Transgressing discipline boundaries: is BEQUEST an example of 'the new production of knowledge'?

This paper places the BEQUEST concerted action (an international project on sustainable urban development) within the context of the discussion that has arisen, within the last decade, about the so-called 'new production of knowledge'. Where such production occurs, short-life inter-disciplinary teams collaborate by engaging in a dynamic form of research characterized by practical problem-solving through negotiated and consensually produced knowledge. In BEQUEST, such knowledge production was electronically mediated - collaboration and dissemination occurred predominantly over the Internet. Attention is drawn to BEQUEST's modus operandi for dealing with contentious issues - sustainable development, inter-disciplinary working, and the design and management of virtual organizations. And it closes by commenting on the implications of crossing discipline boundaries - demanded by 'the new production of knowledge' - for the organization and conduct of research on the built environment.