EADI Webinar #13: Engaged Excellence in Development Studies - 2019/03/19
Channel: EADI
Date: 2019-03-26

This webinar session is the second in the series on "Building Development Studies for the New Millennium", based on the new EADI volume.

In this session Melissa Leach and John Gaventa, co-authors of the chapter on "Engaged Excellence", share their reflections and experiences in seeking to promote positive transformative change that is strategically informed by research and knowledge.

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Short summary

…at 4:28 min 
Melissa Leach gives the context for what development studies today must deal with and describes global development challenges in a complex world.

… at 6:17 min  
Melissa Leach asks and outlines what sort of Development Studies is needed. 

… at 9:14 min
Leach explains the concept of “Engaged Excellence” as the IDS’ distinctive approach to constructing and mobilising knowledge. 

…at 11:28 min
She highlights three particular sets of historical roots and arguments with regard to knowledge production generally and development research specifically – epistemological, pragmatic, normative. 

…at 21:00 min
John Gaventa explains the four pillars of engaged excellence in practice, which are 1) High quality research, 2) Co-Constructing knowledge, 3) Mobilising evidence and 4) Building enduring partnerships
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Speakers:

Melissa Leach is the Director of the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex. Her background is in social anthropology and geography, with an interdisciplinary, policy-engaged research focus in Africa and beyond linking environment, health, technology and gender, with particular interests in knowledge, power and the politics of science and policy processes. She is a Fellow of the British Academy and was awarded a CBE in 2017 for services to social science.

John Gaventa is a political sociologist, educator and civil society practitioner with over 30 years of experience in research, teaching and facilitation, and organisational leadership in North and South. He is currently Director of Research at the Institute of Development Studies.

The webinar is being moderated by Julia Schöneberg, EADI Executive Assistant.


Read the related post on the EADI Blog „Debating 
Development Research“ by Melissa Leach:
http://www.developmentresearch.eu/?p=328

You can have a closer look at the book and its various chapters here:
https://www.eadi.org/publications/eadi-books/

Download the webinar presentation (PDF):
http://bit.ly/EADI_Webinar13_Presentation

And follow the activities related to the book:
https://www.eadi.org/publications/building-development-studies-for-the-new-millennium/

To catch up on all previous EADI talks 
and to save-the-date for the upcoming ones please visit our website:
https://www.eadi.org/eadi-webinars/