Around the world, billions of dollars are invested in academic research each year, yet much of it remains locked behind subscription journals and technical language that few people outside academia can understand. Researchers in Kumasi, Ghana are now being encouraged to change that by communicating their findings in ways that inform the public, influence policy and improve lives.
That was the message at the University of Skills Training and Entrepreneurial Development (USTED), where researchers, lecturers and university administrators took part in practical training designed to help transform academic studies into compelling stories for print, radio, television and digital media.
Speaking at the workshop, USTED’s Pro Vice Chancellor, Professor Isaac Boateng, said research should not be judged only by the number of papers published or citations received, but by the impact it creates in society.
“Research that is not communicated effectively is knowledge in prison.”
He said researchers spend months, and sometimes years, collecting data, analyzing evidence and publishing their findings, yet much of that knowledge never reaches the people who could benefit most from it.
Professor Boateng urged researchers to make communication an integral part of the research process rather than something considered only after publication.
“Do not measure success only by publication. Measure success by transformation.”
He challenged researchers to think beyond academic recognition. “Do not ask merely was my paper published? Ask whose life changed because of my research.”
According to him, research should improve livelihoods, strengthen industries and provide practical solutions to challenges facing communities.
Chairman of USTED’s Publication Board, Dr Christopher Owusu-Ansah, said the challenge extends beyond a single institution. He noted that universities across the Global South continue to produce important research, but much of it remains inaccessible to the wider public because it is published in subscription-based journals.
“The research that is done is buried behind paywalls.”
He said the issue is particularly important because much academic research is supported with public resources.
Dr Owusu-Ansah argued that citizens should be able to access and understand research that has the potential to influence policies, improve services and contribute to national development.
“It is only proper and fair that the research that is done is also thrown into the public space, not just behind pay walls, so that the public will be able to understand the research that is done and which would help to promote proper policies and national development.”
To help address that challenge, the university partnered with the West African Journalists for Environment, Science, Health and Agriculture (WAJESHA) to provide practical journalism training for researchers.
The programme forms part of WAJESHA’s broader effort to strengthen science journalism and research communication across West Africa by helping universities and research institutions connect academic knowledge with communities, policymakers and the media.
Drawing on newsroom experience, WAJESHA journalists demonstrated how academic evidence can be transformed into stories that meet the standards of newspapers, broadcasters and digital platforms without compromising scientific accuracy.
The training opened with a masterclass led by WAJESHA’s New Media Editor, Daniel Abugri, who guided participants on identifying the news value in academic research and understanding what makes research relevant to the public.
“A study becomes news when people can see how it affects their lives.”
Participants were then taken through writing research in a style that journalists can readily use during a session led by Director of WAJESHA, Engr. Mahmud Mohammed-Nurudeen.
He said researchers often produce valuable work but struggle to explain its importance beyond academic circles.
“Researchers often write excellent studies but fail to explain why their findings matter to ordinary people.”
The final masterclass, facilitated by Engr Mohammed-Nurudeen, Daniel and independent film producer Afrifa Smith Charles, focused on adapting research for television, radio and digital media.
Afrifa said researchers must understand that different platforms require different storytelling techniques.
“A three-minute video story demands a different approach from a 30-page journal article.”
Together, the sessions guided participants through identifying the news in research, writing in clear and accessible language, and adapting academic findings for different media platforms.
For many participants, the workshop marked a shift in how they viewed research communication.
Dr Daniel Nimo, of USTED’s Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, said the training had helped him understand how research findings could be presented in ways ordinary people could understand.
“This workshop has been very effective to the extent that it has enlightened some of us to know how we can convert our research work into news where anybody can read to get the understanding.”
He said researchers often rely on technical language and statistical explanations that make their findings difficult for non-specialists to understand.
A lecturer in the Civil Engineering Department at USTED’s Faculty of Engineering and Technology, Engr. Anna Amankwah Minkah, said the training had reinforced the need to communicate research beyond academic audiences.
“Most of our writing is tailored to research and academia.”
She said researchers whose work is intended to improve society must communicate in ways that ordinary people can easily understand.
“We should be able to communicate in a way that society will easily grasp what we are trying to say, what our findings are.”
She added that the workshop had demonstrated the importance of simplifying technical language without losing the meaning of the research.
“So this workshop has helped me realise that we need to break it down in the simple, ordinary language so that everybody gets to know what we are finding in our study.”
The final stage of the workshop featured a WAJESHA Capstone Newsroom Simulation, group presentations and participant reflections, giving researchers the opportunity to apply the communication skills they had developed during the training.
As universities around the world face growing pressure to demonstrate the real-world value of publicly funded research, the challenge is no longer simply producing new knowledge, but ensuring that it reaches the people whose lives it is intended to improve.
Professor Boateng summed up that challenge with a final appeal to researchers. He said, “let us become researchers who write for journals and speak to society.”
