tools) differently, we share six basic principles.

Context is the problem to which simulation is the solution.

This is similar thinking to design labs and design thinking. Knowledge mobilization simulation can help CYCC and other knowledge mobilizers understand local contexts to inform their plans for formatting and disseminating their evidence derived from their co-produced simulations.

What did I learn from this knowledge mobilization experiment?

1. Don’t hold a meeting at a family friendly resort with lots of children’s programming on March break. Little feet make a lot of noise running up and down hallways at 1030 pm.
2. Context matters. Simulation is likely to be more effective in local settings with smaller groups. Large, heterogenous groups will be able to agree on basic principles of knowledge mobilization but implementing those principles will vary depending on local opportunities and constraints.
3. Relationships and credibility are key to local context. This was a common thread that connected many of the conversations on March 11-12. Whether on line or in person, stakeholders (researchers, practitioners, policy makers and youth) want trusted connections through which they will obtain their evidence. When considering context consider the role of the trusted leader as enabler of effective knowledge mobilization (yet wise readers will note that trusted leadership is a determinant of evidence uptake and trust is a determinant of facilitation so these three are not so easily disentangled!).
4. Experiment with knowledge mobilization. The simulation was an important experiment, new to my experience. It created a space where we learned by doing.

And one closing thought that will come back in a future post….Context is important because it enables agreement on principles but precludes implementation of those principles across disparate contexts. Why then do we spend so much time developing and disseminating “tools”? So many of us, including York’s Knowledge Mobilization Unit, produce, format and disseminate our knowledge mobilization tools. But if context is important then my tools that work in my context are not necessarily going to work in yours.

What role then for knowledge mobilization tools?