Short story: A reflection on positionality and knowledge processes in transdisciplinary

The Stigma Assessment and Reduction of Impact (SARI) project aims to reduce stigma and improve the lives of people affected by leprosy in Cirebon District, Indonesia. The project team includes staff from different scientific disciplines from universities in the global North and South. Members of society participate in several ways in the project. The SARI project is transdisciplinary in the sense that frames, approaches, and methods from different disciplines and local knowledge are combined to co-create knowledge on the reduction of leprosy-related stigma. In this short story, the author reflects on her own positionality: her ‘baggage’ and position in the research. She shares her understanding of the path she has travelled to where she is today – a researcher in the SARI project – which could be relevant for others. This short story highlights that understanding one’s own positionality should be encouraged in transdisciplinary research as it can help break down barriers for knowledge processes.