ACF | RESEARCH FOR NUTRITION CONFERENCE

The Topics

Discussion on these topics will be animated by experts in each area and lessons derived by concrete field examples. A panel debate on the subject will conclude the sessions.

Topic #1 – What are the operational dilemmas in undertaking research in complex environments?

Which challenges and dilemmas are field actors facing in operationalising studies (with or without complex designs)? Operational agencies are more and more involved in implementation research, either nested into ongoing programmes or in parallel to them, often in challenging settings. The need of high quality evidence to inform operations and policies requires sound methodologies, specialised human resources and multiple partnerships that make research implementation complex.

What are the implications for us? How do we respond? Do we manage to remain accountable to our beneficiaries (for whom are we conducting research)? Which is the most suited research and most needed to operations? How much should we focus on impact and how much on contextual enabling factors?

Topic #2 – From research to practice: how to transform results into action?

Despite the breadth and depth of evidence that exists globally, “the right systems and incentives are not in place to ensure that evidence is available and used to inform decision-making”. Transforming evidence into action and policy change is one of our responsibilities as NGO conducting research and is the ultimate goal of research uptake activities.

How can we ensure research impact, i.e. how do we go from publication to uptake? As operational agencies, we have the responsibility to transform research results into concrete changes, improvements, lessons for our field operations. Which actions can we take to ensure this step?