National Centre for Academic and Cultural Exchange (NCACE) focuses on supporting and championing Knowledge Exchange between Higher Education and the arts and cultural sectors. It also seeks to better understand, evidence and showcase the impacts, implications and potentials for such work. Part of that work means understanding the complex ecology of knowledge exchange better. And that, in turn, means hearing from those experts who work in knowledge exchange often within a specific university or other higher education institution. These are the people who support, and indeed also often instigate, all manner of partnerships, engagements and collaborations and who also often, albeit quietly, hold and shape ambitions for collaborations within and beyond their institutions. But what does this work involve, how is it spoken about and what are the perceptions of this field as it matures and gains value, through developments including KEF and the KE Concordat? This short publication is NCACE's first attempt at highlighting some of the important work undertaken by Knowledge Exchange professionals. It has interviewed six individuals from different types of institutions, at different stages in careers and in different parts of the country. NCACE was keen that the interviews would create an opportunity to explore and amplify views on cultural collaborations in particular, as well as capturing broader perspectives about the nature of knowledge exchange and impact.
