Dr. Prasoon Agarwal and Annapoorna Ravichander
Theatre, a strategy to raise awareness about public policy challenges
[Editor's note: This post was written by Dr. Prasoon Agarwal, Senior Advisor at Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), and Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, Head of Communication & Policy Engagement at the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP).] In the run up to COP 21 in Paris, India announced an ambitious Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) that aims at reducing emission intensity of India's GDP by 33-35% by 2030, as against a baseline of 2005.
Strategising Research Communication at CSTEP: developing a communications strategy
[Editor's note: This post was written by Arushi Sen, Senior Communication Officer, and Dr. Annapoorna Ravichander, Head of Communication and Policy Engagement at the Center for Study of Science, Technology and Policy (CSTEP). 'Strategising Research Communication at CSTEP' is a two-part article that traces CSTEP's experiences in formally instituting communication strategies to achieve certain organisational objectives. Part 1 describes the processes of development and implemen
Communications and fund raising: a close relationship
Fund raising and communications processes are extremely linked in the work of think tanks. Most of the time, we do both things at the same time: we communicate as we raise funds; we raise funds as we communicate (and probably more if we communicate effectively). For instance, what we choose to communicate to international donors or local companies about the organisation will be different, since their knowledge of the national context differs. The following table shares some c
The challenge of communicating with different actors: is segmentation a good investment for think ta
Think tanks are increasingly asking themselves how they can fine tune their communications so as to interact more effectively with the several stakeholders that are part of their field of action: from politicians and bureaucrats, to similar organisations and donors. Moreover, as they re-think about their policy influence efforts they begin to develop a more nuanced and sophisticated approach to the development of their communications strategies. Under the Think Tank Initiativ
Good communications is not enough to get evidence into policy
[Editor's Note: This post was written by Clara Richards, programme manager at INASP, and was originally published at INASP's blog] I originally shared these thoughts on the Evidence-Based Policy in Development Network (ebpdn) and after sparking some discussion, I thought it'd be good to also share them here on INASP's Practising Development blog too. A colleague, Kirsty Newman, was recently looking for an example of research that had influenced policy not because of the quali
Researcher's habits: unlocking the potential for impact?
In a previous post, I discussed why I think that the objective of informing policy should be considered from the onset of a research project. Since then, I have been reflecting on how to go about changing the way researchers think, and will continue to share some ideas on this topic. I am convinced that as researchers we must look into the way we go about our work to ultimately inform policy or achieve changes in social practices. This, of course, is not always the objective
Power and ideology are the keys to communicating research
[Editor's Note: This post is a reflection on the webinar 'Nevermind the research piece! Communicating in Policy Environments'. It was written by Rebecca Pointer, one of the speakers at the webinar and Information and Communications Officer at the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian Studies (PLAAS). It is published in tandem with VIPPAL.] In the 20 March Webinar Never mind the research piece! Communicating in policy environments, presenters unpacked a range of tools for o
Should we start building a 'networked communications' culture?
We are ready to re-frame the way we think and talk about how communications can contribute for research to inform public policies. We need to think more about 'networked communications', which means communicating with others, instead of crafting plans, strategies and activities that build only on what our institution or we as individual researchers can bring into the policy table. This is one of my main conclusions after spending more than 90 minutes sharing thoughts, experie
Capacity building -from our Topic Guide
[Editor's note: This post is the last one of a series that introduced our Topic Guide. Please feel free to check the insight our Topic Guide offers on how research agendas are produced, on the politics of how research is used in policy, on communicating research, and on monitoring and evaluation. For each of these themes, the Topic Guide is packed with relevant resources, each with a short summary.] This section of the Topic Guide covers two important aspects of Capacity Deve
Lesson #3: Continuously reformat your research findings- if you really want them to be used
Lesson #3: Traditional research formats and your own communications channels allow you to build and strengthen your reputation on the field but continuously reformat your research findings according to where you are and with whom- if you really want them to be used If you are genuinely concerned about producing research that is of value for practice, there is no single communications plan or strategy that will take you there unless it builds on what you have already been comm
Consider influence before doing the research
[Editor's note: This post stems from a rich conversation about how research can have an impact with Roger Harris while sharing our respective chapters for an upcoming book on Information Technologies and its impact. He shares an initial literature review on the issue.] The academic sphere is still closed: most researchers' main audience is their peers and mentors. Reaching out to a wider public is, for the most part, not a priority. As a result, the education researchers rece
The communication of research: insights from our Topic Guide
The communication of research is a subject that concerns many in the policy research communities across the developing world. The subject is extensive and covers more than just the channels and tools that research centres and other similar organisations employ to communicate their ideas and arguments. When understood more broadly it is possible to move beyond the very limited discussion that the recent literature on knowledge translation has supported. Instead one can look at
The future of think tank communications in Peru
Two months ago, a group of UK based think tank communicators organised an event on the future of think tank communications. In response, GRADE and On Think Tanks are organising the first of several events on a similar topic. The event is being advertised via Eventbrite: El futuro de las comunicaciones para think tanks en el Perú And counts with the participation of a number of local practitioners including: Paula Pino Velázquez, Information and Communication Unit, GRADE Luis
Online courses as a learning opportunity
Under the "Spaces for engagement: using knowledge to improve public decisions" programme from GDNet and CIPPEC I recently co-facilitated an online course on Research Communications. The course lasted six weeks, with an additional week for introductions. Personally, the experience was really enriching, especially as I got to learn how communication works in other contexts. In this respect, I have to confirm and highlight what Vanesa Weyrauch posted in a recent blog on the adva
The Topic Guide on Politics and Ideas: Introduction
Evidence based policy has, as the Topic Guide states in its introduction, become a sort of holy grail for policymakers (in the North and the South). If the concept is difficult to fully accept in developed countries with strong professional civil services, the idea would seem, for anyone with any experience working in a developing country, quite simply impossible to put into practice without a suspension of disbelief of significant proportions. Some attempts have been made to
Say no to developing new communication channels that are not linked to your core business
[Editor's note: This Idea was shared by Laura Zommer, CIPPEC's former Head of Communications and current Director of Chequeado.com] I was Director of communication at CIPPEC, a leading think tank in Latin America, for almost eight years. When I joined the organization, the area did not exist and, when I left last May, five people working full time and a couple of volunteers were part of the team. During that time I had many successes, but also countless mistakes, both of stra