Transdisciplinary Approaches in Robotics for Social Innovation: Addressing Climate Change, Workforce Displacement, and Resilience in the Age of Disruption

Abstract

In this review paper, we consider transdisciplinary approaches to robotics and how they can be applied to promote social innovation to solve pressing problems such as climate change, workforce displacement, and resilience in times of disruption. It demands the establishment of cooperative models to bridge the technological gap between social realities and fairer, sustainable futures. Businesses such as SkyGrow, which makes automated tree-planting robots for targeted reforestation, show the promise of such technologies. The paper highlights the need for assessments to understand community needs and engage the community and industries involved to find possible use cases for robotics. It encourages participatory designs rooted in end-user insights, which will make the technologies being created reflect local demand. After all, it takes a collective for effectively navigating the complexities of today’s problems in robotics and social innovation.