Knowledge transfer: mission and promises
Collaborative transfer, promises and tools to solve society’s real challenges and obtain a positive impact.

We live in world progressively more intertwined, facing bigger social and environmental challenges. We are entering uncharted territory where problems are exponentially more complex and their changes, complex. Scientific reports alert us to the fact that we are transgressing planetary boundaries, those that regulate the well-being of people and the planet's life support systems, and that determine a safe operating space for humanity. The challenges ahead are not only technical, but also ethical.
Now, more than ever, we need innovative solutions that respect the new conceptual framework of strong sustainability, as proposed by Giddings, which advocates that natural resources are unique and essential to human and ecological well-being. We need solutions that operate within environmental limits and have a positive impact on society. These solutions require the collaboration of different actors in different knowledge sectors.
In this context, universities and research centres play a key role, as the knowledge they generate can address the challenges at hand. This is possible thanks to knowledge transfer, which is one of the pillars of the university. This transfer is key and is becoming an increasingly necessary responsibility. Without collaboration with the environment and with other key agents, it is difficult to make progress in developing the solutions we need.
Collaboration enables research to focus on specific objectives and accelerate its maturation process. It is also important because it facilitates knowledge of the market and its needs, thus orienting research towards what society really wants. This involves identifying the problem, knowing how it is being solved (competition) and being able to develop better solutions based on the knowledge generated for the research. This market knowledge will not only help us to identify and develop an optimal solution and define our value proposition, but also to determine the best commercial application that will accelerate the transfer process.
The market will also allow us to get to know the different actors in the ecosystem to find allies and move the project forward, as in an increasingly complex world, projects require the participation of different actors, and it is crucial that these actors are the most appropriate. Collaboration will allow us to bring interdisciplinarity, facilitating solutions to more complex problems.
Nevertheless, the reality is that the level of collaboration in R&D&I between companies in Spain and universities is low in comparison with our European neighbours, and the indicators for this third mission are limited. The volume of income generated by patents shows a decreasing trend in the state, as does the number of spin-offs created by universities. Therefore, it is necessary to implement internal policies within universities and external policies that encourage collaborative knowledge transfer.
Incentives, together with the personal conviction of the research staff that knowledge transfer is not only a mission, but also a commitment to society, will contribute in a very positive way to providing answers to the challenges that lie ahead.
