1. Challenge-led Research: Challenge or Opportunity?
Lorna Wilson and Professor Pauline Dixon
ARMA Conference 2017
6th June 2017

2. Introductions! Lorna Wilson @LornaRFDNCL (lorna.wilson@ncl.ac.uk)
Professor Pauline Dixon @drpaulinedixon

3. Objectives of the Session…
Attendees will (hopefully!):
Have a greater understanding of “challenge-led” research and how we can best support this.
Feel more empowered with regards to your role within challenge-led research proposals and the role you can play in this process.
Have increased awareness and knowledge of best practice in this area.

4. What will we be covering?
What is challenge-led research?
Models of development for challenge-led research
Professor Pauline Dixon
What underpins these challenge-led research programmes?
Partnership and Relationship Building
PI and Research Development Collaboration
The future of challenge-led research…

5. What is Challenge-led research?
Challenge led research = Research that is driven by a specific societal issue which requires a solution.
It’s nothing new!
What does it mean for the research community?
Academic Freedom
Marrying excellence and impact….that old story!
Mainstreaming means a different approach;
More embedded within the process.
Ownership!

6. It’s everywhere!

7. Engaging with Challenge-led research
Took me a while to wake up………
Key Case Studies for me:
RCUK Urban Living Partnership
AHRC Creative Fuse North East
Becoming day to day practice!

8. First Chat of the Session!
In your groups, for 10 minutes:
Introduce yourselves!
Do you feel you work a lot on what are challenge-led proposals?
Is a proposal ever not challenge-led?

9. So how does this feed into proposal development? Traditional Model
Who? What?
Research Context
Academic Partnerships
The Proposal
Idea/Research Questions
What are you trying to achieve? OBJECTIVE!
Impact
Methods
Non-academic Partnerships
Outputs

10. So how does this feed into proposal development? Challenge-led Model
What?
Research Context
Partnerships!
The Proposal
The Challenge!
What are you trying to achieve? OBJECTIVE!
Research Questions
Who?
Partnerships!
Methods
Outputs

11. So how does this feed into proposal development? Challenge-led Model
IMPACT
What?
Research Context
Partnerships!
The Proposal
The Challenge!
What are you trying to achieve? OBJECTIVE!
Research Questions
Who?
Partnerships!
Methods
Outputs

12. Hello Pauline! Professor of International Development and Education
Research Interests include; education in slums areas, regulation and privatisation of education in developing countries, giftedness and creativity, literacy, and education vouchers.
Various funded projects with ESRC, DfID, John Templeton Foundation.
Expert Witness to the International Development Select Committee.
Panel Member for ESRC and DfID.

13. Individual & political freedom
What is Development?
Development
Quality of life
National wealth
Economic security
Individual & political freedom
Average income
Life expectancy

14. What challenge(s) drive my research?
International Development of course!
Education ESSENTIAL to the development agenda.
Various challenges have driven research agenda across the years:
“Education for all”
How many children are in education in slum areas, and what form of education does this take?
How do parents make decisions regarding their child’s education in slum areas?
Ineffectual aid spending and bad interventions….

15. Aid to Schools – Planners and Disaster!
We need more effective solutions for development projects:
In India and Kenya, aid money spent on toilet construction, BUT, not water provided to flush them.
In India aid money spent on 8,000 televisions provided to schools that don’t have electricity, and then stolen as never delivered.
School building projects where there are no teachers to teach in them.

16. Research in search of a better way……
GHANA
CHINA
INDIA
Liberia/
South Sudan/Leone
NIGERIA
KENYA
Tanzania

22. Superstars in the Slums

23. Creativity

27. School Vouchers

30. DRIVEN BY THE CHALLENGES!
The GCRF!
What an opportunity!
Grass roots approach to international aid, providing evidence to support scalable and sustainable change.
DRIVEN BY THE CHALLENGES!

31. The Opportunities of a Challenge-led GCRF
Use gold standard research to inform policy not ‘Planners’ who think they know best
Ask the poor what they want
“but no one ever asked us”
Searchers to allocate aid
Evidence based support for scalable and sustainable development that can make a difference -
through research based findings and initiatives

32. Underpinning Challenge-led Programmes
There is always an agenda, and sometimes it’s hidden….
A full understanding of this = better proposal
Examples of this are everywhere:
Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund
Global Challenges Research Fund

33. UN Sustainable Development Goals
Replace the Millennium Development Goals
17 Goals
169 Targets
Not just for developing countries!

34. UN Sustainable Development Goals Cont’d
BUT, what are behind the targets?
Agreed Indicators:
Goal 11 “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”
Target 1 – By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services, and upgrade slums.
Indicator - Proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing.

35. UN Sustainable Development Goals Cont’d
Goal 11 “Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable”
Target 2 - By 2030, provide access to safe, affordable, accessible and sustainable transport systems for all, improving road safety, notably by expanding public transport, with special attention to the needs of those in vulnerable situations, women, children, persons with disabilities and older persons.
Indicator - Proportion of the population that has convenient access to public transport, disaggregated by age group, sex and persons with disabilities.

36. Consider the Challenge-led Model….
What?
Research Context
Partnerships!
The Proposal
The Challenge!
What are you trying to achieve? OBJECTIVE!
Research Questions
Who?
Partnerships!
Methods
Outputs

37. Now, how would that look for a GCRF proposal?
HIV/
AIDS
Stigma and HIV/AIDS, engagement and participatory approaches, value of the arts
Centre for Infectious Disease Research (Zimbabwe)
The Proposal
3.3.1 “Number of new HIV infections per 1,000 uninfected population, by sex, age, and key populations”
Eradicate Stigma!
Research Questions
Co-written book, policy briefings and events, final report, community essays etc
Southern Africa Populations
(Potential for global population!)
Foundation for Community Support Services (Malawi)
Action Workshops, Pilot Research, Online Platform etc

38. Challenge-led Research – Cross-Cutting!

39. Time for Another Discussion…
In your groups for 10 minutes:
Think of when you’ve previously supported challenge-led proposals (GCRF or otherwise!), share examples of these.
How are your academics responding to an increasing number of these challenge-led calls?
Has your approach to support changed at all? What do you do differently?

40. Partnerships and Relationship Building
Fundamentally, THE most important element of challenge-led research.
Contributing academic research and expertise, BUT, what about actual delivery?
Delivery Mechanism of Challenge-led Research is the linch pin.

41. Partnerships and Relationship Building Cont’d
Partnerships take time, especially when lacking infrastructure.
Challenge-led proposals require different “tiered” partners
Global
In-Country
Regional
Local Communities
New vs Old
Institutional Relationships already in place?

42. Capacity Building and Challenge-led Research
Major focus of Collective Call 1 for GCRF.
Seen across ODA research.
Not just for the researchers and non-academic organisations, but the professional services supporting such initiatives!
How can we as research support professionals play more of a role with regards to building capacity overseas to support such initiatives?
How can we convince our PI’s that there is value in this?! Do they need convincing at all?!

43. Group Discussion
In your groups for 15 minutes:
How can UK research professionals mobilise to build capacity with international colleagues working in this space?
How do you think ARMA could support this?
Blue skies thinking!

44. PI and Research Development Collaboration
The earlier the better!
PI should be focussing on the SCIENCE, what other support can we be providing to ensure a high quality application?
Keeping the team updated – both academic and non- academic.
Timescales, timescales, timescale….
Get creative!
Plan B, C, D, E, F……

45. PI and Research Development Collaboration

46. Final Discussion!
In your groups for 5 minutes (eek!):
Think about the session and your own role with regards to challenge-led research, what best practice can you share? What are the key points to take back to your institutions and embed within your own practice?

47. Crystal Ball Time…….
Challenge-led research will continue to dominate the research funding landscape.
Increased internationalisation of funding.
Increased interdisciplinarity (UKRI).
Further professionalization of the
research development sector, and
evolution of roles.
Are we prepared for this?
Are we suitably resourced?
Do we have the right expertise?

48. Thank You! Any questions? I’ll be sending round the group materials.
Please come and say hello, enjoy the rest of the conference!
Lorna
Professor Pauline