#06 – Piloting the KALEIDOS Toolkit at the Medical University of Łódź

The first day focused on a training to build capacities for the process Facilitators. This training supports Research Managers to strengthen their role in shaping research impact, co-creation, and open science in the institution. The main goal is that the manager’s work can evolve into a bridge between research, society and policy, responsible for enabling knowledge in order to create change. The programmee combines two closely connected dimensions:

• Institutional development, addressing stakeholder engagement, institutional maturity, co-creation, Open Science, intellectual property and research asset management.
• Personal and professional development, exploring leadership, self-reflection, research assessment reform and the cultural change needed to embed openness and impact within research organisations.

The following sessions explored university policies, network development and challenge identification, creating a space for participants to reflect on current practices, identify opportunities and discuss how KALEIDOS tools could be embedded in MUL’s research and innovation ecosystem. 

The Univerisity-level policy workshop aims to collect assessments, identify future actions and develop practical recommendations on Knowledge Valorisation practices at university level, addressing both organisational and individual perspectives.

The Challenge Identification methodology provides a structured pathway with clear steps and practical tools, enabling multiple stakeholders to jointly define a challenge that reflects the real needs of the ecosystem before moving toward research-based solutions. It ahas four objectives:

1.Identify ecosystem-driven challenges: Define specific, real-world challenges that emerge from the needs and priorities of the university ecosystem and its stakeholders.

2. Foster multi-stakeholder collaboration: Bring together participants from academia, industry, government, and civil society to co-create a shared understanding of the challenge.
3. Build a foundation for research and innovation: Translate stakeholder insights into well-defined problems that can guide future research projects, pilots, or innovation initiatives.
4. Promote inclusive and participatory innovation: Create a safe, creative environment that encourages diverse voices, mutual learning, and joint decision-making throughout the process.

The Medical University of Lodz was founded in 2002 through the merger of the Medical Academy of Łódź and the Military Medical Academy of Łódź, and is the largest state medical university in Poland and one of the country’s major medical research centers. It comprises 6 research institutes and 7 university teaching hospitals. The university teaches over 8,000 students.

Through this pilot, KALEIDOS aims to gather practical insights from real institutional contexts, refine the Toolkit and support organisations in building sustainable approaches to knowledge valorisation. We would like to thank the Medical University of Lodz and all participants for their valuable contributions and commitment to advancing effective knowledge valorisation practices!