Responsible and relevant research in the Global South: What does it take?

Thursday, 23 May, 2024 - 3:00 PM

Format: Online panel + Q&A (90 minutes) - UoL & Public

This session features researchers from the Global South who will discuss what is needed for meaningful partnerships and relevant research.

Are you concerned about the ongoing practice of "parachute / parasitic research" in academia?

Interested in forging meaningful research partnerships with collaborators in the Global South?

Wondering what it takes to co-create impact projects that are responsible and non-exploitative?

Join us for a dynamic session with Caribbean scholar-activists who will share ideas related to ethical, collaborative research by:

1) Sharing their experiences of navigating the power dynamics and structural inequalities inherent in international research;

2) Discussing what is required to co-create research that advances justice and addresses the lasting legacies of imperialism;

3) Interrogating the research funding status quo, coloniality of knowledge production, and acclaim afforded to "the heroic PI".

Session outline/ plan

By the end of this session, participants will:

  • Be better acquainted with the realities and challenges faced by researchers in the Global South
  • Gain practical insight on developing strategies for equitable partnership and knowledge co-creation
  • Receive concrete ideas related to building trust and reciprocity with collaborators and communities

Presenter information:

  • Johannah-Rae Reyes (presenter): Johannah-Rae Reyes is a Caribbean activist and project and community outreach associate with CAISO. She is also a sign language interpreter for the Deaf Empowerment and Advancement Foundation and the Alliance for Justice and Diversity in Trinidad and Tobago.
  • Dr. Filiberto Penados (presenter): Filiberto Penados is a Maya activist-scholar from Belize with a focus on critical development studies, participatory methods, and Indigenous future-making. He is currently Research Director of Galen University, President of the Julian Cho Society, and adviser to the Toledo Alcaldes Association.
  • Dr. Tessa Barry (presenter): Tessa Barry is an agricultural extension and rural development specialist with a focus on gender responsive policy, as well as a stakeholder and capacity development analyst who works throughout the Caribbean. She is also director of JRI Consultancy in Grenada.
  • Levi Gahman (moderator): Levi Gahman is a Professor of emancipatory politics and environmental conflict with a focus on participatory methods in the Department of Geography at the University of Liverpool. He is also an ISRF Fellow and affiliate faculty at the University of the West Indies."

Linked sessions

Aimed at

Knowledge and skill axis

Innovation Theme(s)

RDF Domain(s)