Berlin University Alliance Fellow Rosalyn Old is helping to pave the way for more sustainable food systems in the future. In her role as postdoctoral researcher on the BUA-funded project “Responsible Innovation and Protein Transitions (RI-ProT)” at Freie Universität Berlin, Old focuses on a transition towards more sustainable, healthy, resilient and ethical patterns in the production and consumption of protein-rich foods. One interesting opportunity to support this, Old has encountered in her work, is to explore ways in which producers can apply responsible innovation principles in their day-to-day work. To address this, the project team has worked closely with sector stakeholders to translate theory into practice, culminating in a newly released tool—Protein Power: Toolkit for Responsible Protein Innovation.

Old came to Berlin after landing the postdoc position in the RI-ProT project, “drawn by the chance to be back in a university environment with a focus on teaching and research,” she explains. Prior to this move, she worked in non-university research organizations in the United Kingdom and Germany, as well as in a teaching role for the University of Cambridge. Her work on the project “has also been a great opportunity to develop a number of activities and products to bridge between scientific research, companies and the general public,” she reflects, citing workshops during Berlin Science Week and Lange Nacht der Wissenschaften, for which she designed a collaborative Future Foods Innovation Game.

The Toolkit for Responsible Protein Innovation has been another outlet for Old to expand her skills in participatory research and science communication. Its development was funded by the Lab for Transdisciplinary Research, enabling the RI-ProT team to make use of a design-thinking approach over the course of three interactive workshops dedicated to the interactive development of the toolkit. Aimed at companies that develop alternative protein products, the toolkit consists of three sets of cards. Principle cards define responsible innovation within the context of protein transitions, while reflection cards facilitate in-depth discussion of the concepts as they relate to a particular company. Action cards, in turn, help bring responsible innovation alive through short exercises based on established methods. All of the cards are designed to be easy to pick up and complete in 10 to 30 minutes in a team meeting or similar setting.

Physical card sets as well as digital printable copies in English and German are now available for companies to request at no cost and a digital, German-language workshop to learn about and try out the toolkit is scheduled for September 3, 2026. Instructions to request a copy of the toolkit and information to participate in the workshop are available on the RPI-Toolkit website.

Outside of her role in the RI-ProT project, Old is involved in Berlin’s larger academic and cultural scene. “The Fellows Club has created great spaces for collaboration and networking with a vibrant international community,” she muses, “as well as great opportunities to develop skills through the Postdoc Academy”. Most of all, however, she reflects on what she finds most fascinating about Berlin: “It is a capital with so many layers, lots of stories to tell and somewhere where you can really see a city and society shaped by complexity and change.”