Societal Impact of SSH and Arts Conference 16-18 Oct in Cape Town

In 2017 AESIS organised the very first international conference on Societal Impact of Social Science, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) in Cardiff, bringing together stakeholders such as research managers, administrators, evaluators, policy makers, funders, entrepreneurs, publishers, NGO’s, media and many more. This became the start of a series of annual conferences where attendees exchanged experiences and good practices in order to catalyse developments in strategies, policies, methods, tools and approaches that are being used to make sure that SSHA, in collaboration with societal stakeholders and other disciplines, can have the most positive and inclusive impact on wellbeing, culture, economy, environment, health, education, and all kinds of challenges that are being faced in the world. Fast forward 7 years later, having journeyed through Copenhagen, Washington, Toronto, Brussels, Stockholm, and Cardiff, we are thrilled to announce its premier in the global south in Cape Town, South Africa!

In the past years, the call to transform interdisciplinary research evidence into accessible, understandable, trusted and useable knowledge for societal stakeholders has grown in importance amidst persisting global challenges such as the pandemic, climate change, poverty, other inequities and more. The Social Sciences, Humanities & Arts (SSHA) disciplines are able to offer much value in addressing these challenges yet are often undervalued; therefore it is necessary to enhance supporting structures, policies and strategies, develop a more robust framework for assessing impact, foster coalitions with parties from business, government, and not-for-profits, and engage with the broader public in order to generate a profound impact of SSHA on society.