What’s the WHY behind your research? A training module that invites you to think differently
Researchers are experts at doing research. But navigating what comes next, from communicating your work to the public to collaborating across sectors and turning scientific findings into real-world impact, is a different skill set entirely. One that most researchers rarely get the chance to develop.
That’s the gap ReSkillSpan is trying to close. The Horizon Europe project brings together six European organisations to equip researchers, from early-stage PhD students to established senior researchers, with the transversal skills needed for impactful careers, in academia and beyond. This includes everything from science communication and entrepreneurial thinking to engaging stakeholders and translating research into tangible societal value.
The training module Innovate for Impact (one of 18 modules the program offers) does this with a deceptively simple question: Why do you do what you do?
Purpose Is a Skill
In academia, you’re trained to be precise, methodical, and evidence-based. But one thing rarely makes it into the curriculum: learning to articulate why your work matters, not just to a grant committee, but to society at large.
This is what Innovate for Impact tackles. The module has been developed and delivered by Young Entrepreneurs in Science (YES), an initiative of Falling Walls Foundation for PhD students, postdocs, and early-career researchers. Drawing on Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle framework, participants move from the outer ring (WHAT they research) through HOW they do it, all the way to the core: their WHY.
Knowing your WHY is often what transforms research from an academic exercise into a force for real change.
From Inner Motivation to Global Impact
Once participants have articulated their WHY, the module connects individual purpose to something much larger: the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Through a structured three-step exercise, participants first explore the 17 SDGs, then map their own research to the goals it could realistically contribute to, and finally, in small groups, brainstorm practical applications. The interdisciplinary peer exchange tends to be where things open up: a researcher working on steel production suddenly sees pathways to climate action and economic growth. A neuroscientist spots connections to quality education and reduced inequality.
It’s not about overstating what research can do. It’s about building a habit of thinking across disciplines, see systemic connections, and imagine what your work could do beyond the lab.
Innovation That Works for Society as a Whole
Innovate for Impact also introduces participants to the sweet spot of sustainable innovation: the intersection of what is desirable (who wants it and why?), what is viable (is there a business case?), and what is feasible (can it actually be built?). Real-world examples from science-based founders like TRACELESS, a startup turning agricultural residues into plastic alternatives, make the point concretely: purpose-driven research and viable impact aren’t in tension. Often, they’re the same thing.
This is the culture shift ReSkillSpan is working towards: researchers across Europe who are not only excellent scientists, but who understand the broader value of what they create and who are equipped to communicate it, develop it, and bring it into the world.
Join the the Next Peer Learning Event
Stay up to date with Reskillspan channels and come to the next Peer learning events for an open exchange about impact and much more.
Visit https://youngentrepreneursinscience.com/events/ to see all YES workshops ahead.
Innovate for Impact is part of the ReSkillSpan training programme, a Horizon Europe project co-funded by the European Union. Young Entrepreneurs in Science is an initiative of the Falling Walls Foundation, enabled by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space.
Author: Eva Kirchner, Young Entrepreneurs in Science