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Search Results
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NewsGender Development Natural ResourcesIDRC is pleased to announce the 10 research teams selected from the call for proposals "Breaking systemic barriers to women’s participation in science”.Date
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StoryInformation and Communication Development GenderInternet for allBanning women from the internet is an unfortunate way of dominating them.
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PerspectivesGovernance Information and Communication Development Social Policy EducationA targeted response to the learning crisis: the GPE Knowledge and Innovation ExchangeSignificant progress is needed to improve education quality in developing countries.
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Research in ActionNatural Resources Science and TechnologyCleaning up contaminated mines with plants and fungi
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PerspectivesInformation and Communication GovernanceWhy IDRC won’t rush its open data policyNaser Faruqui argues the timing is not yet right for IDRC to pursue a mandatory open data policy.
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Research in ActionScience and Technology Information and CommunicationArtificial intelligence for development
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PerspectivesNatural Resources EnvironmentAdaptation to climate change must be inclusive, equitable, and representativeEffective adaptation must balance short-term results with the long-term pursuit of socially-inclusive innovation.
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Research in ActionInformation and CommunicationAfterAccess: Uncovering the gender gapWhat the Global South’s most comprehensive mobile and Internet use database says about gender.
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PerspectivesNatural Resources Environment Social PolicyCollaboration and climate adaptation: more than the sum of its parts
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StoryScience and Technology Health Natural Resources Governance Development EconomicsArtificial intelligence and human development
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BooksDevelopment Information and Communication Governance EducationShadow Libraries: Access to Knowledge in Global Higher EducationPublication Date
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IDRC awardeesNo relevant topics
ICT innovation needs solid relationships
ICT innovation needs solid relationships
“It looks obvious,” says 2017 IDRC Research Award Recipient Victor Oteku, “but the importance of personal connections is very strong in establishing partnerships for technological innovation in Kenya.” Working in IDRC’s Regional Office for Sub-Saharan Africa, Oteku’s research sought to uncover socio-political and economic factors that shape partnerships for technological innovation in Kenya.
Oteku chose the information and communication technology sector for his study because of its high value to innovation and its contributions to growth in other sectors. The Kenyan government is also focusing on scientific and technological innovation in its long-term development plan, he says.
“Partnerships are mutual and synergetic collaborations geared toward a common goal,” says Oteku. The online survey he conducted showed that economic factors had the biggest influence on partnerships. Interviews and focus group discussions, however, “suggested that socio-cultural factors had a stronger influence.” Personal relationships, in particular, can determine success or failure. He concluded that all those involved need to work toward formal but open and flexible partnerships.
While a research awardee, Oteku also helped develop a proposal in support of the multi-funder Science Granting Councils Initiative in Sub-Saharan Africa. These councils are central to funding and catalyzing research and innovation.
Personally, “I nurtured the values of tolerance, cooperation, and hard work just by observing my colleagues do their jobs,” says Oteku. “I’m grateful for the opportunity to have been here.”
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IDRC awardeesNo relevant topics
A first e-library in remote Nepali schools
A first e-library in remote Nepali schools
For 2017 IDRC Research Award Recipient Sujaya Neupane, carrying out fieldwork in Nepal was literally coming home. Neupane spent time in the remote western villages of Thapagaun and Jhimpa — his childhood home — to find ways of improving science education by using digital learning tools.
The quality of education is vastly different in Nepal’s rural and urban areas, he explains, leading to poor educational outcomes in rural schools. But with the advent of inexpensive technology and free multimedia resources, science teaching materials can be accessed at low cost, he says. His goal was to determine how sustainable digital libraries could be set up in rural schools.
“One can’t hope to educate young people today without computers,” says Neupane. “I used a Raspberry-pi computer board as a server with embedded open-source learning tools, including those provided by Khan Academy and Wikipedia. Tablets were used to access these materials wirelessly from the server,” he explains. The Raspberry Pi is a low-cost credit card-sized single board computer designed specifically to promote education.
A team of teachers-cum-researchers in two secondary schools worked with Neupane to establish a protocol for using the digital learning materials.
Establishing an e-library in Jhimpa has opened up sources of knowledge to students who never had access to a library before, says Neupane. He and the on-site research team are now exploring how to evaluate the impact on students’ learning when the project ends in mid-2018.
Of his IDRC experience, Neupane says “being able to go back and live in my village and conduct research in schools there jointly with the teachers was the most memorable,” says Neupane. “Through this experience I am determined to work to develop an education system in rural Nepal as a volunteer and independent researcher.”
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Research in ActionGovernance Information and CommunicationImproving the governance of cyberspace in the Global South
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Research in ActionEnvironment Natural ResourcesMitigating soil contamination at abandoned Moroccan mine sites
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StoryScience and Technology Information and Communication Development GenderFostering an Internet for women’s empowerment
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Research in ActionInformation and Communication Science and Technology Economics GenderThe future of work
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Research in ActionInformation and Communication Social Policy GenderMapping sexual harassment in Egypt
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StoryInformation and Communication Governance Development Gender Social PolicyProtecting digital rights in Pakistan
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Research in ActionScience and Technology Information and CommunicationDefusing the rumour mill, digitallyDate
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Research in ActionNatural Resources Social Policy Governance Food and AgricultureIDRC-supported research highlights importance of positive social capital on marginalized youth
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Research in ActionInformation and CommunicationInfluencing pro-poor telecommunications policy in Latin AmericaA research network on telecommunications policy is playing a significant role in influencing pro-poor ICT policies in Latin America.Date
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Research in ActionInformation and Communication Science and TechnologyInfluencing pro-poor telecommunication policies in AsiaDate