Bridging roles in responsible innovation systems: from transfer to relational knowledge

Bridging roles play a pivotal part in shaping responsible innovation (RI) systems, where the quality of relationships among diverse actors fundamentally influences systemic outcomes. This article explores the core traits of bridging roles and argues for moving beyond traditional views of knowledge transfer towards a relational understanding of knowledge, one where key Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) dimensions, such as reflexivity, anticipation, and long-term co-creation with diverse actors, become central to research activities rather than peripheral. The proposal links organisations across multiple levels and offers a conceptual tool to investigate how brokering interactions can foster virtuous cycles of responsibility within contexts like Smart Specialisation Strategies and funding programmes. By focusing on promoting systemic interactions that enable collective responsibility, rather than solely individual practices, this framework aims to support empirical research and practical applications that deepen our understanding of how meaningful integration of social actors can transform innovation system logics.