Tag: PDIA in Action

From Pyrethrum Exports to the Knowledge Economy: Exploring Trade Between Kenya and Canada

Guest blog written by Bishal Belbase, John Diing, Mayra Hoyos, Stephanie Shalkoski As a pedagogical procedure for learning Problem-Driven Iterative Adaptation a group of four students from Mexico, Nepal, the United States, and South Sudan studied bilateral trade between Kenya and Canada with the help of an external authorizer: Dr. George Imbenzi, Honorary Consul General…Continue Reading From Pyrethrum Exports to the Knowledge Economy: Exploring Trade Between Kenya and Canada

Exploring Legal Education Reform in Ukraine

Guest blog written by Ilhom Aliyev, Yousif Folathi Alkhoori, Manoj Kumar, Mike Ramirez, Frederick Tarantino MLD 103MA: Problem Driven Iterative Adaptation (PDIA) in Action: Development Through Facilitated Emergence is among the best classes at Harvard Kennedy School. This hidden infinity stone, 2-credit class challenges you to solve real-world, complex problems using the PDIA approach. The tried-and-true…Continue Reading Exploring Legal Education Reform in Ukraine

Tackling Access to Affordable and Quality Childcare in Burien, Washington

Guest blog written by Harman Bhullar, Sasinat Chindapol, Crystal Collier, Doreen King, Jingli Yan On the problem … In the dark, feeling for this shapeless beast, Even when you think you know, do not be deceived, Its ever-changing nature will make you question every move, Build it up, break it down, and you shall find…Continue Reading Tackling Access to Affordable and Quality Childcare in Burien, Washington

Coupling Action Learning and International Development

Gavel against black background to depict legal concept

Guest blog written by Artem Shaipov After completing the Implementing Public Policy Program and joining the IPP Community of Practice, I was thrilled to receive an invitation to work with a group of master students taking a class at the Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) titled, “Problem Driven Iterative Adaptation (PDIA) in Action: Development through facilitated…Continue Reading Coupling Action Learning and International Development

Exploring Police and Community Relations in Lancaster, PA

Guest blog written by Anne Dietterich, Amreen Bashir, Awab Elmesbah, Giang Pham, Revanth Voothaluru, Seun Akinfolarin We started MLD103M as six complete strangers scattered across three continents trying to learn better ways to tackle complex problems like those we expect to face in our careers. The class was different, though, from what we were used…Continue Reading Exploring Police and Community Relations in Lancaster, PA

Implementing Reparations in Asheville, North Carolina

Guest blog written by Bethany Dill, Isabel Mejia Fontanot, Kent Shi, Kerianne DiBattista MLD103, otherwise known as “PDIA in Action”, is a one-of-a-kind experience at HKS. On day one, we were randomly assigned teammates we would spend the next 7 weeks working with and given a problem to focus on. Quickly, we needed to get…Continue Reading Implementing Reparations in Asheville, North Carolina

Building a Movement of Public Problem Solvers

written by Salimah Samji Solving public problems is a hard and thankless job. One that is undertaken with a shortage of time as well as resources, and often under pressure to deliver results. A common approach used to solve public problems is to develop a plan, sometimes with experts, and then to assume that implementation…Continue Reading Building a Movement of Public Problem Solvers

BSC 2020: The Year in Review

written by Salimah Samji 2020 was a challenging year. The Covid-19 pandemic and other crises highlighted the failures of governance and the large economic disparities that exist around the globe. The need to build public sector capability to meet these increasingly complex challenges has never been greater. Our response to these challenges included convening and training policymakers, as well as practitioners, around critical issues of leading through crises, implementing public policies, inclusive growth, and…Continue Reading BSC 2020: The Year in Review

Bringing the Field to the Classroom: Learning to do PDIA in Practice

Matt Andrews and Salimah Samji with MLD103 students and their authorizers in a classroom

written by Salimah Samji Implementation is hard. It is often the weakest link in the success of a policy or program. Yet, public policy education remains focused on teaching students to design and analyze policies. As Francis Fukuyama aptly wrote, “most programs train students to become capable policy analysts, but with no understanding of how to…Continue Reading Bringing the Field to the Classroom: Learning to do PDIA in Practice