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Professor Jude Howell served from 2009-2011 as lead researcher on a fundamental review of the Australian Government's approach to civil society in its developing country aid programmes. She and her collaborators produced a report with seven key recommendations. These led to a new Government policy statement on Effective Governance and a new Civil Society Engagement Framework. The initial impacts of rolling out this Framework in 2012-13 have been 1) significant changes in the Australian Agency for International Development's (AusAID) operations in relation to engagement with civil society at both headquarter and country levels, and 2) a substantial increase in the amount of money and attention going to the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other organisations that form the backbone of civil society in the 37 developing countries in which AusAID works.
Through a series of briefings, interviews and workshops Hugo Dobson's research on the Group of 8 and Group of 20 summits and the role played by Japan has had both policy impacts and media/public understanding impacts. On the one hand, his research has impacted on European and UK policymakers' knowledge base and policy debates, in addition to the approaches they have taken in negotiations with the Japanese government. On the other hand, his research has influenced the reportage of global media outlets and their decisions as to what is newsworthy, ultimately contributing to national debates, particularly in the UK and Japan.
Trade and finance are the lifeblood of the global economy. Research conducted within the International Political Economy (IPE) cluster has tracked changes in how trade and finance are governed. This case study demonstrates the impact of the IPE cluster on a range of beneficiaries including national governments, international organisations and non-governmental organisations. Via the £4.3M ESRC-funded Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation (CSGR), members of the IPE cluster have influenced national economic policies, shaped policy debates on international regulatory regimes and informed the attempts of non-state actors to raise ethical standards in transnational corporate practices.
Research undertaken at the University of Manchester (UoM) highlights the need to address issues of accountability and reflexivity within the NGO sector, and has contributed towards both performance improvements within individual NGOs, as well as the strengthening of sector-wide policies. Impacts have been achieved through a process of ongoing consultation and feedback: identifying, anticipating and analysing key challenges, generating new conceptual frameworks, and building critical relations between the academy and practitioners. This contribution has been clearly acknowledged by both NGOs and other development agencies. In particular, the research has directly assisted the work of organisations and groups as varied as: governments (e.g. El Salvador's); major international NGOs based in both the global north (e.g. The One World Trust, Mango) and south (SDI, BRAC); and bilateral and multilateral aid agencies (e.g. DFID, UNRISD).
Professor Mushtaq Khan's re-examination of the orthodox approach to good governance - that sees `good governance' as a precursor for economic growth - has significantly influenced long-term international development funders, informing thinking, policy and practice through its sustained, well-evidenced case that a different set of `developmental' governance capabilities are required for economic growth in developing countries, which in turn serves as an effective catalyst for achieving good governance. The research has resulted in his appointment to a number of high-profile advisory roles for international organisations such as the UN, the World Bank and the Agence Française de Développement (AFD).
Professor Mark Duffield's research on the relationship between development and security has had a significant impact on the understandings and work of practitioners in many agencies worldwide, including the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Médecins sans Frontières (MSF), the UK Department for International Development (DfID), the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), the World Food Programme (WFP), and the non-governmental organisations (NGOs) Independent Diplomat in South Sudan and the Enough Project against genocide and other crimes against humanity.
Our research on corporate governance theory and frameworks provided the basis for a Knowledge Transfer Partnership between Leeds Business School and the Rugby Football League (RFL) to develop a corporate governance framework for the RFL and its associated professional clubs and charitable foundations, which helped to promote more effective governance practice, leading to improvements in financial and operational sustainability. A diagnostic tool was developed on the basis of the underpinning research, reflecting a dynamic, processual view of governance with complex stakeholder interrelationships, thus helping to improve governance systems and processes and awareness of, and accountability in, the clubs' stakeholder environment.
The ESRC Innogen Centre brought together a multiplicity of disciplines for a large 12-year research programme (2002-14) on the impact of regulation on innovation dynamics in the life sciences. Research design promoted interactions between stakeholders to achieve policy impact. Innogen developed a range of tooIs to disseminate research findings and influence policy in Europe, the African Union (AU), Kenya, Qatar and at the OECD. We used secondments and temporary placements to achieve impact, as well as more traditional activities and outputs, resulting in major policy impacts in Europe, Africa and the Middle East.