Raising public and policy debate is always easier if everyone understands the terminology. Obvious, perhaps, but in the case of ‘knowledge’, the definition may well stand in the way of understanding. There is wide-ranging debate among philosophers about what knowledge means, while among development specialists there seems to be an agreement to disagree and remain silent.
Archive for August, 2009
Knowledge Definitions (1)
Sunday, August 30th, 2009Opening up Global Innovation – Beyond the Rhetoric
Sunday, August 23rd, 2009Sisule Musungu - ‘Open innovation’ is on everyone’s lips these days. From industry gurus to business schools to governments, international organisations through to non-governmental organisations (NGOs). But will ‘open innovation’ deliver anything new or is it just another sexy phrase that will come and go and leave only despair in its wake?
The ThinkTank Initiative – Investing in Research for Sensible Policy-making in Developing Countries
Wednesday, August 12th, 2009Sisule F. Musungu - Development policies, whether designed by national, regional or international institutions, continue to fail or underachieve. A key systemic challenge remains the lack of robust information and analysis regarding on-the-ground problems and needs as well as lack of information and analysis that allows continuous lesson-learning. There are now credible new efforts to try and change this. One promising approach is embodied in The ThinkTank Initiative, an initiative of the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) teaming up with the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation. The initiative is meant to be a long-term multi-donor commitment. A commitment of USD 90 million has been made for an initial 5-year period.
The Political Economy of Intellectual Property in the Emerging Alternative Energy Market
Saturday, August 8th, 2009Carolina Rossini and Silas Bauer - The alternative energy field represents a unique case for studying the trends regarding political economy of intellectual property (IP) in an emerging market. Some of the technology can be considered mature; however many are the barriers - technical, political or related to funding - that justify a young market in many countries. It is these issues that are at the centre of our research under the Industrial Cooperation Project at the Berkman Centre at Harvard University. This research is part of a broader project being led by Prof. Yochai Benkler. In the research, we are seeking to understand the approaches to innovation in the alternative energy sector looking specifically at wind, solar and tidal/wave technologies. The intention is to map the degree to which open and commons-based practices are being used compared to proprietary approaches.
Trade Disputes and Stakeholder Consultations in Developing Countries
Saturday, August 8th, 2009Marcia Pereira - Consultation with stakeholders is a key element not only in the formulation, but also in the enforcement of trade policies. The importance of formal procedures for consultations has gained emphasis in recent years, in particular, because some developing countries have requested or are considering requesting authorization from the Dispute Settlement Body (DSB) to retaliate or cross-retaliate under the WTO Agreements against developed countries.
