Exploring what it would take to develop deeper transdisciplinary collaboration within the European Commission and beyond.
What new possibilities emerge when art, science and policymaking function not as separate domains, but as a single, interconnected system? This question brought together around fifty participants in Brussels in January 2026 for a day-long workshop co-hosted by JRC SciArt, EU Policy Lab and CLEA ArtScience (Centre Leo Apostel for Transdisciplinary Studies, Vrije Universiteit Brussel).
The timing could hardly be more relevant, with Europe facing a complex set of challenges: from the climate transition and biodiversity loss to AI governance, geopolitical and social challenges, and emerging technological frontiers. These issues share a common quality: they are volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous. They often resist the linear reasoning and problem-solving models on which many of our current institutions were built. Scientific evidence and policy expertise remain essential, yet they, alone, cannot untangle the entangled. These times call for new ways of thinking and sensing: transdisciplinary approaches that combine creativity, emotional intelligence, and collective insight.
This is what we are trying to do with Art–Science–Policy (ASP): explore how Europe can embed these integrative practices more systematically: not just as one-off projects, but as a new form of institutional intelligence.
Why art, science and policy, and why now?
Artistic and scientific inquiry share a foundation in curiosity, experimentation and the pursuit of deeper understanding. Each offers distinct but complementary ways of approaching complexity. Scientific methods provide evidence, structure and analytical insight; artistic practices cultivate the ability to hold multiple perspectives, to reveal hidden dynamics, and to translate abstraction into lived experience. Together, they enrich how policy challenges are perceived, interpreted and communicated, linking systemic understanding with human experience.
In policymaking, these qualities can transform the way problems are framed and futures are envisioned. Rather than treating art as an accessory (useful for communication or outreach), ASP treats it as an integrated partner. When artists, scientists, and policymakers collaborate over time, new forms of sense-making become possible: weak signals are detected earlier, insights flow across disciplines, and the very definition of what counts as evidence broadens.
In an age of polycrisis, where challenges are interconnected and evolving, the belief that “better data leads to better decisions” feels insufficient. The difficulties facing European institutions are not caused by a lack of information but by uncertainty, conflicting values, and unpredictable futures. Transdisciplinary practice thrives precisely in such ambiguity, offering ways to explore, rehearse, and redesign responses before choices harden.
What we learnt through the workshop
The January workshop embodied this integrative spirit. Participants included representatives from a range ofEuropean Commission Directorates-General covering research and innovation, health, climate, culture, digital, and employment alongside artists, curators, futurists, and scientists from across Europe. Organisations present included the UK Policy Lab, BOZAR, Gluon, EIT Culture & Creativity, Waag, SciLifeLab, Pacesetters, and the Society for Artistic Research.
Drawing on CLEA ArtScience’s experience in collective intelligence and transdisciplinarity, the event was more than a discussion. It was a live demonstration of ASP in action: a process of making sense together, where thinking and doing merged. As participants tested ideas and reflected on their own methods, unexpected alignments emerged. The collaboration showed how the art–science–policy interface can open new spaces that no single field reaches alone.
Key insights from the day
Three insights from the Brussels workshop stood out:
1. ASP matters most at the beginning.
The critical intervention point lies at the problem-setting stage, before policy options are defined and institutional momentum builds. As one participant noted: “Public consultation usually happens once we already know the content. This needs to happen before that: at the problem-setting stage.” Engaging art and science early allows entirely new problem framings to surface and keeps imagination alive while pathways are still open.
2. Structures matter more than enthusiasm.
The success of ASP depends less on individual projects than on the institutional systems that host them. Procurement rules, evaluation criteria, budget cycles, and career incentives all influence whether ASP collaborations can take root. The barrier is not a shortage of creative people, but a system not yet designed to support this kind of work. Structural change, therefore, is key.
3. Dissonance can be productive.
ASP creates a safe space for competing ideas and values to coexist without being forced into premature agreement. This “infrastructure for dissonance”, as one participant called it, allows organisations to listen across difference and to surface assumptions before decisions are made. It is a form of institutional learning, not conflict.
Taken together, these insights highlight an emerging pattern: ASP strengthens an organisation’s ability to sense and respond to change. It broadens how knowledge is defined, combining the quantitative, qualitative, and experiential. By doing so, it helps institutions anticipate weak signals, interpret social currents, and act with foresight rather than reaction. Its ultimate value lies not only in better projects but in more adaptive, reflexive institutions.
What comes next
A forthcoming report will outline practical recommendations for embedding ASP more systematically within the European Commission. Among its proposals:
- Pilot ASP integration at the early stages of policy development, with documentation of how it affects problem framing, stakeholder engagement, and institutional learning.
- Establish a brokerage and mediation function within the Commission: a small team connecting policy needs with artistic practice, helping to navigate procurement barriers, and sustaining collaboration over time.
- Develop “Key Transformative Indicators” that capture qualitative and long-term value such as reframing, relationship-building, and organisational learning alongside measurable outputs.
- Launch a multi-year research programme to create transferable ASP methodologies for institutional settings, turning isolated experiments into a shared evidence base.
The upcoming report and related materials will be published on the JRC SciArt website and the CLEA ArtScience website. Stay tuned for future updates as this growing community continues to explore what happens and what becomes possible when art, science, and policy work as one system.
*A blog post written in collaboration with CLEA
Learn more about this initiative: Art - Science - Policy | SciArt: Science art society
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