Transdisciplinary co-production of knowledge for effective flood risk management

Abstract. Flood risks represent one of the most pressing global challenges, exacerbated by factors such as climate change, urbanization, and land use changes. Effective flood risk management (FRM) faces significant challenges, including the need for robust decision-making, addressing existing risks, and implementing strategies across the disaster risk reduction (DRR) cycle. This paper highlights the role of transdisciplinary (TD) research in tackling these challenges, particularly through the co-production of knowledge between scientific and non-scientific actors. Specific characteristics and requirements for flood risk research, which should be considered in TD research, are described. The paper explores three main objectives: (1) illustrating a methodological design for TD research in flood risk research, (2) applying and expanding the framework of impact generation mechanisms in knowledge co-production, and (3) reflecting on the lessons learned from North-South collaboration in flood risk research. The findings are based on and illustrated with the approach, methods and tools applied and exemplified by a flood risk research project in Ghana, the PARADeS project. The results demonstrate that key mechanisms, such as promoting systems knowledge, fostering social learning, and enhancing leadership competencies, are critical for generating impact. Additionally, mediators like joint research formulation, trust-building, and anchoring project results were identified as essential for effective implementation and sustainable transformation towards effective DRR. The study concludes that a combination of these mechanisms and mediators, applied contextually, can significantly enhance the effectiveness of flood risk management strategies and contribute to the development of tailored, context-sensitive approaches.