From knowing to doing: evidence-use in the humanitarian sector
This paper is based on a literature review and consultation with a range of humanitarian organisations.
Abstract
In the past decade, huge progress has been made in the availability of academic research evidence to inform humanitarian policy and practice, including many studies funded by Elrha’s Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) programme.
But despite global commitments, and initiatives to broker and share evidence within and between humanitarian organisations, the uptake and use of research evidence to inform humanitarian action has not kept pace.
This learning paper explores this challenge and potential solutions, based on a literature review and a consultation of key informants from a range of humanitarian organisations. The authors find 4 key barriers to uptake of research:
- time pressures
- funding constraints
- lack of relevance to humanitarian policy and practice and
- lack of relevance to humanitarian actors in the Global South.
They examine successful approaches which help to overcome these barriers, with case studies provided by humanitarian operational partners.
Citation
Anna Paterson, Fred Carden and Teresa Hanley. ‘From knowing to doing: evidence-use in the humanitarian sector’ Elrha, 2021
Links
From knowing to doing: evidence-use in the humanitarian sector