Keynote

Bianca Vienni-Baptista is a social anthropologist with a PhD in Cultural Studies and over fifteen years of interdisciplinary professional experience. Her expertise lies at the intersection of the anthropology of science and technology and inter- and transdisciplinary research, in both international and intercultural contexts. Currently, she serves as the Group Leader of the Cultural Studies of Science and Technology Group and lectures at the Transdisciplinarity Lab (TdLab) within the Department of Environmental Systems Science at ETH Zürich.

Bianca has developed a research and teaching program that refines and expands the scope of Science, Technology, and Society Studies (STS) by applying a cultural approach to contemporary interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary scientific and technological practices and policies. Specifically, her research examines inter- and transdisciplinary practices, the impact of funding, and the broader interactions between science and policy that are essential for driving meaningful societal transformations. Additionally, her meta-research on inter- and transdisciplinarity delves into methodological innovations and explorations, as well as the significance of institutional processes.

Her commitment to teaching and learning is evidenced by the nine postgraduate and three undergraduate courses she has designed and taught, grounded in anthropological theories and qualitative, interdisciplinary, and transdisciplinary methods. Her experience spans different educational levels, from undergraduate to postgraduate, as well as capacity-building courses aimed at professionals and academic staff. Bianca also advises three universities on strengthening their interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary platforms, working closely with university administrators, managers, and funding agencies.

Active in national and international networks, Bianca's noteworthy contributions include her role as a Scientific Board Member of the Swiss Association for the Study of Science, Technology, and Society (STS-CH). She has collaborations across four continents (Europe, Latin America, North America, and Asia) and within scientific communities such as STS, anthropology, cultural studies, environmental sciences, and inter- and transdisciplinary fields.

Salmela, M., Vienni-Baptista, B., & Cheas, K. (2025) Towards the Recognition of Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Researchers. Minerva, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11024-025-09578-y

Vienni-Baptista B. & Hoffmann S. (2024). Integrative Teaching and Learning. In Szostak R. (editor), Handbook of Interdisciplinary Education and Administration (pp. 136-151), Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781035309870.00017

Laursen B., Vienni-Baptista B., Bammer G., Di Giulio A., Paulsen T., Robson-Williams M. and Stüder S. (2024) Toolkitting: An unrecognized form of expertise for overcoming fragmentation of inter- and transdisciplinarity. Humanities and Social Sciences Communications 11, 857 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1057/s41599-024-03279-9

Vienni-Baptista B., van Goch, M., van Lambalgen, R., & Lindvig, K. (eds.) (2024). Interdisciplinary Practices in Higher Education: Teaching, Learning and Collaborating across borders. London: Routledge.

Vienni-Baptista B. (2024). Investigating Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity: How Meta-Ethnography Contributes to the Study of Collaborative Research Practices. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 23. https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069241226528

Vienni-Baptista B., & Pohl C. (2023). Exploring Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity as Knowledge Regimes: A Heuristic Tool for Disentangling Understandings in Academia and Policy. Science, Technology, & Human Values, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/01622439231216789

Vienni-Baptista B., Fletcher I. & Lyall C. (eds.) (2023). Foundations of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research: A reader. Bristol: Bristol University Press.

Alvial Palavicino C., Ejderyan E., & Vienni-Baptista B. (2023). Building pathways between transdisciplinary research and transformations: Lessons from practice. GAIA - Ecological Perspectives for Science and Society, Munich: Oekom Verlag, 32/1 (2023): 131-137. https://doi.org/10.14512/gaia.32.1.10

Vienni-Baptista B., Fletcher, I., Lyall C. & Pohl C. (2022). Embracing Heterogeneity: Why plural understandings strengthen inter- and transdisciplinarity. Science and Public Policy, scac034, https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scac034

Vienni-Baptista B & Klein J. T. (eds.) (2022) Institutionalizing Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity. Collaboration across Cultures and Communities. London: Routledge.