Workspaces:Intermediaries

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Intermediaries
Introduction Annotated Bibliography Changing Environment Background Material

Welcome to the workspace on intermediaries. The aim of this workspace is to develop better conceptual and practical understanding of information and knowledge intermedairies, as a means of creating a greater understanding of their potential contribution to development. We are Isabel Vogel, and Cheryl Brown the convenors of this workspace; we hope to create a collaborative exploration of the work of intermediaries in international development.

Aims of the workspace

The sheer range of intermediary actors and knowledge-related activities hampers the ability to understand their potential contribution to progressive development outcomes and assess how the capacity of actors playing this role can be strengthened. The number of initiatives and players is increasing, including a very capable range of intermedairies in developing countries. But the 'intermediary sector', if it can be called that, is fragile and under-networked. Intermedairies often work in isolation from each other, and from other knowledge initiatives, resulting in lessons not being shared and efforts being duplicated. The potential to link initiatives and improve flows of knowledge between geographical locations and sectors is also not being met.

Yet, recent practical and theoretical work in this area suggests that this new group of actors face common challenges that improved networking in the sector could help overcome, to share lessons and learn from each other. Through a collaborative exploration of the concepts and practical aspects of intermediairies and their work, we hope this workspace will make a contribution to improved understanding about this new group of development actors and foster a growing sense of successes shared amongst intermediaries in development.