Capacity development toolkit for procurement practitioners

January 2013
This online toolkit provides guidance for procurement practitioners, policymakers and advisers on how to manage a procurement reform and/or capacity development process, whether at the national, sector or entity level. The guide was developed by the United Nations Procurement Development Centre (UNPCDC) and is based on the OECD/DAC publication A Practical Guide to Transforming Procurement Systems. More

Toolkit on biocultural protocols for community facilitators

September 2012
Indigenous peoples and local communities are increasingly engaging with external actors such as government agencies, researchers, companies, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). However, external actors often do not understand customary protocols and governance systems because they are codified in ways specific to each community, culture, and location. Failing to respect community protocols, whether intentional or not, can lead to conflict, deterioration of otherwise constructive relations, and negative impacts on the environment. Biocultural Community Protocols: A Toolkit for Community Facilitators is published by Natural Justice, a NGO that assists communities to engage with legal frameworks to secure environmental and social justice. More

Practitioner toolkit for strengthening internet public policy dialogue

September 2012
Published by the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) in September 2012, this toolkit provides guidance on how to develop new policy dialogue forums or processes, jump-start stagnant ones, or define baseline data for further research that will help to develop dynamic and nuanced policy spaces. The authors draw on a case study of Togo to illustrate how multi-stakeholder dialogue can identify priorities and challenges for the development and deployment of the Internet in support of a country’s economic, social and environmental needs. More

RAPID toolkit on knowledge and learning tools

November 2010
This toolkit has been produced with the aim the specific aim to present entry points and references to a wide range of tools and methods which are used to facilitate improved knowledge and learning in the development and humanitarian sectors. More

Systems Concepts in Action: A Practitioner's Toolkit

January 2011
Systems Concepts in Action: A Practitioner's Toolkit (Stanford University Press, 2010) is a welcome addition for practitioners' understanding of how to work with complexity and systems-thinking concepts. Written by Bob Williams and Richard Hummelbrunner, the book explores the application of systems ideas to investigate, evaluate, and intervene in complex and messy situations. The text serves as a field guide, with each chapter representing a method for describing and analyzing; learning about; or changing and managing a challenge or set of problems. More

Gender and security sector reform toolkit

November 2010
Security sector reform opens a window of opportunity to transform security policies, institutions and programmes by integrating gender issues More

Knowledge-sharing tools for knowledge-sharing needs

November 2010
What is the best way to share knowledge? This toolkit aims to support development professionals and researchers to find and learn the most appropriate tools and methods for knowledge sharing. More

Capacity development toolkit for health systems strengthening

November 2012
This UNDP-Global Fund Partnership toolkit provides practical advice, tools, templates and process guidance covering five key steps in the transition from UNDP management towards full national responsibility for implementing response programmes for HIV&AIDS, TB and Malaria. More

Successful Communication: A Toolkit for Researchers and Civil Society

November 2010
This handbook Presents tools for development actors to facilitate communication. More

The knowledge translation toolkit: Bridging the Know-Do Gap

May 2010
Published in May 2011 by Sage India and IDRC, this resource provides a thorough overview of what knowledge translation (KT) is and how to use it most effectively to bridge the “know–do” gap between research, policy, practice, and people. It presents the theories, tools, and strategies required to encourage and enable evidence-informed decision-making. More

Adaptation programmes flawed

June 2012
GUEST COLUMN For national adaptation programmes to succeed, partners of the communities – including non-governmental organizations, governmental rural agencies, and local and central administrations – need to gear their planning methods and approaches to effectively support the community’s adaptation efforts. Therefore, IUCN has developed a toolkit outlining participatory approaches and methods covering the entire adaptation cycle including planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation. The toolkit also provides recommendations for linking up the community planning cycle to higher levels of adaptation planning and programming. More

Local governance self assessment: guidelines for facilitators

November 2010
This local governance self-assessment tool for community facilitators is based on experiences in Bangladesh. More

Bridging the “know-do” gap from research to action

November 2010
The IDRC 'Research Matters Knowledge translation toolkit' explores the interface between two fundamentally different processes: those of research and those of action. More

Rapid Evidence Assessment (REA) Toolkit

November 2010
The increasing prominence of evidence-based principles has ledto a need for government departments and agencies to have ways of accessing, harnessing and using the best available research evidence for effective policy making – and the first step in this is to review what is already known. While existing evidence is clearly not the only source of information available topolicy makers, it is an obvious and vitally important strategy to determine what is already known about the issue in question. More

Knowledge exchange guide for development practitioners

January 2013
Designing and implementing knowledge exchange initiatives can be a big undertaking. The art of knowledge exchange: A results-focused planning guide for development practitioners presents a strategic, results-oriented approach to facilitating experiential, peer-to-peer learning processes, based on the World Bank institute's capacity development and results framework. The guide aims to "take the guesswork out of the process" by breaking down the role of knowledge connector and learning facilitator into simple steps. More

Selected Readings - Beyond Change Management

November 2010
This book - which can be purchased online - focuses on the interaction between leadership style, mindsets and change processes. It includes worksheets, questionnaires, guidelines and assessment instruments. More

How to write Terms of Reference for an evaluation

January 2012
Developing an accurate and well-specified terms of reference (ToR) is a critical step in managing a high-quality evaluation. The evaluation ToR document serves as the basis for a contractual arrangement with one or more evaluators and sets the parameters against which the success of the assignment can be measured. This practical guide from the World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group sets out a few basic principles and guidelines to help in the development of an effective evaluation. More

Toolkits on linking research and policy

November 2010
The website of the Danish Research Network for International Health provides useful information on linking research to policy as well as a number of links to overviews, publication and guidelines on research communication and promotion of research in development activities and policies. The materials contain useful references and/or links to further reading. More

A toolkit for conducting systematic reviews of development interventions

November 2012
A ‘systematic’ review is a "synthesis of literature relating to the effectiveness of particular development interventions." The September 2012 issue of the Journal of Development Effectiveness provides a ‘how to’ guide for undertaking systematic reviews of effects in international development, drawing on experiences of the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie). More

Training guide on conflict transformation

November 2010
This USAID training manual on conflict transformation and peacebuilding in Rwanda provides a set of techniques, methods, analyses and lessons for conflict resolution. More

Capacity Building Framework: A values-based programming guide, published by INTRAC

November 2010
The International NGO Training and Research Centre (INTRAC) has published the final handbook in its three-part Praxis series focusing on concepts, models and tools. Aimed primarily at practitioners, the series provides an overview of current thinking, with analyses of diverse practitioner experiences and commissioned case studies and research. This final volume introduces a new values-based model to enable decision makers to plan capacity-building interventions in a variety of contexts. The other two titles in the series are: Sharpening the Development Process: A Practical Guide to Monitoring and Evaluation, and Capacity Building for NGOs: Making it Work. More

Local Elected Leadership Series: Key competencies for improving local governance

November 2010
The Local Elected Leadership (LEL) series presents two roles and ten competencies essential for every elected official to effectively perform their job when serving local communities. The series contains many training exercises and tools that can be used as practical on-the-job guide long after the leadership training workshop has ended. More

Resource mobilization: A practical guide for research and community-based organizations

January 2012
Donor scoping studies commissioned by IDRC in 2004 and 2008 showed that multilateral and bilateral agencies are now more focused on large-scale, sector-wide funding, awarding bigger grants to fewer organizations, with less money available for medium to small groups. The second edition of this guidebook, co-pubished by IDRC’s Donor Partnership Division and the Philippines-based Venture for Fundraising in 2010, pays specific attention to the resource mobilization needs of community-based development research organizations, contained within their South and Southeast Asian contexts. More

Audio Version of the Change Management Toolbook

November 2010
The Change Management Toolbook is a collection of methods and strategies which you can apply during different stages of personal, team and organizational development, in training, facilitation and consulting. More

First Joint Governance Assessment in Rwanda

February 2009
Policy Practice Brief 5 - Carrying out a Joint Governance Assessment - Lessons from Rwanda More

Applying Sustainable Development to Arms-Transfer Decisions

November 2010
This practical guide by Oxfam aims to assist states to apply sustainable development standards when making decisions regarding international arms transfers. More

Guidelines for the evaluation of post-disaster programmes

November 2010
A guide for meeting the challenges of post-disaster reconstruction. More

Practical guide to capacity development in a sector context

November 2010
This guide, published in May 2008, was specifically designed for practitioners working with capacity development (CD) processes. The target group is staff and managers in public organizations who are or want to be change agents or change managers, consultants, as well as staff from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) or other development partners who wish to support CD processes. More

A Networked Research Approach - A guide to conducting research in a network setting

November 2010
This guide to the Networked Research Approach was developed by the International Forum for Rural Transportation and Development (IFRTD) More

What it takes

December 2010
Competencies needed to design and facilitate MSPs Multi-stakeholder processes (MSPs) are playing an increasingly important role in sustainable development. Designing and facilitating MSPs depends on a set of diverse competencies. More

New process guide for facilitating organizational change processes

January 2011
The Barefoot Collective's "Course Guide for Facilitators on Foundations in Organisation Development" is a new resource from the South African-based Barefoot Collective. It is designed to accompany their landmark Barefoot Guide to Working with Organisations and Social Change. The new guide is an adaptable resource for facilitators wishing to run structured courses for practitioners who are not organizational specialists, but find themselves supporting the development of local organizations. More

Performance Monitoring Indicators: A Handbook for Task Managers

November 2010
This handbook provides a background on the logical framework, as well as a typology of indicators that can be used for the monitoring of performance. More

Promoting institutional and organizational development

November 2010
The purpose of these DFID guidelines is to help you distinguish between the institutional and the organizational level, to identify institutional problems that inhibit improvements at the organizational level, and to work out how to promote the necessary changes at both levels. Though based on DFID experiences, they are sufficiently general to be of interest also to others. More

Promoting institutional & organisational Development

November 2010
This DFID sourcebook complements the organisation's guidelines on promoting Institutional and Organisational Development. It outlines some of the key tools and techniques used by those involved in these processes, while emphasising that these are not blueprints, but need to be adapted to reflect the local context in which they are used. More

Building trust, changing behaviour

October 2010
Building trust between facilitators and learners is essential in capacity development. Leng Chhay, a CD practitioner with many years of experience in Cambodia, looks at how this trust can be established. More

To Know is to be empowered

October 2010
To Know is to be empowered If you want to effectively tackle gender inequality, you need to be able to measure it and identify its underlying causes. Putting local governments in the know is half the battle. More

"Evaluation revisited" workshop report published

April 2011
This report published in March 2011 summarizes the outputs of the Conference ‘Evaluation Revisited: Improving the Quality of Evaluative Practice by Embracing Complexity’’, which took place in Utrecht, the Netherlands, in May 2010. It also adds additional insights and observations related to the themes of the conference that have emerged at follow-up events. More

Making evaluations matter

April 2011
“ Too often evaluations are shelved, with very little being done to bring about change within organizations that requested the evaluation in the first place." This new guide published by the Wageningen University Research Centre for Development Innovation explains how to maximize the usefulness of evaluations. It explains some of the conceptual issues involved and discusses how the evaluation process can help contribute to changing mindsets and empowering stakeholders. More

Theory of Change: A thinking and action approach to navigate in the complexity of social change processes

May 2011
Jointly published by Hivos and UNDP, this guide synthesizes the core of the methodological contents and steps that are developed in a Theory of Change design workshop. It is aimed at the rich constellation of actors linked to processes of social development and change: bilateral donors, community leaders, political and social leaders, NGO’s representatives, community-base organizations, social movements, public decision makers, and other actors related to social change processes. More

Designing a results-focused capacity development strategy

August 2011
In this guide published in August 2011, the World Bank Institute (WBI) presents operational steps to help a project leader or task team facilitate stakeholders in designing a capacity development strategy. More

A practitioners guide to results-oriented capacity development

September 2011
Capacity development is usually marketed as a ‘process of change’. However, there is little point to change for the sake of change. Results-Oriented Capacity Development. A Practitioner's Guide for Leaders of Organizations and Development Managers, published in August 2010 by the Austral Foundation, offers a simple and practical approach to leaders, programme designers and managers, advisers and facilitators for implementing a results-based approach to capacity devleopment. More

Reflexive monitoring in action

November 2010
Reflexive monitoring in action After years of development, experimentation, and evaluation researchers at Wageningen University and Free University Amsterdam have published a monitoring guide for projects that aims to contribute to broader impacts at the sector or region level. This approach is known as ‘ reflexive monitoring in action’ (RMA). More

Organizational assessment tool for social movements

May 2012
My Healthy Organization (MHO) Social Service Assessment Tool was developed by RoadMap, a US-based consultancy network that provides capacity-building support to social justice organizations and movements. The tool is designed to integrate social justice and movement-building values into organizational effectiveness benchmarks. It also aims to promote learning opportunities for the organizations (and thus increase organizational development capacity "on the ground") through providing detailed process and next-steps guidelines. More

Capacity building for local NGOs: A guidance manual for good practice

January 2012
In the early 1990s, as Somaliland emerged from civil war and conflict, indigenous non-governmental and community-based organisations mushroomed. International organisations began targeting reconstruction and development aid through local organisations and quickly came to realise the need for institutional strengthening and capacity building. To coordinate these efforts, a number of organisations came together to create an international NGO forum known as the Capacity Building Caucus (CBC) in 1999. The aim of the CBC was to ensure learning from best practice, coordinate, capacity-building activities, and eventually to promote sustainability through a ‘training of trainers’ programme for Somali capacity- building officers. This package of manuals, is published by the Catholic Institute for International Relations, now known as Progressio. It was developed in part as a curriculum for the training of trainers programme, and in part for use by individual local organisations to assist them in the ongoing process of developing their own capacity. More

Introduction to Sensemaker decision-making tool

April 2013
Dates: Flexible (Registration deadline 26 April) Type of event: Online training course (3 months) Location: Global/Online Organization: Cognitive Edge More information: http://cognitive-edge.com/education/events/680/introduction-to-sensemaker-environment/ This is a self-paced introduction to SenseMaker® - a technique for dealing with uncertainty and complexity - as applied to team, organizational, marketplace or environment issues and opportunities. While it is not facilitator-led, participants will have opportunities to learn from and collaborate online with others. The course materials consist of a series of specially made videos, podcasts and documents that take learners through the process of working with SenseMaker®, introduce the important terms and key concepts, and illustrate typical results. More

Private sector development in conflict situations

November 2010
The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) has commissioned a project for the design of innovative tools for private sector development to be incorporated in the assistance programmes of partner countries. More

UNDP HIV/AIDS Group

November 2010
The HIV/AIDS group of UNDP supports the implementation of approaches and methodologies that embody governance in action: bringing together leaders from government, civil society – including stakeholders from the arts and media and the business sector to generate individual and collective commitment and sustainable action in response to the underlying causes of the epidemic. More

Combining local knowledge and global science: A practical guide

November 2010
This practical guide developed by DFID’s Research Into Use programme draws on practical experience in Nepal to show how the combination of external and local knowledge helps improve the lives of small-scale farmers by producing practical solutions suited to their needs. More

Establishing community information resource centres: A handbook

November 2010
Published by Oxfam, this handbook is based on many hours of workshop discussions and exchange focusing on information, knowledge and community development in the Horn of Africa sub-region. More

Online expert roster and study database on impact evaluation

November 2010
3ie is a US-based organization that seeks to improve the lives of poor people in low- and middle-income countries by providing, and summarizing, evidence of what works, when, why and for how much. More

No more consultants: we know more than we think

November 2010
We have all smiled at the apocryphal tale of the consultant who borrows your watch to tell you the time, and then walks off with your watch! This book by Geoff Parcell and Chris Collison aims to equip readers with the tools to tap into the capabilities of the organization that already exist but are as yet, inaccessible. More

Virtual evaluation writeshop 2011

May 2011
BetterEvaluation - a new interactive web facility that allows those dealing with evaluations as designers, commissioners or implementers to make informed methodological choices - seeks participants for its first-ever "Virtual Writeshop" on evaluation, to run between May and September 2011. Interested evaluation professionals with experience in diverse aspects of evaluation - including design, collection, sensemaking and reporting - are invited to participate. More

Bare Foot Guide 2 now available

June 2011
Following the success of the original Barefoot Guide to Working with Organisations and Social Change, a brand new Barefoot Guide to Learning Practices in Organisations and Social Change (BFG 2) has been launched. Like the first volume, it is meant to be a resource for leaders, facilitators and practitioners wanting to improve and enrich their learning processes inside their organizations and in the field. It is freely downloadable and includes a practical Companion Booklet for facilitators. More

Changing minds: A guide to facilitated participatory planning

August 2011
This book draws on the work of thinkers and doers throughout the world who have grappled with the challenge of planning complex institutions, especially health systems and development projects. Their problem: Conventional planning methods often do not work. The solution: Involve all the key stakeholders in making the plan. The challenge: Devise a planning system that the principals and stakeholders can trust, and that is inclusive, balanced, and dynamic. More

Building nonprofit capacity

January 2012
This book uses the organisational lifecycle framework to help the nonprofit sector and its leaders figure out how to effectively shepherd a change process in their organization. The book is based on research by the TCC Group, a New York based consultancy, in the area of organizational effectiveness studies. It also includesd results from the core capacity assessment tool (CCAT) - a 146-question online survey that measures a nonprofit organization's effectiveness in relation to four core capacities - leadership, adaptability, management, and technical capacities - as well as organizational culture. More

Free webinars on equity-focused evaluations

October 2011
Dates: Various, October to December 2011 Type of event: Webinar Location: Online Organization: My M&E portal My M&E, an open learning portal that supports knowledge-sharing on country-led M&E systems worldwide, is convening a series of free webinars on equity-focused evaluations by respected experts in this field. Upcoming sessions in October and November will cover, respectively: case study and equity in evaluation (Saville Kushner); programme theories and logframes to evaluate pro-poor and equity programmes (Patricia Rogers and Richard Hummelbrunner); and systems thinking for equity-focused evaluations (Bob Williams and Martin Reynolds). More

Virtual evaluation writeshop 2011

May 2011
BetterEvaluation - a new interactive web facility that allows those dealing with evaluations as designers, commissioners or implementers to make informed methodological choices - seeks participants for its first-ever "Virtual Writeshop" on evaluation, to run between May and September 2011. Interested evaluation professionals with experience in diverse aspects of evaluation - including design, collection, sensemaking and reporting - are invited to participate. More

Developing leadership capacities in a networked world

November 2012
Published in October 2012 by the Leadership Learning Community, Leadership and Networks: New Ways of Developing Leadership in a Highly Connected World is written for those who run and fund leadership programmes that develop and support leadership for social change. The report aims to inspire and help leadership programmes to question their assumptions about the traditional leadership models and retool their approaches in ways that will enable them to better prepare those in leadership with the mindset and skills they will need to more fully leverage network strategies. More

Understanding energy access and energy poverty: free online course

March 2013
Reducing energy poverty is a necessary condition to promote its economic and social development. 1.3 billion people in the world still lack access to electricity and 2.7 billion people rely mainly on traditional biomass. But extending energy access entails environmental implications.To help orient policymakers and development practitioners on this issue, the International Center for Climate Governance (ICCG) has launched a series of short video lectures aimed at promoting the long-distance training. The first theme in the series is on defining and measuring energy access and energy poverty. This will be followed by a training on Integrated Assessment Models in April. More

Tool for monitoring performance of smallscale farming systems

March 2013
An updated basic version of the MonQI Toolbox - an instrument for monitoring and analysing the management and performance of small-scale agricultural enterprises - will be launched in June 2013. The tool enhances users' ability to systematically describe and analyse elements such as farm households, assets, land, livestock, crops and inputs and outputs. As part of the launch, the project team will conduct a training course at Alterra, Wageningen University & Research Centre in Wageningen, The Netherlands, from 17 - 21 June. More

Helping policy research organizations become more accountable

October 2010
A significant proportion of funds aimed at development is allocated to research. This investment is done on the basis that rational policy processes rely on good evidence. Research organizations generating this evidence can have great impact on the citizens of a country. As such, it is important that they remain accountable. More

Citizen report cards score in India

October 2010
Monitoring public service delivery After more than a decade of monitoring by civil society organizations, the city of Bangalore in southern India has made progress in improving the quality and cost-effectiveness of its public services. More

Barefoot Guide to working with organizations and social change

November 2010
This practical, do-it-yourself guide is aimed at leaders and facilitators wanting to help civil society organizations to function and to develop in more healthy, human and effective ways as they strive to make their contributions to a more humane society. More

Multi-stakeholder learning partnerships in support of small-scale farming

January 2011
The December 2010 issue of "Farming Matters", a quarterly magazine published by the Centre for learning on sustainable agriculture (ILEIA) addresses the theme of "Partnerships for learning." Some questions raised in this issue include: what do the many different people and organizations labelled as "stakeholders" in small-scale family farming learn from each other? How do they learn to work together to create more sustainable agriculture? What drives them to collaborate? More

The interactive Organizational Assessment (OA) website

November 2010
The Organizational Assessment (OA) website offers guidance for organizations to help them choose appropriate frameworks and models for self-evaluation and self-reflection. More

OECD DAC Network on Development Evaluation

November 2010
The OECD Development Assistance Committee is a unique international forum that brings together donor governments and multilateral organizations to help partner countries reduce poverty and achieve the Millennium Development Goals. More

Theories of change: A resource list

May 2011
Research to Action has developed a list of resources for researchers and organizations looking to develop a ‘theory of change’ for their work. The page is worth visiting for capacity development practitioners as many of the resources provide practical guidance on how to fit the different theoretical frameworks to a variety of practice contexts. More

Theory U - "leading from the future as it emerges"

November 2010
Presencing," a blend of the words "presence" and "sensing," refers to the ability to sense and bring into the present one's highest future potential—as an individual and as a group. This approach is promoted by the Presencing Institute (PI) - a global awareness based action research community for profound societal innovation and change. More

3ie launches online database on systematic reviews

November 2011
The International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie) has launched an online database of systematic reviews. This database provides policymakers and practitioners with easy access to systematic reviews that examine evidence on the effects of social and economic development interventions in low- and middle-income countries. It currently has over 100 reviews for many sectors, including agriculture, education, nutrition and health. More

Linking agricultural research and practice: Climate analogues tool helps farmers anticipate their future climate

January 2012
"Climate Analogues" is a new open access tool launched at the UN Climate Change conference in Durban in December 2011 that aims to help farmers to assess the impacts of progressive climate change on agricultural production. The tool locates sites where the climate today is similar to that predicted for another location in the future, enabling farmers and policymakers to determine how to adapt to anticipated changes. More

Towards common standards in development evaluation

March 2012
Few development organizations have the capacity to effectively evaluate their programmes. While there is broad agreement on the need to strengthen evaluation capacity, there has been little consensus so far on how to go about this. With this in mind, the Evaluation Capacity Development Group (ECDG) and the Joint Committee on Standards for Educational Evaluation (JCSEE) developed a proposal to create an International Workshop Agreement (IWA) on evaluation capacity development that has been approved by the International Standardization Organization (ISO). During a workshop in Geneva, Switzerland on 17-21 October 2011, ECDG brought together M&E practitioners and standards experts to create a voluntary, consensus-driven agreement towards this end. A report of the workshop, which was supported by IDRC, GIZ and the OECD/DAC Evaluation Network, is now available. More

Development facilitation course: Bringing life to group processes

March 2012
Dates: 16-20 April 2012 Type of event: Training workshop Location: Cape Town, South Africa Organization: Community Development Resource Association (CDRA) More information: Download brochure (pdf 1.1MB) This training course wil explore the core methodologies for facilitating processes that enable and energise people in a workshop, meeting or training course. The course is aimed at newcomers to the development sector as well as experienced practitioners that are interested in enlivening their practice. It will offer an opportunity to share and learn from the experiences of fellow facilitators. More

Making policy research more accountable

December 2010
Making policy research more accountable The One World Trust, with support from the IDRC, has created an interactive, online database of tools to help organizations conducting policy relevant research become more accountable. More

Monitoring the impact of development programmes on food security

September 2012
This free online course has been produced by FAO in collaboration with Wageningen University and Research Centre for Development Innovation.The course brings together the latest information on impact assessment from numerous guidelines and presents it within the context of large scale food security programmes. The focus is on large scale programmes but the methods and approaches described in the course are equally applicable to smaller food security projects. More

Evaluating capacity development results: A practical guide

January 2013
Despite donor commitments of more than $30 billion per year on capacity development activities, there is a lack of consensus regarding what these activities include and what results should be expected. Conventional monitoring and evaluation (M&E) systems regularly fail to capture the impact of such activities. As a result, development practitioners are deprived of the opportunity to learn which capacity development interventions are most effective in different situations. More

Innovative strategies for facilitating vertical linkages with very poor producers (Webinar)

January 2013
Date: 21 February 2013 Type of event: Webinar Location: Online/Global Organization: USAID/SEEP Network More information: http://www.seepnetwork.org/webinar-2--innovative-strategies-for-facilitating-vertical-linkages-with-very-poor-producers-events-52.php This is the second of three webinars in the “Integrating Very Poor Producers Into Value Chains Field Guide” series, an initiative of the SEEP Network Market Facilitation Initiative and STEP UP Initiative. The objective of the Field Guide is to provide guidance to frontline field development practitioners on how to better integrate very poor producers into value chains. More

Fourth World Water Development Report: Managing water under uncertainty and risk

January 2013
The United Nations World Water Development Report (WWDR), released every three years in conjunction with the World Water Forum, is the UN’s flagship report on water. The fourth edition, published in March 2012, seeks to offer leaders in government, the private sector and civil society tools and response options to address current and future challenges related to the pressures driving demand for water and affecting its availability. More

Understanding market systems: Adapting monitoring and evaluation tools for practitioners

June 2013
It is difficult to predict changes in market systems, even after thorough market analysis and strategic planning. This presents particular challenges for donors and practitioners in assessing the impact of their development interventions. Monitoring and Measuring Change in Market Systems - Rethinking the Current Paradigm synthesizes the outcome of diverse consultations facilitated by USAID's SEEP Network between 2010 and 2012. The aim was to support practitioners to develop more effective monitoring and evaluation frameworks for both market and financial systems. More

Global Development Network

November 2010
This GDN toolkit provides broad tips and practical suggestions for communicating academic research using the internet. It draws on best practice for web strategies from the information and commercial worlds, especially selected to help the successful electronic dissemination of your research. More

The Change Alliance

December 2010
The Change Alliance is an emerging global network that aspires to increase the effectiveness of multi-stakeholder processes (MSPs) working for transformational social change, particularly in complex settings. More

E-learning tool to build adaptive capacity for rural livelihoods

November 2011
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has developed a modular e-learning tool to enhance awareness and technical capacities for promoting community-based adaptation in agriculture. It consists of four interactive learning modules, structured in 24 sessions, that link research-based knowledge on climate change impacts with examples and experiences on community-based adaptation drawn from various FAO field projects, and a range of other country-specific case studies. It is available in English, French and Spanish. More

Launch event: Online Guide on effective partnerships for humanitarian research and practice

March 2012
Dates: 17 April 2012 Type of event: Panel Discussion (with live webcast) Location: London, UK: 15:00-17:00 BST (GMT + 01) Organization: Overseas Development Organisation (ODA) More information: http://www.odi.org.uk/events/details.asp?id=2911&title=humanitarian-partnerships-research-academic In 2011, the Humanitarian Emergency Response Review (HERR) called for humanitarian action to be underpinned by evidence and highlighted the need for more systematic and rigorous applied research. However, in order to build this body of evidence and ensure that practitioners can access and apply it, humanitarians and academics need to work in partnership. But what are the key ingredients to an effective partnership between humanitarians and academics? What are the pitfalls and at what stage does it make sense to introduce certain activities or actors? This event, hosted by the Humanitarian Practice Network at ODI, will launch a ELRHA-commissioned study report that sought to answer this question. In addition to identifying the obstacles to partnership and how these can be overcome, the report highlights a number of examples where effective partnerships between academics and practitioners have yielded results which have had a direct positive impact on vulnerable communities. The report has also been translated into an Online Guide to Effective Partnerships with an Android Application for use in poor coverage areas.The event will include a panel discussion around the value of partnerships, a presentation from one of the case studies and a demonstration of how to use the Online Guide. More

Food aid decision-making tool to strengthen context-specific humanitarian responses

May 2012
The Market Information and Food Insecurity Response Analysis (MIFIRA) decision-making tool developed by Cornell University researchers aims to help international relief organizations cater their food aid response to specific local and regional economic and social contexts. The tool builds on lessons learnt during the Indian Ocean tsunami as relief agencies sought more efficient local alternatives to international food aid. More

An analytical framework for assessing decentralized local governance and the local public sector

January 2011
In recent years, a consensus among development practitioners and decentralization experts has emerged that decentralization is about more than merely shifting power and resources away from the central level or strengthening the administrative capacity of local governments. Instead, decentralization is increasingly defined as the empowerment of people through the empowerment of their local governments. This definition recognizes that decentralization is a means rather than an end in itself: decentralization should be pursued in order to empower people over the public sector so as to achieve improvements in the delivery of public services. This new perspective has important implications for how we measure and assess progress on decentralization reforms and on the status of decentralized governance systems. More

State of the Humanitarian System, 2012

July 2012
The Active Learning Network for Accountability and Performance (ALNAP) recently launched the 2012 edition of its landmark State of the Humanitarian System Report. The 2012 report presents a system-level mapping and analysis of the performance of international humanitarian assistance. It draws on interviews with hundreds of aid workers, donors and aid recipients to create an authentic snapshot of the vast, shifting mass of agencies, donors, governments and affected populations that are part of the humanitarian community. A unique element is the interviews carried out with aid recipients in four countries to find out how they perceive the international humanitarian community. The full report as well as a short animated video outlining its key messages can be downloaded at: http://www.alnap.org/ourwork/current/sohs.aspx. More

Innovative approaches for strengthening adaptive capacity at community level: A case study from Namibia

December 2012
"Climate games" are increasingly being used to energize participatory processes and help communities to plan for uncertainty and extreme events. This case study looks at the first community pilot or “play-test” of a new game, Ready, which took place in Namibia in June 2012 and highlights not only the potential, but some of the challenges involved in translating games to real-life settings. The game was developed as part of a collaboration between the American Red Cross, PETLab at the Parsons New School for Design in New York and the Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre. More

Strengthening local governance: Towards context-specific theories of change for citizen engagement and state accountability

January 2013
This project briefing paper from the Overseas Development Institute (ODI), UK, uses a critical analysis of citizen voice and accountability (CV&A) cases to examine how CV&A happens in different governance contexts. According to the author, CV&A project interventions produce and reproduce diverse outcomes that are not amenable to linear models of theories of change (ToC), which are "starting to be viewed as...a key part of what constitutes 'rigour' in impact evaluations. The paper draws on the experiences of ODI's Mwananchi Programme, a 5-year programme initiative to strengthen ordinary citizens' voices and improve state accountability and responsiveness in six African countries. More

Dilemmas of inter-organisational learning

January 2013
Editorial Organisations can learn from each other, and they can learn together. There is a wide spectrum of ways in which inter-organisational learning (IOL) occurs, ranging from picking up a good idea from a competitor to engaging in strategic alliances. Inter-organisational learning is not only practiced in the private sector but also widely practised in the development sector. However, unlike the private sector IOL in the development sector is hardly studied or evaluated. There seems to be an uncritical assumption that organisations working and learning together is unproblematic and usually beneficial for all parties. More

Inter-organisational learning in South African education

January 2013
The importance of defining outcomes The questions practitioners repeatedly face when facilitating inter-organisational learning processes are: what does collaboration precisely mean and what are its goals? How pragmatic is collaboration? And is it indeed the answer or merely a layer of additional complexity? This is particularly relevant in the South African context where the country’s successes – such as the transition from apartheid and the 2010 World Cup – are seen as examples of collaboration. In reality, however, these successes seem to be more the exception than the norm, and the complexity of collaboration and resulting inter-organisational learning is severely underestimated. More

Inter-organisational learning: A new frontier

January 2013
Towards a knowledge agenda Inter-organisational activities have become common practice in the development sector. Some of these activities aim to categorically achieve learning. However, even when this is not the primary goal, inter-organisational learning is usually critical to the success of networks, coalitions, alliances, partnerships and other inter-organisational structures. It is therefore high time to set a knowledge agenda in support of practitioners who facilitate inter-organisational learning. More

Strategies for Impact and Policy Relevance

November 2010
Over the last five years ODI’s Research and Policy in Development (RAPID) programme has been involved in research and advisory and capacity development work with a wide range of organisations throughout the developing world keen to improve the impact of their research on policy and practice, and has produced a wide range of practical guidelines and toolkits. This publication documents the lessons learned, summarised in six simple lessons. More

Participatory Monitoring and Evaluation: PRIA Global Partnership newsletter, Vol. 1, Issue 4

March 2012
The October 2011 issue of PRIA's Global Partnership newsletter contains a selection of papers that were presented and discussed in the International Conference on Monitoring and Evaluation: New Developments and Challenges, jointly organized by INTRAC, PSO and PRIA held on 14-16 June 2011 in the Netherlands. More

Barefoot Guide 3: Mobilizing religious health assets for transformation

November 2012
Health, freedom and social justice cannot be separated. In Africa, anything between 20-70% of public healthcare is delivered through religious institutions or groups. The latest "Barefoot Guide" to organizational learning and social change takes as its point of departure the notion that "Religious assets for health are everywhere, they matter to a lot of people, and they can be mobilized for the health of all." Among topics covered in the guide are: thinking differently about public health; working with and mobilizing religious health assets; supporting the ‘leading causes of life’; understanding ‘healthworlds’ and the strengths of ‘people who come together’; boundary leadership; thinking about systems; and ‘deep accountability.’ More

Foundation - Kellog International Leadership Programme in Africa

November 2010
In 1989, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation launched its Kellog International Leadership Programme, to connect leaders in Latin America and the Caribbean, the United States and Southern Africa. More

LenCD General Assembly: learning about institutional reform

May 2013
The Learning Network on Capacity Development (LenCD) will hold its General Assembly in Brussels on 20 and 21 June 2013. The first day will be an open learning day on the theme of institutional reform. All members of the LenCD network and others interested in capacity development and institutional reform are invited to participate. More

Online sourcebook for fostering learning and performance-enhancing change in research organisations

November 2010
Institutional learning and change initiative: Produced in 2009 by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), this online sourcebook highlights concepts and conceptual frameworks for fostering learning and performance enhancing change in research organisations. More

Sourcebook on institutional learning and change

November 2010
Produced in 2009 by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), this online sourcebook highlights concepts and conceptual frameworks for fostering learning and performance enhancing change in research organisations. More

Trust is an essential ingredient

October 2010
Ousmane Oumarou Sidibé has been given no mean assignment. He is responsible for reforming the entire system of governance in Mali. His aim is, first and foremost, to make government more client-oriented. At all levels. Ousmane Sidibé argues that the key to achieving that goal is a major shift in attitude. Such a shift can’t be forced. Civil servants will have to be convinced, one at a time, that it is in their own interest. It can be done, he tells Evelijne Bruning, but it will take time, and a lot of money. More

The strength of partnerships

October 2010
African institutions for public accountability Africans are not recognized for the work they do to promote social accountability in their countries. A new pan-African platform allows them to share their experiences, learn new techniques and disseminate information, and encourages new initiatives. More

Sharing local governance M&E tools

October 2010
The members of REDL, a network of development actors working in the field of decentralisation and local government in West Africa, are documenting, analysing and sharing their methods and lessons learned. Now no one has to reinvent the wheel. More