Going digital in research & education partnerships: opportunities, challenges, and risks
The 2017 KFPE annual conference, organised together with SUDAC, focused on the potential and limitations of digital tools and approaches in the research and policy arenas, as well as the relevance of such tools and approaches in education.
![Going digital in research and education partnerships (KFPE, L. Pock) Going digital in research and education partnerships (KFPE, L. Pock)](http://portal-cdn.scnat.ch/asset/e4f4a7ab-b8cb-51d9-ab5b-54dcadb4bc8d/Bildschirmfoto%202017-12-12%20um%2008.58.19.png?b=b77c3ac5-7011-5722-936d-8436ca354c60&v=8d1b3e68-fb3c-5c22-90a9-66bcf4686cf4_100&s=IUE1G95Pha2T6OSEmnaI4R7dAONdUXpfKlBm8Qbkk7D7Ru5V9oBtAw1YMldTuGiTi-t7NHHTzQbMr56lgF4oZhZJ7xyGNUurs3fG-TjZscyGea6ELVaatnJfbEkWpMXtpAM9qbfWO09-qmouotje39ND4antFMECLzipvg-xgDY&t=fc13185f-cc70-4eb1-86f2-ea80914407bc&sc=2)
->> Watch the video bellow
Two panels showcased different aspects of the use of digital tools in research and education partnerships, including examples from the fields of mapping or social media.
Andreas Heinimann (Centre for Development and Environment, University of Bern) focused on the use of digital tools (e.g., drones and online GIS platforms) to create an enabling environment for multi-stakeholder platforms to co-design solutions around highly contentious issues, such as oil palm concessions in Myanmar. He highlighted the democratization of access to information and technology, as well as the co-design and adaptive management of initiatives as crucial to a projects long term success.
Srikanth Mutnuri (Birla Institute of Technology and Science, India) demonstrated the added value of combining Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) with on-campus learning. The Institute is currently developing a certificate-granting online course on "Water, Sanitation and Solid Waste Management", together with The Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology’s Department of Sanitation, Water and Solid Waste for Development (EAWAG/Sandec).
Christoph Pimmer (University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland - FHNW) described the ways in which mobile phones and social media can be used to better train, connect and empower rural health workers. He outlined recent research findings from an ongoing r4d project.
Watch the video below for more details and statements from the other speakers.
SUDAC: Swissuniversities Development and Cooperation Network