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Get some perspective, Mr Brand!
In an interruption to normal service, I am taking the liberty of using my blog to engage with popular culture. In case you’ve missed it, Russell Brand, a British comedian, mainly famous for marrying an...
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Nerds without borders!
Me in a lab starting the process of extracting NK cells from the blood of some poor soul who I had accosted with a needle and an ethics form earlier that day. This is the first in a series of blogs:...
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Nerds without borders – Juliette Mutheu
In part 2 of my series on scientists/researchers who work in international development (read part 1 here), I’d like to introduce you to Kenya’s First Lady of Science Communication (and closet science...
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Nerds without borders – Nhan Tran
Today’s nerd without borders is Nhan Tran of the World Health Organization. Take a look at posts 1 and 2 as well. Dr Nhan Tran – the best dressed man in global health? 1. What flavour of nerdy...
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Nerds without borders – Anna Paterson
Today we are moving into political nerdiness with political scientist, Anna Paterson. Dr Paterson – a political scientist who believes in getting her hands dirty 1. What flavour of nerdy...
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Nerds without borders – Alex Ademokun
Today’s nerd is my friend and former colleague Alex Ademokun (who can be found on twitter as @AAlex_A)… Dr Alex Ademokun – attempting to hide his deep nerdiness behind some cool shades I am an...
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Nerds without borders – Beth Scott
Today’s nerd is a colleague of mine from the Department of International Development – the most excellent (and only occasionally scary) Beth Scott… 1. What flavour of nerdy scientist are you? I...
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If he’s going to rest in peace, we might need to stop squabbling
The media coverage of Nelson Mandela’s passing has provided us with lots of opportunities to remind ourselves of his wisdom and kindness. But, unfortunately, it has also revealed some rather unedifying...
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Nerds without borders – Justin Sandefur
It’s the last in the series of Nerds without Borders but don’t worry, it’s a good one… it’s only the Centre for Global Development’s JUSTIN SANDEFUR! Find him on twitter as @JustinSandefur I’m not...
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Should we be worried about policy makers’ use of evidence?
A couple of papers have come out this week on policy makers’ use of evidence. Policy makers are apparently floating around in their own little bubbles – but should this be a cause for concern? The...
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Results based aid
I was recently asked for my opinion on the links between two common concepts in development: results-based aid (RBA) and evidence-informed policy making. It isn’t something I had really considered...
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Make love not war: bringing research rigour and context together
I’ve just spent a few days in Indonesia having meetings with some fascinating people discussing the role of think tanks in supporting evidence-informed policy. It was quite a privilege to spend time...
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Can an outsider help solve your problems?
My sister, who knows about these things, tells me that most great innovations happen when someone from one sector/area of expertise moves to a new sector/area of expertise and introduces a new way of...
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Unintended consequences: When research impact is bad for development
Development research donors are obsessed with achieving research impact and researchers themselves are feeling increasingly pressurised to prioritise communication and influence over academic quality....
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Top-down versus bottom-up development: where does evidence fit in?
I recently enjoyed reading this speech by Owen Barder in which he describes his gradual transition from a belief in ‘top-down’-/’pre-fab solutions’-based development to a model based on ‘bottom-up’...
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12 principles for Payment by Results – the simplified version
Meanwhile in Oxford… Stefan Dercon and Paul Clist recently published this excellent short paper outlining 12 principles to consider before using a Payment by Results (PbR) contract for development...
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How to to look smart to development geeks
I have been having an amusing and distracting twitter conversation this week about how to look smart in front of the various different tribes of development specialists. Here’s a few tips to instantly...
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Capacity building – why so difficult?
A frequent comment about capacity building is that it is very difficult and complicated. I understand this to a point – I mean any endeavour that involves human beings is going to be complicated. But...
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Capacity building rule 2: be ruthless in your selection
Rosipaw, flikr As I mentioned in the previous post, you can never ‘build someone else’s capacity’. All you can do as an outsider is to support the learning of others. Therefore it is good to be humble...
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Capacity building rule 3: do stuff to facilitate learning
http://www.morguefile.com This rule may sounds so obvious that it is not even worth stating. But it is amazing how many projects which are labeled as capacity building don’t seem to contain any plans...
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