Following on from the recent UK Collaborative on Development Sciences (UKCDS) workshop on complexity science and international development, I shared some thoughts on the day and the ways forward. This is a cross-post from the UKCDS website. Last month the UK Collaborative for Development Sciences held a workshop to explore the potential of complexity science for international [...]
Archive for the ‘Knowledge and learning’ Category
Reflections on a workshop – exploring ‘complexity sciences’ in development
Posted in Knowledge and learning, Meetings, Reports and Studies on June 15, 2011 | 1 Comment »
New ODI Working Paper on ‘Taking Responsibility for Complexity’
Posted in Knowledge and learning, Public Policy, Reports and Studies on June 6, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Last week saw the publication of a new ODI working paper on the implications of complexity for development agencies. In his latest paper, Harry Jones examines the role of information and knowledge in improving results and ways of working. The first half of the paper focuses on ways in which readers can determine the nature [...]
Six Theories of Policy Change
Posted in Campaigns, Evaluation, Knowledge and learning, Public Policy, Strategy on April 20, 2011 | 3 Comments »
Many of us working in foreign aid struggle with the idea of theories of change. The ubiquitous logical framework has an implicit theory of change that we recognise to be flawed, or at the very least, extremely limited. But alternatives are thin and often poorly articulated. A new briefing from Organisation Research Services sets out [...]
How do aid agencies deal with wicked problems?
Posted in Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Leadership, Public Policy, Strategy on April 5, 2011 | 5 Comments »
The term ‘wicked problem’ was used here last week to describe the challenges of humanitarian coordination. This post is a response to a number of requests to explain a little more about this concept. The term ‘wicked problem’ was originally proposed by two American urban planners, Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber, in the 1970s. The term [...]
The Humanitarian Groundhog Day
Posted in Chaos, Evolution, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Leadership, Meetings, Natural disasters, Networks, Organisations, Public Policy, Self organisation on March 24, 2011 | 14 Comments »
Humanitarian coordination has been described in a new ODI paper as a ‘wicked problem’ which demands new and radical solutions. This post explores the longstanding incentive issues underlying the lack of effective coordination and suggests possible ways forward. In a paper published last year, Michael Barnett and I argued that the humanitarian system was stuck in much the [...]
Philippines turns to complexity science to strengthen disaster preparedness
Posted in Climate change, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Natural disasters, Networks, Public Policy, Reports and Studies, Resilience, Strategy on March 15, 2011 | 3 Comments »
Following the Japanese earthquake, the Philippines government have announced plans to explore the use of complexity science in better understanding disaster vulnerability and risk. The effort is to be taken forward by the Congressional Commission on Science Technology and Engineering, in collaboration with the Philippine Disaster Science Management Center. Senator Edgardo Angara, Chair of Congressional Commission [...]
Whose Paradigm Counts? Guest Post 2 of 2 By Robert Chambers
Posted in Accountability, Evolution, Facilitation, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Leadership, Networks, Organisations, Public Policy, Strategy, Technology on February 15, 2011 | 9 Comments »
Expanding Paradigms In my first post in this two part guest series, I presented an account of the contrast between ‘things’ and ‘people’ as it was framed in my 1997 book Whose Reality Counts? and as many people in the development sector still perceive it. As numerous responses – both here and on other fora [...]
Whose Paradigm Counts? Guest Post 1 of 2 By Robert Chambers
Posted in Accountability, Evolution, Facilitation, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Public Policy, Self organisation on February 10, 2011 | 11 Comments »
Last year I wrote a paper called Paradigms, Poverty and Adaptive Pluralism. In it I explored how technological advances and complexity sciences were together helping to reframe a longstanding divide between two opposing paradigms in international development. Because of the relevance of this to current debates on complexity and aid, I welcome this opportunity to share these ideas here. I warmly invite feedback from [...]
A Q&A on Positive Deviance, Innovation and Complexity
Posted in Evaluation, Evolution, Facilitation, Innovation, Knowledge and learning, Leadership, Public Policy, Resilience, Self organisation, Strategy on February 8, 2011 | 12 Comments »
Positive deviance (PD) is a fascinating approach, a decade and a half old, and the focus of growing interest in health, education and numerous other sectors in domestic public policy. Interestingly, given PD saw first widespread application in an aid programme, it is still less well known than it should be across the international community. This post [...]
Why the Results Agenda Doesn’t Need Results, and What To Do About It
Posted in Accountability, Evaluation, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Public Policy, Strategy on January 31, 2011 | 15 Comments »
Update 01/02/2011: the first evaluation cited is specific to UN agencies, the second to donors. Have also clarified the specific references in the UN report. Thanks to Michael Keizer for pointing this out. One of the recurring themes of this blog is the idea that aid agencies need to become more flexible and responsive, both [...]
