Research into Use (RiU) encounter with College of Basic and Applied Sciences (CBAS) Doctoral Class

 

The Adaptation at Scale in Semi-Arid Regions (ASSAR) West Africa RiU and Capacity Building Coordinator, Mr Abdoulaye Hamidou was the guest lecturer for the Science and Society course organised for the CBAS PhD Class on the 11th of November 2016 at the University of Ghana. Facilitated by Dr Dzidzo Yirenya-Tawiah, a Senior Research fellow of the IESS, the lecture was attended by about 50 doctoral students from the Schools of Physical and Mathematical Sciences, Biological Sciences, Agriculture, Engineering Sciences, Veterinary Medicine and the Institute for Environment and Sanitation Studies.

The lecture forms part of efforts towards building the RiU capacity of the PhD students (future researchers). Mr. Abdoulaye presented on the RiU activities of ASSAR in West Africa. Specifically, he shared the outcomes of the TSP workshops organised by the ASSAR Ghana Team. The presentation was articulated on the three main components of ASSAR RiU activities: 1) stakeholder engagement; 2) capacity building and 3) knowledge management and communication. Though organised within an academic context, the interaction on knowledge and experience sharing emphasized the need to start looking at research with “another eye”. 

Major highlights of the discussion include:

• Researchers need to have more institutional capacity of understanding issues such as climate change beyond academic skills for findings dissemination and interaction with policy/decision makers.
• It is important to have a clear strategy when engaging on RiU activities; participants noted the importance of strategic engagement activities such as working through platform and networks;
• Researchers need to communicate research findings using appropriate tools; it is particularly important to have appropriate skills on communication when engaging on RiU activities;
• Africa should make effort to improve its participation in global level decision making because of actual climate change vulnerability; the RiU can be one the means by it’s the influential aspect at the heart of the approach;
• It was recommended for all participants to be change agents in their environments by carrying and spreading change messages to inform or influence more policy or decision making processes.

The Science and Society course is designed to equip students with the requisite knowledge and skills to narrow the Science-Policy-Practice gap which is a critical barrier between science and development in many developing countries. The course is run for all first year PhD students in the College of Basic and Applied Sciences (CBAS). The lecture was held at the Conference room of the Department of Biochemical Cell and Molecular Biology of the University of Ghana.