Agenda

The Think Tank Initiative Exchange runs over three days (November 12-14, 2018) and aims to bring together representatives of think tanks, policymakers, donors and other research-to-policy actors in order to:

  • Promote debate and dialogue on the critical factors contributing to the sustainability and impact of policy research organizations;
  • Generate critical insights and reflections on effective approaches to supporting policy research organizations;
  • Understand the catalytic role that policy research organizations can play in contributing to international frameworks like the SDGs, and how they might work collectively with other key actors to contribute more effectively;
  • Explore strategies and approaches for how best to animate evidence informed policy ecosystems with a view to identifying opportunities for future collaboration amongst policy research organizations, funders and other relevant actors.

The following presents an overview of the conference sessions and speakers over those three days. A PDF version of the agenda is also available for downloading here.

Kindly note that a welcome cocktail reception will be held on Sunday November 11, 2018 at the Glenn Bar from 17:30 until 19:30 to kick-start the conference (Welcome remarks by Andrew Hurst, Programme Leader, TTI – IDRC).

 

  • Nov 12, 2018
    Set the scene: Reflect on the past and focus on the future
    8:00 - 9:00
    Registration
    Foyer outside Infinity Ballroom
    9:00 - 10:15
    Opening plenary
    Infinity Ballroom

    Welcome addresses (9:00-10:15):

    • Valerie Traore, TTIX Facilitator, Executive Director, Niyel
    • Nipon Poapongsakorn, Distinguished Fellow, Thailand Development Research Institute
    • H.E. Ms. Donica Pottie, Ambassador to Thailand, Embassy of Canada
    • Simon Keogh, Evidence Broker, DFID on behalf of the TTI Executive Committee
    • Peter Taylor, Director, Strategic Development, IDRC on behalf of TTI

    10:15 - 10:45
    Coffee/tea break
    Foyer outside Infinity Ballroom
    10:45 - 12:30
    Panel discussion: Think tanks in a changing world
    Infinity Ballroom

    Objectives:

    • To highlight the key challenges facing countries in TTI regions over the next ten years.
    • To reflect on how the future will differ from the past ten years.
    • To share ideas and perspectives on how think tanks will use the support and experiences of TTI to address these challenges.

    Moderator:
    Nick Ishmaël Perkins    , TTIX Facilitator, Technical Advisor, CABI

    Panelists:

    • Bitrina Diyamett, Executive Director, STIPRO
    • Subrat Das, Executive Director, Centre for Budget and Governance Accountability, India
    • Ana Patricia Muñoz, Executive Director, Grupo Faro
    • Somkiat Tangkitvanich, President, Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    12:30 - 14:00
    Lunch
    Cuisine Unplugged
    14:00 - 15:45
    Collaborative “plenary” - Co-create: Designing for the future based on past lessons
    Infinity Ballroom

    Objectives:

    • Share, validate and debate emerging findings from the TTI evaluation, emphasizing implications for future support to think tanks
    • Further develop our understanding of the lessons learned by the TTI community over the past 8 years
    • Identify opportunities, challenges and ideas for future support to enhancing the use of evidence in policy and practice, including the role of think tanks

    Moderator:
    Nick Ishmaël Perkins    , TTIX Facilitator, Technical Advisor, CABI

    Panelists:

    • Tricia Wind, Senior Program Specialist, Policy and Evaluation Division (POEV), IDRC
    • Ian Christoplos, Team Lead, NIRAS
    • Dan Peters, Senior Program Officer, Development Policy and Finance, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation

    For more details, please consult the session outline along with the preliminary conclusions from the TTI evaluation

    15:45 - 16:15
    Coffee/tea break
    Foyer outside Infinity Ballroom
    16:15 - 17:45
    Plenary - Ask any questions: Funders in a changing world
    Infinity Ballroom

    Objectives:

    • Enable and advance the articulation of a renewed case why think thinks are important actors in the SDG era and how they be best engaged to maximize their potential within broader knowledge-to-policy systems.
    • Provide an open, constructive forum for the exchange of perspectives on how think tanks and funders should work together in the coming decade.
    • To provide helpful, real-time context on funding priorities and directions for forward-looking discussions in Days 2 & 3.

    Moderator:
    Valerie Traore, TTIX Facilitator, Executive Director, Niyel

    Panellists:

    • Peter Taylor, Director - Strategic Development, IDRC
    • Sarah Lucas, Senior Program Officer, Hewlett Foundation
    • Yamini Aiyar, Executive Director, Centre for Policy Research
    • Arthur Bainomugisha, Executive Director, ACODE

    For more details, please consult the session outline

  • Nov 13, 2018
    Explore and engage
    8:30 - 9:30
    Recap: Reflections from Day 1 and overview of Day 2
    Infinity Ballroom

    Moderator(s):

    • Valerie Traore, TTIX Facilitator, Executive Director, Niyel
    • Nick Ishmaël Perkins, TTIX Facilitator, Technical Advisor, CABI

    Keynote Address (09:00 – 09:20): How May Think Tanks Continue to Make a Difference?

    • Alex Awiti, Director, East Africa Institute, Aga Khan University

    09:30 - 11:00
    Think tanks making a difference: A marketplace
    Eternity Ballroom

    Objectives:

    • Enable think tanks to showcase their research, policy engagement, outreach and advocacy, including their greatest achievements and lessons in the nearly decade long period of TTI’s support
    • Enable conference participants to learn from a range of experiences on think tank engagement on policy issues from across the three regions.
    • Enable all conference participants to find common ground in existing and emerging areas of policy and action research and build local, national, regional and global coalitions and collaborations for research based action post-March 2019.

    Moderator(s):

    • Valerie Traore, TTIX Facilitator, Executive Director, Niyel
    • Nick Ishmaël Perkins, TTIX Facilitator, Technical Advisor, CABI

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Coffee/tea served (Inside Eternity Ballroom)

    11:00 - 12:30
    Parallel sessions: Taking on the future
    Session 1 - Environment, agriculture & climate change
    Omega

    Objectives:

    • Showcase think tanks’ research effecting change - such as by setting/redefining the policy agenda, provision of key technical research inputs that have changed policies or action research that provides innovative solutions to tackle issues at scale.
    • Share lessons on successful strategies to engage different audiences (policy and public) through evidence-based advocacy and campaigns to effect change
    • Produce a regionally/globally relevant output (e.g. campaign, joint research or a series of op-eds etc.)

    Moderator/Chair:
    Abid Suleri, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), Islamabad, Pakistan

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Dushni Weerakoon, Executive Director, Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), Sri Lanka
    • Ajaya Dixit, Executive Director, Institute for Social and Environmental Transition-Népal, (ISET-Nepal)
    • Aminita Diop Kane, Monitoring, Evaluation and Knowledge Management Officer, Initiative prospective agricole et rurale (IPAR-Senegal)
    • Susan Kavuma, Research Fellow, Advocates Coalition for Development and Environment (ACODE), Uganda
    • Beatriz Muriel Hernández/Lykke Anderson, Executive Director/Researcher, Instituto de Estudios Avanzados en Desarrollo (INESAD), Bolivia

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 2 - Access to energy, water and resources
    Delta

    Objectives:

    • Showcase think tanks’ research effecting change - such as by setting/redefining the policy agenda and/or provision of key technical research inputs that have changed policies
    • Share lessons on successful strategies to engage different audiences (policy and public) through evidence-based advocacy and campaigns to effect change
    • Produce a regionally/globally relevant output (e.g. campaign, joint research or a series of op-eds)

    Moderator/Chair:
    Debbie Menezes, Independent Consultant

    Panelists/Presenters:

    • Pratima Singh, Research Scientist, Centre for Study of Technology and Policy (CSTEP), Bangalore, India
    • Nipon Poapongsakorn, Distinguished Fellow, Thailand Development Research Institute Foundation (TDRI)
    • Ufo Okeke Uzodike, Executive Director, African Heritage Institution (AfriHeritage), Enugu, Nigeria

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 3 - Promoting gender equality in research
    Kappa

    Objectives:

    • Showcase think tank research on gender equality
    • Foster dynamic interactive discussions about approaches to gender in research
    • Create opportunities for learning between presenters and participants engaged in similar work

    Moderator/Chair:
    Tania Principe, Gender at Work

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Job Eronmhonsele, Senior Programme Officer/Head of Policy Engagement and Communications Division, CPED
    • Ana Lucia Blas, Director of Communications, ASIES
    • Khalida Ghaus, Managing Director, SPDC

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 4 - Urbanization and sustainable cities
    Beta

    Objectives:

    • Showcase the contributions that some think tanks are already making in this space.
    • Draft up to 10 guiding principles for a proactive engagement on issues of urbanization and sustainability.
    • Lay the foundations of a grand coalition of change actors.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Ibrahima Hathie, Director of research, IPAR Senegal

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Abdoulaye Diagne, Executive Director, CRES
    • Ricardo Fort, Director of Projects and co-lead Opportunity Fund Project on Urban Planning, GRADE
    • Fortunata Songora Makene, Head, Strategic Research and Publications Department and Partner on the Opportunity Fund Project on Urban Planning, ESRF

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 5 - Governance, peace, justice and strong institutions
    Sigma

    Objectives:

    • To collectively explore global, regional and local perspectives and challenges in the entire spectrum of research-to-policy in this policy area.
    • To identify and share key lessons that could be used to capture effective strategies in this area, using both stories of success and of failures
    • To agree to a common task as way forward- either a manifesto, general principles/guidelines, ideas for an oped / opinion piece, etc., with clear responsibilities and workplan.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Victor Vazquez Aranda, Executive Director, Investigación para el Desarrollo (ID), Paraguay

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Gurucharan Gollerkeri, Director, Public Affairs Centre, Bangalore
    • Salai Ngun Lian Sang, Executive Director, Centre for Development and Ethnic Studies (CDES), Myanmar
    • Queeneth Anyanwu, Researcher, African Heritage Institution (AfriHeritage), Nigeria
    • Maria Elena Rivera, Research Program Coordinator, FUNDAUNGO, El Salvador

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 6 - Economic growth and decent jobs
    Gamma

    Objectives:

    • Examine the programmes, policies and strategies that are currently being utilized to respond to the challenges of finding decent work among youths in developing countries;
    • Share experiences and reflect on examples of strategies used by policy makers to enhance economic growth while supporting decent job creation;
    • Illustrate the role of Think tanks in supporting decent job creation and economic growth.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Paul O. Okwi, Senior Program Specialist, TTI-IDRC

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Jorge Henriquez, Project Manager, FOSDEH
    • Kwame Owino, Chief Executive Officer, IEA-Kenya
    • Girum Abebe Tefera, Centre Coordinator,EDRI, Ethiopia
    • Sarah Ssewanyana, Executive Director, EPRC, Uganda

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 7 - Good health and well-being; and quality education
    Deja vu

    Objectives:

    • Illustrate the roles played by some think tanks in the pre- and post-2015 development episodes, with emphasis on health and education
    • Share experiences and demonstrate potential areas for cross-institutional collaboration in advancing health, well-being and education for promoting sustainable development

    Moderator/Chair:
    Assefa Admassie, Director, Ethiopian Economics Association (EEA/EEPRI)

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Ibrahim Kasirye, Principal Research Fellow, EPRC, Uganda
    • Anwesha Pandey, Special Assistant to the Director-General, NCAER, India
    • Ricardo Cuenca, Director General, IEP, Peru

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 8 - The think tank-based researcher of tomorrow
    Theta

    Objectives:

    • Share and reflect on examples of think tanks balancing research activities with other duties (e.g. administrative), and the trade-offs involved in such arrangements.
    • Come up with up to 10 tips on using researchers’ time, expertise and skills optimally.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Ajoy Datta, Fellowship Coordinator, On Think Tanks

    Presenter:

    • Felix Asante, Executive Director, ISSER
    • Blandina Kilama, Senior Researcher & Resource Mobilization Support, REPOA
    • Fatou Cissé Ndiaye, Senior Researcher CRES

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    12:30 - 14:00
    Lunch
    Cuisine Unplugged
    14:30 - 16:00
    Parallel sessions: How to take on the future
    Session 9 - Future business models for think tanks
    Beta

    Objectives:

    • Share experience about the strategic roles core grants have played in organizational development and research-to-policy outreach
    • Highlight the key challenges facing think tanks and the consequential impacts on research-to-policy linkages for purposes of evidence-informed policy processes
    • Brainstorm, share and discuss strategic responses to the dwindling core funding terrain

    Moderator/Chair:
    Anthony Boateng, Consultant – Strategy, Governance and Financial Management

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Donald Mmari, Executive Director, REPOA, Tanzania
    • Pablo Hurtado, Executive Director, ASIES, Guatemala
    • Sulamba Shaban, Finance Manager, STIPRO, Tanzania
    • Aminata Diop Kane, Monitoring, Evaluation and Knowledge Management Officer, IPAR-Senegal

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 10 - Forward looking research
    Sigma

    Objectives:

    • Share experience about the contributions of forward-looking research in development processes
    • Highlight the key challenges in incorporating adequate share of forward-looking research in think tanks’ research programs
    • Provide collective opportunity for think tanks and policymakers to convince donors to build flexibility in their research funding programs, including opening up to consider unsolicited research grant applications

    Moderator/Chair:
    John A. Okidi, Senior Program Specialist, TTI-IDRC

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Rose Ngugi, Executive Director, KIPPRA, Kenya
    • Anshu Bharadwaj, Executive Director, CSTEP, India
    • Fernando Masi, Director, CADEP, Paraguay

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 11 - Gender in think tanks
    Deja vu

    Objectives:

    • Showcase and highlight organisational policies that promote gender equality within organisational policies and procedures
    • Generate a discussion on inherent challenges, trade-offs and risks involved
    • Work towards developing a manifesto/guiding principles/charter of action for think tanks to adopt in the quest for gender equal, inclusive organisational structures

    Moderator/Chair:
    Rosemary Viswanath, Gender@Work

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Seema Bhatia-Panthaki, Senior Program Officer, TTI-IDRC
    • Andrew Onokerhoraye, Executive Director, CPED
    • Maheen Sultan, Visiting Fellow & Head (a.i.), Gender Studies Cluster, BIGD
    • Margarita Beneke de Sanfeliu, Director, Department of Research and Statistics, FUSADES, El Salvador
    • Lorena Alcazar, Senior Researcher, GRADE, Peru

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 12 - Research excellence
    Kappa

    Objectives:

    • To explore the opportunities and challenges in managing the trade-offs between ‘academic glory’ and ‘making a difference’.
    • To explore ways of planning and evaluating research in think tanks that balance methodological rigour with making a difference throughout organizational processes.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Tricia Wind, Senior Program Specialist, Policy and Evaluation Division (POEV), IDRC

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Claudia Garcia, Coordinator, Economic Development, ASIES
    • Ana Patricia Muñoz, Executive Director, Grupo FARO

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 13 - New approaches to policy engagement
    Delta

    Objectives:

    • Showcase new ways of engaging with policymakers and citizens
    • Explore innovate approaches to outreach
    • Allow participants to reflect on and collaborate around approaches they can adopt in their own work

    Moderator/Chair:
    Julie Lafrance, Senior Program Specialist, TTI-IDRC

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Founty Alassane Fall, Research Assistant, CRES
    • Marjorie Trigueros, Senior Researcher, FUSADES
    • Ajaya Dixit, Executive Director, ISET-Nepal

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 14 - Ideology and independence
    Gamma

    Objectives:

    • To reflect on the ideological nature of think tanks and its implication on their work
    • To encourage a reflection on the effects that a more ideologically identifiable brand may have on think tanks prospects for influence and funding.
    • To consider the practices that think tanks need to institutionalise to uphold their intellectual autonomy and credibility.

    Session conveners:

    • Enrique Mendizabal, Director, On Think Tanks (OTT)
    • Orazio Belletini, former Executive Director, Grupo Faro

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 15 - Think tank strategies in policy windows
    Omega

    Objectives:

    • Foster interactive discussions to share innovative approaches and lessons for interested think tanks to act strategically in front of highly political policy windows
    • To identify the risks of being involved in highly political debates as well as strategies to protect think tanks’ reputation
    • To identify ideas for collaboration to support think tanks that want to learn from their peers (i.e.: how to maximize opportunities for Think Tank impact through electoral processes)

    Session conveners:

    • Leandro Echt, Research Associate, On Think Tanks
    • Estefanía Terán, Democracy Program Coordinator, Grupo Faro

    Topic Conveners:

    • Daniel García, Espacio Público
    • Ana Lucía Blas, ASIES
    • John Mutua, IEA, Kenya
    • Chukwuka Onyekwena, CSEA, Nigeria

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 16 - Global versus local
    Theta

    Objectives:

    • Explore the main challenges and experiences across regions and different contexts of how think tanks approach the issue of remaining competitive at the local level.
    • Outline what factors determine how think tanks position themselves locally and/or globally, and reflect on what strategies work best in different contexts?
    • Draw out lessons for more effective engagement of, and collaboration between Southern think tanks that can bring about effective change locally and globally.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Debbie Menezes, Independent Consultant

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Fahmida Khatun, Executive Director, CPD, Dhaka
    • Miguel Jaramillo, Senior Researcher, GRADE
    • Tausi Kida, Executive Director, ESRF, Tanzania
    • Mercedes Méndez Ribas, Director of Institutional Development,CIPPEC, Argentina

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    16:00 - 16:15
    Coffee/tea break
    Foyer outside Infinity Ballroom
    16:15 - 17:00
    Book launch - Research for change: Role of TTI in strengthening think tanks
    Infinity Ballroom

    Objectives:

    • To launch the book that captures the experience of 14 TTI supported think tanks in South Asia, written by heads of individual think tanks.
    • To celebrate together the vision of TTI funders in taking the ‘leap of trust’ through TTI program.
    • To motivate think tanks from other regions to also document the contribution of TTI program to strengthening think tanks.

    Session moderator:
    Ajaya Dixit, Executive Director, ISET-N, Nepal (co-editor of South Asia TTI Book)

    Presenter:

    • Sukhadeo Thorat, Chief Editor, South Asia TTI Book titled ‘Strengthening Policy Research, Role of Think Tank Initiative in South Asia’, published by Sage, New Delhi (Forthcoming).

    Commentators

    • Kari Moe Jacobsen, Adviser, Section for Research, Innovation and Higher Education, Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD)
    • Bitrina Diyamett, Executive Director, Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Organisation (STIPRO), Tanzania
    • Pradeep Nair, Regional Director, Ford Foundation (India & Nepal)

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    18:30 - 20:00
    Dinner
    Infinity Ballroom
  • Nov 14, 2018
    Collaborate and learn together
    8:30 - 9:30
    Recap: Reflections from Day 2 and overview of Day 3
    Infinity Ballroom

    Moderator(s):

    • Valerie Traore, TTIX Facilitator, Executive Director, Niyel
    • Nick Ishmaël Perkins, TTIX Facilitator, Technical Advisor, CABI

    Keynote: Collaboration for the future

    Speaker:

    • Andrea Ordoñez, Director, Southern Voice

    9:30 - 11:00
    Think tanks making a difference: A marketplace (cont.)
    Infinity & Eternity Ballrooms

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Coffee/tea served in the Eternity Ballroom

    11:00 - 13:00
    Parallel sessions - Discussions to explore opportunities to collaborate
    Session 17 - Exploring collaborative opportunities with China and Chinese think tanks
    Delta

    Objectives:

    • To learn from Chinese participants on how they are thinking about international collaborations.
    • To help think tanks consider ways that they may wish to explore collaborations with Chinese think tanks in the future.

    Moderator/Chair:
    Jenny Lah    , Independent Consultant

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Dr. Xufeng Zhu, Executive Director, Institute of Sustainable Development Goals, Tsinghua University
    • Dr. Yong Jun ZHANG, Deputy Chief Economist, China Centre for International Economic Exchange
    • Dr. Dong Liu, Representative, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, China Office

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 18 - The 4th industrial revolution
    Beta 1

    Objectives:

    • To increase awareness of the significant implications of the 4IR on the knowledge systems and within them, on think tanks’ work, and how these can better respond to provide policymakers with evidence to develop policies that are up to the new challenges and opportunities.
    • To refine key gaps and research questions on how and to what extent knowledge systems are evolving to foster policy experimentation and the use of relevant evidence in public policy processes to achieve the SDGs.
    • To create a collaborative space for those interested in joining a multi-hub initiative focused on co-generating relevant knowledge on the interaction between 4IR and knowledge systems in developing countries.

    Moderator/Chair:

    • Andrea Ordoñez, Southern Voice
    • Leandro Echt, Politics & Ideas

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Francesco Obino, Head of Programs, Global Development Network (GDN)
    • Karin Fernando, Senior Research Professional Centre for Poverty Analysis (CEPA), Sri Lanka
    • Bitrina Diyamett, Executive Director, Science, Technology and Innovation Policy Research Organization (STIPRO),Tanzania
    • Santiago Cueto, Research Director, Grupo de Análisis para el Desarrollo (GRADE), Peru

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 19 - The global migration crisis
    Gamma

    Objectives:

    • Identify the nature of the problem, and the importance of difference dimensions of the problem to different countries / regions, and structure the problem to facilitate policy interventions
    • Explore how southern think tanks can inform national, regional and global policy solutions for addressing the global migration crisis.
    • Identify effective strategies for think tanks in the global South to engage in dialogue and debate on global frameworks such as the UN Global Compact on Refugees.
    • Identify collaborative opportunities for think tanks to collectively engage in national and regional responses to migration crises (where? On what issues?).

    Moderator/Chair

    • Miguel Jaramillo,Executive Director, GRADE

    Panelists/Facilitators:

    • Fatou Cissé Ndiaye, Researcher, CRES, Senegal
    • Nisha Arunatilake, Director of Research, IPS, Sri Lanka
    • Daniel García Fernández, Executive Director, Fundación Espacio Público, Chile
    • Pablo Hurtado, Executive Secretary, ASIES, Guatemala

    For more details, please consult the session outline

    Session 20 - Evidence-informed policymaking
    Beta 2

    Objectives:

    • To identify the external factors that systematically hinder think tanks’ ability to influence policy decisions with research, and what participants are already doing to overcome them.
    • To provide feedback on existing ideas to systematically advance evidence-informed policymaking across countries, and generate new ideas to do so.
    • To identify potential future action, and individuals and organizations interested in participating in it.

    Moderator(s)/Chair(s):

    • Sarah Lucas, Program Officer, Hewlett Foundation
    • Peter Taylor, Director Strategic Development, IDRC

    Panelists/ Presenters:

    • Ibrahima Hathie, Director of Research, IPAR, Senegal
    • Yamini Aiyar, President and Chief Executive, CPR, India
    • Lorena Alcazar, Research Director, GRADE, Peru

    For more details, please consult the session outline alongside this document

    Session 21 - Dialogue with funders
    Omega
    13:00 - 15:00
    Lunch and closing plenary
    Infinity Ballroom

    Closing remarks and discussions

    Speaker:

    • Peter Taylor, Director - Strategic Development, IDRC

    15:00 - 17:00
    Networking

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