TMI! How Knowledge Platforms Tame the Information Overload and Advance Global Development Through Technology

TL;DR

Knowledge platforms in global development help organize reliable data, improve decision-making, and foster innovation by standardizing information and revealing trends to guide future technology solutions.

Contribution

This paper discusses the development and potential impact of knowledge platforms for global development, highlighting best practices and data-driven decision-making.

Findings

Platforms can improve quality and reduce waste in development projects.

Mining data from platforms can identify trends affecting the technology ecosystem.

Platforms motivate compliance and independent research.

Abstract

Finding reliable data to inform decisions about technology for global development remains a challenge. Easily accessible "Knowledge platforms" are a way to curate and standardize information about technology for development. Three collaborators, Engineering for Change, the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves and the Center for Affordable Water and Sanitation Technology (CAWST) are working together to create platforms to serve the global development sector. Such platforms could be the first step in making decisions about how to solve a problem that needs a technology-based solution. They could motivate manufacturers to demonstrate compliance with quality standards, and they could encourage independent research into each product's impact. Years of development experience worldwide have yielded a set of best practices to increase the life of a project. These platforms clarify those practices to improve quality and reduce waste. As the platforms mature, mining them for data could identify trends that influence the entire technology ecosystem. Those could include decisions about performance targets, future innovation, pricing, compliance with regulations, and funding priorities.