Sustineo is pleased to be hosting the exciting Learning from the past to inform the future panel at the 2018 Australasian Aid Conference. The session, Insights from Australia’s experiences in agricultural research for development, will focus on research and practice experience within partnership programs at the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research.
The panel will include experts from academia, the private sector, and Australian Government who will share their diverse experience of research impact assessment and evaluation.
The session
In a changing research funding landscape, where public funds operate in parallel to large philanthropic and private sector donations, there is a crucial need to demonstrate the value for money of research investment. The global sustainable development agenda, and growing body of sustainability research focusing on co-production of knowledge and strong partnerships, is driving the requirement for development practitioners, governments, and researchers to actively learn and adapt to align practice with to changing futures.
This panel will draw on the experience of program managers, consultants, and researchers working in ACIAR projects, ranging from design to impact assessment. The audience will receive an update on cutting edge and innovative ideas on how future research for development activities can be responsive to changing development contexts.
The panellists
Federico Davila (Sustineo): Findings from an impact assessment into Australia’s investments in giant clam research in the Indo-Pacific. Federico will discuss how six Australian funded projects across numerous sectors have aligned with major food system outcomes, and the implications of this for future investments.
Lorrae van Kerkhoff (Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University): Number, networks, and narratives: evaluating research for development projects over long term timeframes. Lorrae will provide a synthesis of impact assessment finding from two Australian funded projects to demonstrate the value of integrative methods that focus on quantifying impact as well as capturing narratives and social networks.
Tony Bartlett (Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research): Factors influencing achievements and impact in collaborative research projects in the Asia-Pacific. Tony will discuss experiences on multiple factors that influence impact in the Asia-Pacific, with specific focus on forestry projects.
Andrew Alford (Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research): Dynamic impact assessment frameworks and their role in changing development contexts. Andrew will discuss how impact assessment methodologies have adapted to capture the complex context in which Australia’s projects take place.
Sustineo’s Executive Manager – Research, Tom Sloan will chair the session.
The particulars
Session: Panel 2d: Insights from Australia’s experiences in agricultural research for development (program available here).
Time and date: 3:00pm on Tuesday 13 February 2018
Location: Acton Theatre, Australian National University