Research to Action

The Global Guide to Research Impact

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    This list of how to’s provides an essential guide for a number of key communication and engagement activities that will help make your research travel.

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Have we stopped caring about the climate?

The climate crisis continues to escalate, bringing increasingly severe impacts felt across the globe. However, a 2024 report analysing data from eight...

What would a better international emergency aid system look like?

Amidst the chaos of a world on fire – metaphorically and literally – it is worth looking for ways to contribute to...

Does text messaging reach and engage young people?

How do we reach and engage young people – with research, with advice, with training? We know that the answer is going...

Seeing the Future? Predictability in Research Impact

For anyone involved in research, the question of impact is central. Proving that our research has had an impact on broader society...

Knowledge brokers: what are they and what do they do?

There are many titles and phrases for anyone who works in information, communication, and knowledge brokering in the world of evidence. The...

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Featured

Kwame Owino on why he blogs for the Daily Nation, Kenya’s largest circulation paper

29/04/2014

Blog Posts

Kwame Owino is the Chief Executive Officer of the Institute of Economic Affairs – Kenya. In this Q&A interview, he discusses why he writes a weekly blog column in the Daily Nation.

Henna Mahmood

Featured

African think tanks take great strides in building their policy engagement capacity

23/04/2014

Blog Posts

In this blog-post, Henna Mahmood, outlines five improvements achieved to-date by Anglophone African think tanks participating in the Think Tank Initiative’s PEC Program.

Henna Mahmood

Engaging the public

Why you need to get on social media: A think tanks perspective

17/04/2014

Blog Posts

Zilper Audi, Communications Officer at IEA Kenya, summarizes IEA Kenya’s positive experience with social media as well as outlines a number of reasons why think tanks need to get on social media.

Zilper Audi

Engaging the public

The eBario project: Champion of innovative knowledge mobilization

16/04/2014

Blog Posts

In his latest contribution, Roger Harris introduces a research engagement process that is supporting dialogue and exchange between disparate groups: The eBario Knowledge Fair.

Roger Harris

Featured

A Training Workbook: Communication Methods and Scientific Advocacy

08/04/2014

Templates & Toolkits

This publication is an output from a project funded by Department for International Development (DFID) for the benefit of developing countries as it shares information on research, promote and development communication methods and scientific advocacy.

Research to Action

Engaging the public

New ‘Mapping Research Uptake Learning Materials’ project launched

07/04/2014

News & Opportunities

CommsConsult have undertaken a new project, commissioned by DRUSSA, and need your input in identifying what materials should be developed in the RUM field within the next few years.

Research to Action

Featured

Twitter: A Whistle-Stop Guide for Think Tanks!

03/04/2014

Guides & Tutorials

This guide to Twitter takes you from setting up an account, through building Twitter relationships, to creating and managing lists. It also focuses on policies and procedures, style and tone-of-voice and strategic Twitter goals.

Betty Paton

Featured

How do systems perspectives make us view capacity development differently?

27/03/2014

Blog Posts

How can system perspectives and complexity thinking influence the way we think about capacity development? Follow up on ‘CD2’, introduced by a team of Itad consultants and associates.

Research to Action

Featured

Engaging the media for policy research: Four critical questions to consider

26/03/2014

Blog Posts

Paula Fray outlines four critical questions which think tanks and other organizations should answer when seeking to engage the media around policy research in the African context.

Paula Fray

Featured

Webinars: An effective tool for e-learning among think tanks across Africa?

26/03/2014

Blog Posts

David Olson reflects on the challenges he faced in using webinars as an e-learning device as part of his work on the Policy Engagement and Communications (PEC) programme.

David J Olson

Featured

Introduction to data visualization

19/03/2014

Guides & Tutorials

This guide, developed by the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), offers guidance on the use of data visualization, the different stages of visualization development and how it is relevant to communicating your research.

Institute of Development Studies

Featured

It’s time for more South Asian researchers to get on Twitter!

12/03/2014

Blog Posts

In this post, Anushka Wijesinha reflects upon his experiences of using Twitter as a researcher engaged in policy-focused research, arguing that it provides a valuable tool for a number of reasons – from tracking debates to communicating his research.

Anushka Wijesinha

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Contribute Write a blog post, post a job or event, recommend a resource

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Most Recent Posts

  • Have we stopped caring about the climate?
  • What would a better international emergency aid system look like?
  • Does text messaging reach and engage young people?
  • Seeing the Future? Predictability in Research Impact
  • Knowledge brokers: what are they and what do they do?
📸 Another throwback from the #R2AArchive…

In 2013, Pete Cranston asked:
"How can research data better support development?"

His answer?
✅ Make data usable
✅ Keep it accessible
✅ Ensure it's relevant

🔑 It’s not just about collecting data—it’s about turning it into action.

Link in Bio!!
#DataToAction #ResearchMatters #DevelopmentGoals #R4D #InspoFromTheArchive

📸 Another throwback from the #R2AArchive…

In 2013, Pete Cranston asked:
"How can research data better support development?"

His answer?
✅ Make data usable
✅ Keep it accessible
✅ Ensure it's relevant

🔑 It’s not just about collecting data—it’s about turning it into action.

Link in Bio!!
#DataToAction #ResearchMatters #DevelopmentGoals #R4D #InspoFromTheArchive

🌀 Have we stopped caring about the climate?

Crisis fatigue. Shrinking attention spans. Endless global emergencies.

🌍 Climate change is slipping off the radar — even as the urgency grows.

In her latest blog, Inés Arangüena comnsiders new research from the Reuters Institute and explores how we can re-ignite public connection to the climate crisis — emotionally and politically.

📖 Read the full piece via 🔗 Link in bio

#ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #CrisisFatigue #ScienceCommunication #ClimateAction #Sustainability #InesArangüena #ResearchToAction #ClimateAwareness #StayEngaged

🌀 Have we stopped caring about the climate?

Crisis fatigue. Shrinking attention spans. Endless global emergencies.

🌍 Climate change is slipping off the radar — even as the urgency grows.

In her latest blog, Inés Arangüena comnsiders new research from the Reuters Institute and explores how we can re-ignite public connection to the climate crisis — emotionally and politically.

📖 Read the full piece via 🔗 Link in bio

#ClimateChange #ClimateCrisis #CrisisFatigue #ScienceCommunication #ClimateAction #Sustainability #InesArangüena #ResearchToAction #ClimateAwareness #StayEngaged

🌍 Amidst a world in crisis, it's still possible — and powerful — to be part of building something better.

Want to help rethink how humanitarian aid works? 🌱 Join the global #HumanitarianRethink consultation and be part of shaping a more inclusive, effective, and far-reaching system.

🗣️ Add your voice.
🔗 Link in bio or visit:
researchtoaction.org/2025/05/what-would-a-better-international-emergency-aid-system-look-like

#RebuildingBetter #HumanitarianAid #R2ARecommends #GlobalVoices #AidReform #MakeChange #CrisisResponse #HumanityInAction

🌍 Amidst a world in crisis, it's still possible — and powerful — to be part of building something better.

Want to help rethink how humanitarian aid works? 🌱 Join the global #HumanitarianRethink consultation and be part of shaping a more inclusive, effective, and far-reaching system.

🗣️ Add your voice.
🔗 Link in bio or visit:
researchtoaction.org/2025/05/what-would-a-better-international-emergency-aid-system-look-like

#RebuildingBetter #HumanitarianAid #R2ARecommends #GlobalVoices #AidReform #MakeChange #CrisisResponse #HumanityInAction


About Us

Research To Action (R2A) is a learning platform for anyone interested in maximising the impact of research and capturing evidence of impact.

The site publishes practical resources on a range of topics including research uptake, communications, policy influence and monitoring and evaluation. It captures the experiences of practitioners and researchers working on these topics and facilitates conversations between this global community through a range of social media platforms.

R2A is produced by a small editorial team, led by CommsConsult. We welcome suggestions for and contributions to the site.

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