LINK (Learning INnovation, Knowledge) is an initiative of United Nations University – Maastricht Economic and social Research and training centre on Innovation and Technology (UNU-MERIT). Its goal is to advance the understanding of innovation for a New Rural Economy in developing countries through concepts, lessons and guidelines and by facilitating discussions amongst scholars, policymakers, development investors and practitioners dealing with rural development. Coordinated out of offices in Hyderabad , India and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the LINK network regional hubs bring together local clusters of researchers, policymakers, and development organisations. The hubs are linked through UNU-MERIT to the international community of scholars and policy experts working on innovation policy studies in developing countries. |
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South Asia Study of Innovation in high value and subsistence agriculture in India and Nepal: A PhD candidate from University of Guelph, Canada, Laxmi Prasad Pant, has joined the LINK South Asia hub for part of his PhD fieldwork. Laxmi’s thesis is titled “Partnerships Beyond Research and Development: Systems of Agricultural Innovation in South Asia.” The research aims to investigate systems of innovation associated with both high value and subsistence agriculture in India and Nepal. Laxmi’s work in India will focus on the mango export sector. more Policies for Bio-innovation in Agriculture and Health. LINK associate Rajeswari Raina from the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi made a presentation on pro-poor bio-innovation at the Workshop on Integrated Policies for Bio-Innovation in Agriculture and Health in Asia, hosted by the IDRC in Bangkok 13- 14 November. Rajeswari argued that both scientists and NGO’s need to find ways to work together more effectively if bio-innovation is to address the needs of society’s poorest. Sri Lankan National Science Foundation: LINK South Asia Director, Rasheed Sulaiman, and Andy Hall, LINK co-ordinator, visited the Sri Lankan National Science Council (NSF) in November to discuss future collaboration. It is hoped that NSF will work with LINK on its Regional Rural Innovation Reports initiative. Some of the NSF researchers had attended the Design and Evaluation of Innovation Policy (DEIP) training programme held by UNU-MERIT in Maastricht and were keen to jointly organise a Sri Lanka DEIP on rural innovation (www.nsf.ac.lk). Managing tacit knowledge for innovation in livestock research and development organisations. LINK’s South Asia partner, the Centre for Research and Science Policy (CRISP) has received FAO funding to explore how better use can be made of tacit knowledge in the livestock sector in India. The research will explore the nature and distribution of this knowledge; the potential for codification of some of this knowledge; and the sorts of mechanisms and processes that could be used to make more of this tacit knowledge accessible as a way of strengthening livestock sector related innovation capacity. For more information contact Laxmi Thummuru. Financing rural Innovation. LINK PhD researcher Lina Sonne has sucessfully defended her PhD proposal at UNU-MERIT. Her research is titled Towards an Understanding of Financing of Rural Innovation: Evidence from India. She is currently putting the final touches to her conceptual framework before starting her field studies in February 2007. From agricultural extension to agricultural innovation. LINK South Asia Director Rasheed Sulaiman attended the SAARC Agricutural Information Centre (SAIC) Regional Workshop for 20-22nd November in Hyderabad, India on the transition agricultural extension in South Asia. He presented a paper titled “From disseminating technologies to promoting innovation: implications for agricultural extension” and argued that agricultural extension has to change substantially if it is to support the process of innovation in the agricultural and rural sector. East Africa LINK associate Mona Dhamankar, is currently in Ethiopia on an assignment with the African Development Bank, providing technical assistance on livelihood issues on the Integrated Weveda Development Programme. Innovation Response Capacity in Kenya Innovation Africa Symposium West African Region Andean Region
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Enhancing Agricultural innovation: How to go beyond strengthening research system. This study undertaken by UNU-MERIT and LINK researchers in collaboration with the the World Bank has now been published and can be accessed. Also available is a project brief on this project entitled Enhancing rural innovation: how to go beyond strengthening agricultural research systems
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4 October 2006, Trivandrum, India
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