Build bridges between disciplines to foster interdisciplinarity

Interdisciplinary research is key to understanding and addressing complex social, economic, environmental, cultural and technological challenges. Many universities reference it in their development plans but moving interdisciplinarity from discourse to practice remains one of higher education’s most persistent challenges.

Common barriers, such as organisational silos, highly specialised academic cultures, rigid structures and misaligned incentive systems, make it difficult for researchers from different fields to meet, engage in dialogue and collaborate. This raises a central question for university leaders: what conditions make interdisciplinarity both possible and sustainable?

Through our experience of establishing a new research institute, INNSIGNIA, we have identified five practical steps to facilitate interdisciplinary collaboration.

1. Share a real and meaningful purpose

Interdisciplinarity works when a diverse group of researchers finds a purpose meaningful enough to transcend disciplinary boundaries. This purpose must be broad, relevant to the institutional context and flexible enough to inspire people with different backgrounds and trajectories.

Begin by identifying which regional, national or global challenges motivate researchers. Questions such as, “What problem do we want to address?” and “What impact do we seek to generate?” help establish common ground. A shared purpose serves as a starting point for bringing together diverse perspectives without erasing disciplinary identities. INNSIGNIA’s creation was driven by two collective purposes: 

• To strengthen scientific research at the university
• To generate knowledge relevant to the cross-border Southern California, US and Baja California, Mexico (CaliBaja) regions, particularly in innovation and entrepreneurship with social impact.

2. Create spaces for continuous dialogue

Shared purposes are only visible with consistent spaces for conversation, idea exchange and the exploration of collaboration opportunities. What matters most is that we sustain these spaces over time and do not rely exclusively on formal structures. When researchers have recurring opportunities to engage, conversations stop being sporadic and instead become an intellectual practice that builds trust, creativity and curiosity.

Researchers’ interest in reflection, knowledge sharing and professional development led to the creation of the INNSIGNIA Seminar. This initiative allowed conversations to move beyond isolated encounters and evolve into sustained practices that strengthened participants’ intellectual confidence.

Ongoing seminars are particularly valuable because they enable planning and collective decision-making while stimulating interaction, socialisation and collaboration among researchers. They also open dialogue and collaboration with other national and international universities, as well as with key representatives from the productive, social and governmental sectors of the region. In our case, these efforts opened pathways for collaboration with institutions such as Universitat Politècnica de Valencia, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, the Culinary Art School, the Torolab Collective and other actors critical to the strategic development of the CaliBaja region.

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3. Transform diversity into research lines

Interdisciplinary groups frequently become dispersed collections of individual interests. To prevent this, we must translate group diversity into a limited number of research lines that provide direction and structure. You can do this by:

• Mapping the group’s existing expertise
• Identifying natural intersections between disciplines
• Selecting two to four broad themes that can evolve over time
• Regularly reviewing and adjusting these research lines.

This approach helps maintain coherence without suppressing diversity. It also facilitates funding opportunities, collective project development and the communication of the group’s value within and beyond the university.

4. Establish flexible structures that transcend disciplinary logic

Interdisciplinary research institutes or centres that operate across organisational boundaries and bring together talent from multiple fields function best when they have autonomy to:

• Convene researchers regardless of departmental affiliation
• Design cross-cutting projects
• Manage their own academic activities
• Reduce the administrative burden that typically falls on faculties.

Structures that complement rather than compete with traditional academic divisions create a stable and operational institutional space.

5. Recognise the value of symbolic capital

Interdisciplinary work produces tangible outcomes such as publications, projects and collaborations, but it also generates symbolic capital: legitimacy, visibility and a sense of institutional identity. For this capital to grow, universities must publicly support collective achievements, highlight successful collaborations and align academic incentives accordingly.

This involves incorporating interdisciplinary research into evaluation, promotion and recognition processes; celebrating key milestones and communicating the value of these efforts as part of the institution’s broader academic project. When we recognise interdisciplinarity, researchers are more motivated to sustain it over time.

Interdisciplinarity becomes an everyday practice when universities create the conditions that enable it: a shared purpose, spaces for dialogue, clearly defined research lines, flexible structures and academic recognition. These five elements help transform collaboration across disciplines into a natural and strategic process, strengthening institutional capacity to respond to the complex challenges of today’s world.

Mayer Cabrera-Flores is a professor at CETYS Graduate School of Business and director of the INNSIGNIA Institute.

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