R E F L E C T I O N S
Reflections on Cam.IDC 2018
We were very happy with how CamIDC 2018 went – we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! The conference took place on Saturday 17th February, in St John’s Old Divinity School. Throughout the day there were 2 sessions running simultaneously. There were over 100 attendees, and 19 speakers who participated in 8 presentations and panels. All events were linked to the conference theme of “Productive Partnerships in International Development”.
From 9:30-10:00, the Welcome Session took place in the Lecture Theatre. There were three speakers: Dr Lara Allan (Director of the Centre for Global Equality); Dr Sara Serradas Duarte (Coordinator of Global Challenges Initiative); and Abhi Naha (Chief Commercial Officer of Cambridge Wireless). Lara discussed the many projects CGE is involved with, Sara outlined how the Global Challenges Initiatives and the work it has supported, and Abhi highlighted how impact innovators’ effect can be maximised though partnerships.
From 10:00-11:00, Session 1 took place. In the Lecture Theatre, Catherine Thomé (Was a Cultural Mediator Manager at Médecins Sans Frontières) gave a talk “A Personal Account of the Migrant Crisis in Greece”. She showed photos of the crisis, details of the larger organisations involved in helping, then pictures of individuals she had worked with. In the Lightfoot Room, Ken Surridge (Chair of Trustees at Porridge and Rice) gave his talk “Partnerships Fighting Poverty”. Ken outlined Porridge and Rice works, and some plans for the future.
From 11:00-11:15, there was a tea and coffee break. St John’s Catering served tea and coffee and biscuits in Central Hall.
From 11:15-12:45, Session 2 took place. In the Lecture Theatre, Dr Dominique Chadwick (film-maker and trainer) gave her talk “A Film-Maker's Experience with International Development”. She described her experiences, working with such large organisations as Oxfam, PLAN International and the UNDP. She showed extracts of her films, and had interesting conversations with the audience on such diverse topics as her philosophy on showing positives vs negatives, and funding. In Teaching Room 1, Steve Penson and Iain Brackenridge (community coordinators for Missing Maps) ran a workshop. The room was packed, more chairs were needed to fit all 27 mappers! Steve and Iain explained the Missing Maps project, and helped attendees learn how to map vulnerable areas in Tanzania, helping a project fighting FGM. Later, Janet Chapman (Campaigns Manager of the Tanzania Development Trust) detailed how community mapping helps in Tanzania, and organised a Skype call with one of her colleagues in Tanzania! Attendees were able to ask her colleague about her work, her experiences, and such specific topics as her relationship with police.
From 12:45-1:45 was lunch. St John’s Catering served five types of sandwiches garnished with salad and crisps, Danish pastries, and a selection of assorted cakes (including lemon curd slices and quinoa brownies). This took place in the Central Hall.
From 1:45-2:45 was Session 3. In the Lecture Theatre, the panel on “How to develop technology for the developing world” took place. Panellists were: Dr Helen Lee (Founder and CEO of Diagnostics for the Real World, Associate Professor in Medical Biotechnology, University of Cambridge); Alexandra Grigore (Cofounder and Director of Innovation at Simprints); Clara Aranda-Jan (Researcher at the Centre of International Manufacturing, University of Cambridge; previous consultant for WHO and UNICEF); and Andrew Clenaghan (Strategic Business Manager at Practical Action). The panel was chaired by Tom Stakes. The panel discussed ideas of design methodology and scalability, and answered questions on intellectual property and common mistakes. In the Lightfoot Room, the panel on “How useful have our efforts to better the world through education been?” took place. Panellists were: Terry Allsop (Worked DFID as Senior Education Advisor, former Director of the International Research Foundation for Open Learning); Chrissybil Boulin (OECD Trainee, founder of Merkabah International Foundation); Dr Jelena Aleksic (Director of Strategy and Development of TReND in Africa); Dr Sonia Ilie (Senior Research Fellow at Cambridge Faculty of Education, member of the REAL Centre); and Peter Bentley (Oxfam representative). The panel was chaired by Hyun Ji Oh. Discussion was wide-ranging, exploring ideas of impact evaluation, curriculum-building, and the role of higher-education.
From 3:00-4:00 was Session 4. In the Lecture Theatre, Anna Chernova (Conflict Sensitivity Advisor at Oxfam) gave her talk “Aid in Conflict: Development Responses to Humanitarian Crises – Productive Partnerships in International Development. The Case of the Middle East.” She outlined the complexity of the situation, noting the different motivations of state and non-state actors, and how they can be incentivised. In the Lightfoot Room, Evelyn Brealey (Programme Director of Cambridge Global Health Partnerships) gave her talk “Partnerships for Improving Global Health”. She described the history of the programme, its achievements, and how partnerships in the future can work towards great progress.
From 4:00-5:00 was the Networking Session with wine. This took place in Central Hall, with many organisation stalls present. These included ones from the Cambridge Development Initiative, Cambridge Wireless, Missing Maps, Diagnostics for the Real World (with the famous Samba II on display!), Cambridge Global Health Partnerships, and Blue Tap (who displayed the water bottles they are using to fund their work). There were also posters produced by the Development i-Teams, demonstrating how research within Cambridge University can help less economically developed communities.
We hope you found the Cambridge International Development Conference helpful! We enjoyed the diverse viewpoints and ideas explored on the day. There were speakers from vast sprawling international NGOs, and from start-up non-profits. It was valuable to understand how each of them approached partnerships, and their ideas for the future. It was also striking to realise that every issue area in international development involves partnerships – from technology and education, to maps and conflict. Each area faces its own challenges regarding partnerships, and different actors have found their own solutions. We hope you left the day with new ideas, new perspectives, and an increased respect for the importance of productive partnerships in international development.
See pictures of the day here.
We were very happy with how CamIDC 2018 went – we hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! The conference took place on Saturday 17th February, in St John’s Old Divinity School. Throughout the day there were 2 sessions running simultaneously. There were over 100 attendees, and 19 speakers who participated in 8 presentations and panels. All events were linked to the conference theme of “Productive Partnerships in International Development”.
From 9:30-10:00, the Welcome Session took place in the Lecture Theatre. There were three speakers: Dr Lara Allan (Director of the Centre for Global Equality); Dr Sara Serradas Duarte (Coordinator of Global Challenges Initiative); and Abhi Naha (Chief Commercial Officer of Cambridge Wireless). Lara discussed the many projects CGE is involved with, Sara outlined how the Global Challenges Initiatives and the work it has supported, and Abhi highlighted how impact innovators’ effect can be maximised though partnerships.
From 10:00-11:00, Session 1 took place. In the Lecture Theatre, Catherine Thomé (Was a Cultural Mediator Manager at Médecins Sans Frontières) gave a talk “A Personal Account of the Migrant Crisis in Greece”. She showed photos of the crisis, details of the larger organisations involved in helping, then pictures of individuals she had worked with. In the Lightfoot Room, Ken Surridge (Chair of Trustees at Porridge and Rice) gave his talk “Partnerships Fighting Poverty”. Ken outlined Porridge and Rice works, and some plans for the future.
From 11:00-11:15, there was a tea and coffee break. St John’s Catering served tea and coffee and biscuits in Central Hall.
From 11:15-12:45, Session 2 took place. In the Lecture Theatre, Dr Dominique Chadwick (film-maker and trainer) gave her talk “A Film-Maker's Experience with International Development”. She described her experiences, working with such large organisations as Oxfam, PLAN International and the UNDP. She showed extracts of her films, and had interesting conversations with the audience on such diverse topics as her philosophy on showing positives vs negatives, and funding. In Teaching Room 1, Steve Penson and Iain Brackenridge (community coordinators for Missing Maps) ran a workshop. The room was packed, more chairs were needed to fit all 27 mappers! Steve and Iain explained the Missing Maps project, and helped attendees learn how to map vulnerable areas in Tanzania, helping a project fighting FGM. Later, Janet Chapman (Campaigns Manager of the Tanzania Development Trust) detailed how community mapping helps in Tanzania, and organised a Skype call with one of her colleagues in Tanzania! Attendees were able to ask her colleague about her work, her experiences, and such specific topics as her relationship with police.
From 12:45-1:45 was lunch. St John’s Catering served five types of sandwiches garnished with salad and crisps, Danish pastries, and a selection of assorted cakes (including lemon curd slices and quinoa brownies). This took place in the Central Hall.
From 1:45-2:45 was Session 3. In the Lecture Theatre, the panel on “How to develop technology for the developing world” took place. Panellists were: Dr Helen Lee (Founder and CEO of Diagnostics for the Real World, Associate Professor in Medical Biotechnology, University of Cambridge); Alexandra Grigore (Cofounder and Director of Innovation at Simprints); Clara Aranda-Jan (Researcher at the Centre of International Manufacturing, University of Cambridge; previous consultant for WHO and UNICEF); and Andrew Clenaghan (Strategic Business Manager at Practical Action). The panel was chaired by Tom Stakes. The panel discussed ideas of design methodology and scalability, and answered questions on intellectual property and common mistakes. In the Lightfoot Room, the panel on “How useful have our efforts to better the world through education been?” took place. Panellists were: Terry Allsop (Worked DFID as Senior Education Advisor, former Director of the International Research Foundation for Open Learning); Chrissybil Boulin (OECD Trainee, founder of Merkabah International Foundation); Dr Jelena Aleksic (Director of Strategy and Development of TReND in Africa); Dr Sonia Ilie (Senior Research Fellow at Cambridge Faculty of Education, member of the REAL Centre); and Peter Bentley (Oxfam representative). The panel was chaired by Hyun Ji Oh. Discussion was wide-ranging, exploring ideas of impact evaluation, curriculum-building, and the role of higher-education.
From 3:00-4:00 was Session 4. In the Lecture Theatre, Anna Chernova (Conflict Sensitivity Advisor at Oxfam) gave her talk “Aid in Conflict: Development Responses to Humanitarian Crises – Productive Partnerships in International Development. The Case of the Middle East.” She outlined the complexity of the situation, noting the different motivations of state and non-state actors, and how they can be incentivised. In the Lightfoot Room, Evelyn Brealey (Programme Director of Cambridge Global Health Partnerships) gave her talk “Partnerships for Improving Global Health”. She described the history of the programme, its achievements, and how partnerships in the future can work towards great progress.
From 4:00-5:00 was the Networking Session with wine. This took place in Central Hall, with many organisation stalls present. These included ones from the Cambridge Development Initiative, Cambridge Wireless, Missing Maps, Diagnostics for the Real World (with the famous Samba II on display!), Cambridge Global Health Partnerships, and Blue Tap (who displayed the water bottles they are using to fund their work). There were also posters produced by the Development i-Teams, demonstrating how research within Cambridge University can help less economically developed communities.
We hope you found the Cambridge International Development Conference helpful! We enjoyed the diverse viewpoints and ideas explored on the day. There were speakers from vast sprawling international NGOs, and from start-up non-profits. It was valuable to understand how each of them approached partnerships, and their ideas for the future. It was also striking to realise that every issue area in international development involves partnerships – from technology and education, to maps and conflict. Each area faces its own challenges regarding partnerships, and different actors have found their own solutions. We hope you left the day with new ideas, new perspectives, and an increased respect for the importance of productive partnerships in international development.
See pictures of the day here.
