2024 Annual Learning Forum

2, 3 and 4 Huamachuco "The canon is ours, let's make sure it is well invested." Photographer: Manuel Anthony Rojas Rodriguez Project: Greater Transparency in the Extractive Sector Implementer: Centro Ecuménico de Promoción y Acción Social Norte (CEDEPAS-Norte); Grupo Propuesta Ciudadana; and Derecho, Ambiente y Recursos Naturales (DAR) We disseminate relevant information about the contribution of extractive activity to regional and local development.  We visited the cooperative of agricultural producers “

Want to learn more?

Thanks for joining us at the 2024 ALF; want to catch up on the sessions and more: Check out the Resource Factsheet including recordings, slides and related resources or the recent Learning Digest that captures four key insights you do not want to miss.

The DRG Learning Forum is an annual event supporting the generation, curation, and dissemination of DRG evidence and technical methods for DRG practitioners. The forum followed two closely related tracks. The Findings track focused on what we have learned from the DRG Learning Agenda and focused on evidence and learning that can inform program design and implementation. The Process track focused on sharing through a series of salons how we learn and share evidence, best practices, skills and resources on key topics of interest in the DRG space.

This event will take place over eight sessions:

Findings Track

Session 1: What do we know about how to support democratic openings?, Thursday,  February 15, 2024, 8:00 - 9:30 am Eastern 

As a third wave of autocratization has unfurled, key questions remain on how to forestall and reverse democratic backsliding. We will hear and discuss findings with researchers who have concluded a literature review and original research focused on understanding the most effective approaches to reverse democratic backsliding and support greater democratization. For more information, check out the infographic along with the Literature Review, Executive Summary of Case Study Report, and the Full Case Study report.

 

Session 2: Interrogating Information Integrity: Insights on What Works, Tuesday, February 20 2024 at 9:30 - 11:00 am Eastern 

Information integrity - the accuracy, consistency and reliability of information - has become increasingly critical to the successful functioning of democratic institutions and processes. This session will share findings and resources from the literature review and the research database to inform programming in this space. Check out the infographic along with the Literature Review and the Research Database.

 

Session 3:  What we’ve learned about countering corruption: political will, transnational corruption, and behavioral change, Wednesday, February 21, 2024, 9:00 - 10:30 am Eastern

The DRG Learning Agenda and the Anti-Corruption Task Force (now Anti-Corruption Center) commissioned work on development efforts to counter corruption. This session will include a panel exploring what we have learned from separate studies on (1) how to address corruption in environments with low political will (infographic and full report), (2) how to pivot existing approaches to address transnational corruption, strategic corruption, and kleptocracy (overview report and sectoral report), and (3) how to incorporate social and behavioral change approaches in preventing and combating corruption (infographic and full report).

 

Session 4:  Advancing Gender-Inclusive Democracy: Assessing Barriers and Opportunities for Advancing Women’s Leadership and Participation in Politics and Public Life, Thursday February 22nd, 2024, 9:00 - 10:00 am Eastern

A key step towards achieving gender inclusive democracy is women’s political empowerment. Drawing on extensive research and expertise, this session details USAID’s updated Women’s Political Participation and Leadership (WPPL) Assessment Framework, and its special focus on men and elite gatekeepers. Following the introduction to the framework, we will present collected findings from eight country assessments using the framework, identifying patterns of problems, the barriers underlying them, and the openings that may enable effective programming for gender-inclusive democracies. 

 

Session 5: Reinforcing Our Resilience: Insights on Supporting DRG Practitioner Mental Health, Tuesday, February 27rd, 9:00-10:00am Eastern

How do we better support the resilience of DRG activists and reformers in the midst of democratic backsliding in our work? We will hear and discuss findings and recommendations from a literature review that identified threats that DRG and development professionals face to their mental health, explore the general dimensions of mental health resilience, and individual and organizational strategies, and adaptations for cultivating resilience. A public extended executive summary is forthcoming. 

Process Track

Salon 1: Just Learn What? Informing Future USAID DRG Learning Priorities, Thursday February 15th, 2024 11:00am-12:00pm

We are developing the 2024-26 DRG Learning Agenda and would love to hear from you on what you are learning, your priorities and questions along with recent research, evaluation and evidence you have produced.  We will share our perspective on emergent issues and gaps for discussion and feedback from you. Check out the past learning agenda work on DRGLinks.

 

Salon 2: Did we succeed? All you ever wanted to know but were afraid to ask about developing robust outcome indicators, Tuesday, February 27, 2024 9:00 - 10:00pm Eastern and Wednesday, February 28, 2024 9:00 -10:00am Eastern

We want to estimate the impact of our programs, but measuring DRG outcomes is notoriously challenging.  In this interactive session you will learn about developing outcomes indicators that help us understand the impact of our programs.

Salon 3: Leveraging Rigorous Outcome Performance Evaluations (ROPEs) - Tips, Tricks and Applications, Thursday, February 29, 2024 at 10:00 - 11:00 am Eastern

If I can’t use an impact evaluation and a typical performance evaluation will not tell me the impact of my program, what do I do? In this session, we’ll explore process tracing, a method that measures outcomes over time, follows an activity’s theory of change, and explores alternative potential explanations of change.