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Relevant lessons, approaches and resources from
other programmes
Power to the Edges: Trends and Opportunities in Online
Civic Engagement by Jillaine Smith, Martin Kearns and
Allison Fine
This paper explores trends and strategies related to the current
and future state of online activism, fundraising and democracy.
It draws on a review of recent articles, studies and online
discussions, as well as in-depth interviews with 19 leaders
in the fields of online technologies, nonprofit capacity building,
citizen engagement, and social networks. The authors assert
that 'traditional ways of engaging civically are coming to an
end'. They point to the December 2004 tsunami as 'one of the
earliest successful uses of the entire continuum of Internet
and other communications tools to respond, to help, to grieve'.
They also note that 'New models of civic engagement require
a different set of benchmarks, skills and training. In fact,
the changes have very little to do with technology or the Internet
and everything to do with building entirely new organisational
cultures'. The report concludes with a series of findings and
recommendations of the ways that organisations, individuals
and philanthropic groups can help build such cultures. For more
see: www.comminit.com/trends/ctrends2005/trends-259.html.
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Make Poverty History Campaign: 2005 Campaign Evaluation
by Andy Martin, Carolyn Culey and Suzy Evans
Undertaken by an alliance of over 400 UK-based NGOs, charities,
trade unions, campaigning groups, faith communities, and celebrities,
the aim of the Make Poverty History campaign was to involve
UK citizens in the effort to take the lead in pressuring world
leaders to live up to their promise to halve world poverty by
2015, as part of Millennium Goal #1. Church and faith groups
provided an important bridge between traditional activists and
first-time campaigners. In terms of policy change, it was felt
that the campaign could point to real achievements on aid and
debt. On trade, there was felt to have been little practical
success, although the very fact that trade and development were
linked together was felt to be an important step in building
an international consensus. For more on the evaluation see:
www.comminit.com/evaluations/eval2006/evaluations-267.html
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NGOs at the Table: Strategies for Influencing Policy in
Areas of Conflict by Mari Fitzduff & Cheyanne Church
(eds)
This book examines the issues surrounding the interaction of
non-governmental organisations with policymakers as they seek
to affect policy outcome in conflict situations. This book looks
at why and how NGOs seek to influence policy and the challenges
they face in terms of resources and retaining independence while
engaging with policymakers on crucial issues. It examines the
constraints faced in trying to penetrate the governmental process
and discusses how these obstacles may be overcome. The book
also includes analysis and reflections by a variety of experienced
policymakers and academics working in the field. The book is
published by the International Conflict Research centre of University
of Ulster, Northern Ireland. For more see: www.incore.ulster.ac.uk/policy/pubs.html
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Gender Training Wiki from UNINSTRW
This tool is created for the gender community to communicate
training courses, publications, toolkits, guides, and other
information relevant to gender training. The tool belongs to
all users and all users have the power to edit, add and share
information through the wiki. Find out more about the wiki at
www.un-instraw.org/wiki/training.
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IDeA knowledge capacity building toolkit
This toolkit has been developed to help civil society to
increase local authorities' capacity to deliver change. It is
a response to the demand from local authorities for supporting
development skills required for managing and delivering successful
organisational change. The tools and information on this website
include guidance, case studies and methodologies. These tools
are coordinated and managed as a unit so that they achieve the
intended outcomes and realise benefits. It breaks down into
manageable chunks with monitoring and review points for assessing
progress and performance in a long-term focus. For more information,
see IDeA
capacity building toolkit.
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Aid for the Poor, Not for the Consultants
No less than a quarter of annual development aid - about 20
billion dollars - is being used by donor countries to fund technical
assistance of sometimes dubious worth, says Action
Aid International in a new report. The study, titled 'Real
Aid 2', was launched by the Johannesburg-based non-governmental
organisation. As with last year's 'Real Aid', it examines how
development funding is spent. For more information, see the
Inter
Press Service News Agency report or view the full report
on the ActionAid
International website. |
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Scoping study for IDRC, Canada
CSPP participated in the scoping study on 'Productive strategies
and empowerment of poor rural families to participate successfully
in global markets' for the Rural
Poverty and Environment (RPE) Programme of the International
Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada. RPE aims at
strengthening poor communities' capacity to respond to and benefit
from integration within wider social and economic systems. The
report made recommendations on several research themes through
which IDRC intends to focus its research agenda in the future.
For more on this study please see: www.idrc.ca/en/ev-91960-201-1-DO_TOPIC.html.
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CSPR workshop on Policy Advocacy in Zambia
Established in 2000, the objective of the Civil Society for
Poverty Reduction (CSPR) (www.cspr.org.zm)
is to ensure that civil society effectively and meaningfully
participates in the design, formulation and implementation of
the Poverty Reduction and Strategy Paper (PRSP). In order to
enhance the capacity of CSOs to participate in policy debate
in Zambia CSPR is planning to host a one week training session
for local and national civil society actors in pro-poor policy
research and policy analysis. The workshop will be held in Lusaka
during the last week of August 2006. Vivian Kazi from ESRF,
Tanzania - a member of CSPP network - is expected to attend.
For more information on the course and how to participate please
contact: Besinati Phiri Mpepo (besimpepo@cspr.org.zm)
or Savior Mwambwa (smwambwa@cspr.org.zm).
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Strengthening Global Civil
Society by Leni Wild
This report from the Institute for Public Policy Research
urges that 'global civil society' must create a 'more level
playing field for the global south', a region where NGOs typically
lack resources and have largely been ignored. The author recommends
strengthening southern organisations’ research and policy
analysis and promoting financial independence. The report also
discusses the value of free media and access to information
in pressuring governments and mobilizing public awareness. The
full report is available to download from the IPPR website at:
www.ippr.org.uk/publicationsandreports/publication.asp?id=447. |
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Communities of Practice:
Lessons Learnt from Latin America by Brenda Bucheli and
Gaby Romo
This interesting and brief document presents conclusions drawn
from a workshop held in Mexico City at the beginning of 2005,
hosted by the Mexican Conservation Learning Initiative. These
reflections serve as an introduction to the theme of communities
of practice. Some criteria for starting and ensuring the continuity
of communities of practice emerged from the discussion and from
five case studies, which were presented at the workshop and
are included as appendices. Versions in English and Spanish
can be downloaded at: www.intrac.org/pages/PraxisNote16.html. |
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START: Simple Toolkit for Advocacy Research Techniques
(2005) by Lucy Tweedie
This toolkit published by Voluntary Service Overseas (VSO)
gives users a comprehensive guide to carrying out their own
research to discover the reality and the problems around a
particular sector or theme. Based on VSO's own 'Valuing Teachers'
project on teacher motivation, it provides examples of how
these tools and methods were applied. The toolkit outlines
the research process and enables the user to learn more about
using research for advocacy. The toolkit is available online
at: www.vso.org.uk/Images/start_tcm8-4860.pdf.
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Research for Development: A Practical Guide by
Sophie Laws with Caroline Harper and Rachel Marcus
This book provides a comprehensive introduction and handbook
for undertaking and managing research in development. It is
designed to provide both a quick reference manual and an indispensable
learning tool for all students, researchers and practitioners
engaged in development work. It is particularly oriented for
NGOs working towards social change and it's language is simple,
straightforward and free of jargon. Published in association
with Save the Children Fund in March 2003, it is available
to order through: www.sagepub.co.uk/booksProdDesc.nav?prodId=Book211189.
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Facilitation Course: Change
in Development, Participatory Development Associates (PDA),
Ghana
A new one-year programme 'Facilitating Change in Development'
is being launched by PDA. The course will run in conjunction
with the Ibis West Africa OCB Programme. This course is intended
for people with several years experience in facilitating development
processes. It is particularly relevant for people involved in
political, social and economic change processes. The application
pack is available to download on the PDA website at: www.pdaghana.com/fcd_programme.php,
as well as by email from pda@africaonline.com.gh
and in hard copy from PDA's offices in Kumasi and Accra. Some
grants may be available for Ghanaian civil society organisations.
For more information download the FCD programme brochure: www.pdaghana.com/FCD/FCD_Brochure_2006.pdf. |
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IFPRI Global e-Learning
Program
The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) is
launching a Global e-Learning Program designed to provide free
e-learning opportunities for professionals around the world.
The Global e-Learning Program will initially comprise two separate
e-learning courses on 'How to Write a Convincing Proposal' and
'How to Communicate Scientific Research'. The methods and materials
for both courses were developed by experienced international
specialists and were tested extensively in two successful pilot
e-learning programmes carried out in 2005. Both courses will
be online for four months during 2006. Participants can choose
to take either or both of the courses. For further information
and registration for the courses, please visit IFPRI at http://learning.ifpri.org. |
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Africa Policy Journal
Harvard University's first public policy journal focusing
solely on Africa was recently launched by the students of
Kennedy School of Government. The Africa Policy Journal
aims to provide rigorous analysis and practical solutions
to some of Africa's most pressing policy challenges. The online
journal recognises many policy challenges are specific to
Africa and seeks to redress the lack of public policy research
and publications on Africa among leading academic institutions.
With the election of a Kennedy School alumnus, Ellen Sirleaf
Johnson, as President of Liberia and the first African female
head of state, the Journal's first edition features an article
discussing the foreign and security policy challenges facing
post-war Liberia. The inaugural issue of the Africa Policy
Journal also contains an interview with 2004 Kenyan Nobel
Peace Prize Winner, Wangari Maathai, the first African woman
to win the prize, and a commentary by distinguished Harvard
University Professor Robert Rotberg on the central role that
leadership plays in African countries' development. For contents
and details for the Journal, visit: www.ksg.harvard.edu/kssgorg/apj.
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