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Scoping the Potential for a Socio-Ecological Just Transition: Rewilding, Nature Recovery, Food and Farming in Sussex, UK
No full textThis paper examines the potential for a socio ecological just transition in Sussex, UK, focusing on how rewilding, nature recovery, and sustainable food and farming practices intersect within an evolving policy and ecological landscape. Drawing on 6 case studies, 13 interviews, 3 stakeholder workshops, and a review of national and regional policy frameworks, the study explores how justice concerns shape land use transitions. It introduces a relational socio-ecological justice framework that emphasises the interdependence of human and non-human systems, highlighting how equity, inclusion and ecosystem wellbeing must be jointly considered.Findings show that ecological and social connectivity, through wildlife corridors and networks linking practitioners across food and nature sectors, play a critical role in enabling integrated approaches. Storytelling and public engagement help build support for rewilding and regenerative farming, although sometimes ahead of robust evidence. Significant inequities emerge in access to land, funding, infrastructure and affordable sustainable food, creating uneven capacities for action between large estates and smaller community led initiatives. Tensions persist around land sharing versus land sparing, deer population management, woodland expansion, and the implications of reduced food production.At the same time, the study identifies promising synergies between biodiversity restoration, agroecological food production, wellbeing, and local innovations. Despite ambitious legislation, policy implementation remains fragmented, with limited integration across food, farming and nature recovery goals. The paper argues that a socio-ecological just transition requires adaptive, context-sensitive approaches, inclusive governance, equitable resource distribution, and attention to both human and non-human needs. It proposes justice-informed principles to guide future policy and practice, emphasising recognition, representation, distribution, and reparation in human-nature relationships. By adopting integrated, relational approaches, Sussex has the potential to pioneer transitions that support both people and nature.</p
Contributions to Innovation Systems Strengthening in Africa
No full textAfrica’s innovation future will be shaped by its ability to develop autonomous technological capabilities whilst engaging strategically with global networks. The continent’s most successful innovations have emerged from locally relevant problem-solving efforts, rather than technology transfer. Policy and governance shifts have demonstrated remarkable adaptability, with many countries sidestepping bureaucracy to invest in startup support. African free trade agreements present opportunities for economic growth and industrialisation when African countries can position themselves as innovation contributors and technology developers, rather than technology recipients (Khene et al. 2025).In this context, the UK Government’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has, over the last six years, invested £30 million in African innovation systems via its African Technology and Innovation Partnerships (ATIP) programme. ATIP has ambitions to strengthen and transform innovation systems in ways that deliver inclusive economic growth and scalable solutions to locally defined challenges.The programme has emerged at a critical juncture where shifting geopolitical dynamics are creating opportunities for strengthened South-South learning and collaboration. This Briefing is the first in a three-part series. It shares critical insights from an ATIP-accompanied learning journey, facilitated by the Institute of Development Studies (IDS). It presents evidence of how ATIP has strengthened systems, offering practical lessons and useful insights for others working in this field with the hope of advancing a shared understanding of what works in national innovation systems strengthening, and why it matters. Briefing 2 explores ATIP grantee views on systems strengthening. Briefing 3 sets out the perspectives of external stakeholders beyond ATIP.</p
Variations in Accountability Systems of Informal Taxation Across Regions in Kaduna State, Nigeria
No full textInformal taxation led by traditional authorities and community groups has long played a central role in financing local public goods and services across many Nigerian communities. Yet, despite the importance of informal taxation, relatively little research has examined how these institutions function as tax authorities or how accountability is structured within them. This study explores how accountability in informal taxation varies across two distinct governance contexts in Kaduna State: Zaria, where informal taxation is embedded within the emirate system and influenced by Islamic norms, and Chikun, where taxation is administered through chiefdom structures and largely Christian communities. Drawing on 103 interviews with traditional leaders, elites, and subgroup leaders, the study analyses local understandings and practices of transparency, answerability, and responsiveness.Three key forms of informal taxation were identified in both regions: community development levies paid by households, presumptive tax-like payments by shop owners, and user fees paid to access market facilities. While these taxes serve similar purposes, the norms and processes surrounding their administration differ across the two areas. Both Zaria and Chikun display mixed expressions of accountability. In Zaria, informal tax decisions are largely made by traditional leaders and elites, with limited community involvement. Some households request anonymity in tax records due to religious beliefs, yet respondents reported a high degree of trust in leaders and timely delivery of community projects. In Chikun, by contrast, community members participate more actively in tax decisions, and tax records are openly maintained. However, efforts to rebuild trust following past instances of misappropriation, along with lengthy deliberation processes, sometimes lead to delays in project implementation. Although based on a non-representative sample, the findings offer insight into how local authority structures, religious norms, and community expectations shape accountability in informal taxation in areas with different governance structures in Kaduna State.</p
Perceptions des experts sur l’agriculture régénérative au Nigeria
No full textCet ensemble de tableaux de bord présente une évaluation comparative des écosystèmes de recherche et développement (R&D) pour l'agriculture régénérative (RA) et les vaccins humains au Ghana, au Nigeria et au Sénégal. Élaborées dans le cadre du projet « West African Research & Development Ecosystem Scorecard » financé par le Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), ces fiches offrent un aperçu concis et factuel des atouts, des contraintes et des conditions favorables qui déterminent les performances en matière de R&D dans chaque pays.Les fiches d'évaluation s'appuient sur les données d'une enquête de perception des experts (EPS), qui a recueilli des informations structurées auprès d'experts et de parties prenantes clés des trois écosystèmes nationaux. Les réponses ont été analysées dans cinq domaines clés (politiques et réglementations, infrastructures, processus et gestion, parties prenantes et réseaux, et culture de la recherche) afin de générer des fiches d'évaluation codées par couleur qui permettent une interprétation intuitive et une comparaison entre les pays.Le projet visait à développer un cadre analytique rigoureux, une méthodologie innovante de tableau de bord et une évaluation empirique afin d'aider les acteurs politiques nationaux et régionaux, les instituts de recherche et les bailleurs de fonds à renforcer l'environnement propice à la R&D. Il était dirigé par l'Université Kwame Nkrumah des sciences et technologies (KNUST) au Ghana. Des équipes de recherche au Ghana, au Nigeria, au Sénégal et au Royaume-Uni ont collaboré dans le cadre d'un partenariat équitable et d'une approche intégrée de transfert des connaissances tout au long du cycle du projet.Ces tableaux de bord ont pour but d'éclairer le plaidoyer politique, de stimuler le dialogue entre les parties prenantes nationales et de contribuer aux efforts en cours pour améliorer le fonctionnement, la coordination et l'impact des écosystèmes de R&D en Afrique de l'Ouest. </p
Science and Technology Partnerships and Sustainable Development Outcomes
No full textThis rapid evidence review constitutes the second part in a three-part review series. While the other two reviews examine the economic and equity dimensions of Science and Technology (S&T) partnerships for sustainable development, this review focuses on assessing the extent to which such partnerships contribute to, shape, or constrain progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).</p
Peer to Peer Multiliteracies: A New Concept of Accessibility
No full textThis book explores the ways in which multimodality and multilingualism as areas of study intersect and provides empirical examples of how this looks in practice from a wide range of settings. It argues that the everyday practices of multilingual communities are multimodal in nature.Our contribution to this section of this book, on working towards the intersection between multimodality and multilingualism, brings out a new concept of accessibility stemming from our work on the project ‘Peer to Peer Deaf Multiliteracies: Towards a Sustainable Approach to Education’ (2017–2020). In this project, multiliteracies have provided a key creative lens with which to work with young deaf adults and children in India, Ghana and Uganda, to support access to education for them. Drawing on multiliteracies, in the project we developed a pedagogy that supports use of a sign language (for example Indian Sign Language – ISL) with developing English literacy.ES/P008623/1RLO</p
Social Assistance and Lived Experiences of Climate Change and Conflict in Ethiopia
No full textRecent years have seen a growing interest in social assistance to address climate change impacts. However, there is still a paucity of empirical evidence of its role, particularly in conflict-affected settings. We address this gap through a case study in the Amhara and Oromia regions of Ethiopia, exploring the lived experiences of climate change amidst recent conflicts in relation to the country’s Productive Safety Net Programme (PSNP). Using insights from qualitative and quantitative data, we document local experiences and perceptions of changes in the climate, from the 1980s drought and famine up to the current trends of increasing frequency and intensity of droughts and floods, with shifting seasonal rainfall patterns. We find that recent trends represent important inter- and intra-annual changes that combine with conflict impacts to create significant, socially differentiated impacts on people and their livelihoods. Respondents consider the PSNP, initiated in 2005, as providing vital support for safeguarding livelihoods in the face of climate change and conflict. We conclude that the PSNP has a key role to play in the future but must be part of a wider suite of systemic efforts to address the structural causes of vulnerability to both climate change and conflict.</p
Expert Perceptions on Vaccines in Senegal
No full textThis set of scorecards presents a comparative assessment of the Research and Development (R&D) ecosystems for Regenerative Agriculture (RA) and Human Vaccines across Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal. Developed under the West African Research & Development Ecosystem Scorecard Project funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the scorecards provide a concise, evidence based overview of the strengths, constraints, and enabling conditions that shape R&D performance in each country.The scorecards draw on data from an Expert Perception Survey (EPS), which gathered structured insights from key experts and stakeholders across the three national ecosystems. Responses were analysed across five core domains—Policies & Regulations, Infrastructure, Processes & Management, Stakeholders & Networks, and Research Culture—to generate colour coded scorecards that enable intuitive interpretation and cross country comparison.The project aimed to develop a rigorous analytical framework, innovative scorecard methodology, and empirical assessment to support national and regional policy actors, research institutions, and donors in strengthening the enabling environment for R&D. It was led by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. Research teams in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and the UK collaborated through an equitable partnership and integrated knowledge translation approach throughout the project cycle.These scorecards are intended to inform policy advocacy, stimulate dialogue among national stakeholders, and contribute to ongoing efforts to improve the functioning, coordination, and impact of R\&D ecosystems in West Africa.</p
Expert Perceptions on Vaccines in Nigeria
No full textThis set of scorecards presents a comparative assessment of the Research and Development (R&D) ecosystems for Regenerative Agriculture (RA) and Human Vaccines across Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal. Developed under the West African Research & Development Ecosystem Scorecard Project funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the scorecards provide a concise, evidence based overview of the strengths, constraints, and enabling conditions that shape R&D performance in each country.The scorecards draw on data from an Expert Perception Survey (EPS), which gathered structured insights from key experts and stakeholders across the three national ecosystems. Responses were analysed across five core domains—Policies & Regulations, Infrastructure, Processes & Management, Stakeholders & Networks, and Research Culture—to generate colour coded scorecards that enable intuitive interpretation and cross country comparison.The project aimed to develop a rigorous analytical framework, innovative scorecard methodology, and empirical assessment to support national and regional policy actors, research institutions, and donors in strengthening the enabling environment for R&D. It was led by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. Research teams in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and the UK collaborated through an equitable partnership and integrated knowledge translation approach throughout the project cycle.These scorecards are intended to inform policy advocacy, stimulate dialogue among national stakeholders, and contribute to ongoing efforts to improve the functioning, coordination, and impact of R&D ecosystems in West Africa.</p
Expert Perceptions on Vaccines in Ghana
No full textThis set of scorecards presents a comparative assessment of the Research and Development (R&D) ecosystems for Regenerative Agriculture (RA) and Human Vaccines across Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal. Developed under the West African Research & Development Ecosystem Scorecard Project funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO), the scorecards provide a concise, evidence based overview of the strengths, constraints, and enabling conditions that shape R&D performance in each country.The scorecards draw on data from an Expert Perception Survey (EPS), which gathered structured insights from key experts and stakeholders across the three national ecosystems. Responses were analysed across five core domains—Policies & Regulations, Infrastructure, Processes & Management, Stakeholders & Networks, and Research Culture—to generate colour coded scorecards that enable intuitive interpretation and cross country comparison.The project aimed to develop a rigorous analytical framework, innovative scorecard methodology, and empirical assessment to support national and regional policy actors, research institutions, and donors in strengthening the enabling environment for R&D. It was led by Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) in Ghana. Research teams in Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal, and the UK collaborated through an equitable partnership and integrated knowledge translation approach throughout the project cycle.These scorecards are intended to inform policy advocacy, stimulate dialogue among national stakeholders, and contribute to ongoing efforts to improve the functioning, coordination, and impact of R\&D ecosystems in West Africa.</p