Feed the Future MRR Innovation Lab

A leading economist on the role of hope and aspirations in escaping poverty,?Bruce Wydick is a speaker in our January 23 webinar. He will discuss a framework to understand the role of #hope in the uptake of poverty alleviation interventions, drawing on his research from microfinance, financial literacy, and child sponsorship initiatives. Register now!? #BehavioralEconomics #DevelopmentEconomics #PovertyAlleviation #EconomicResilience #FeedtheFuture Feed the Future Kara E. Reeve Kathryn Stahlberg, PhD Sophie Javers Tara Chiu Sarah Sitts Steve Boucher

USAID Feed the Future is soliciting stakeholder input to shape a demand-driven research agenda on the following topics: ?? Genetic Improvement and Management of Perennial Crops ?? Genetic Improvement of Diverse Nutritious Crops? ?? Water, Soil, and Land Management International Centre for Evaluation and Development (ICED)

People’s aspirations can stimulate economic growth… OR reinforce poverty. Sound like an important phenomenon for development interventions to get right? Join our January 23 webinar to learn more. MRR researcher Sarah Janzen will start us off by sharing her research on aspiration formation and how aspirations affect investment in the future. Register now! #BehavioralEconomics #DevelopmentEconomics #PovertyAlleviation #EconomicResilience Feed the Future Sophie Javers Tara Chiu Sarah Sitts Kara E. Reeve

Check out this compelling VoxDev piece on the findings of John Hoddinott and International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in their MRR-supported study of the Transfer Modality Research Initiative in Bangladesh. Some of their key findings from studying the program, which targeted mothers of young children: ?? Transfers of cash were more likely than food transfers to demonstrate sustained impacts on #FoodSecurity. ?? Identical #CashTransfers had less impact on food security in the South than the North. ?? Complementing cash transfers with nutrition trainings and home visits led to larger sustained impacts. (Additional info on the study here: https://lnkd.in/gmwb7CSJ) #FoodSecurity #Resilience #SustainedImpact Sarah Sitts Tara Chiu Sophie Javers

Register to join the third installment in our #BehavioralEconomics & Beyond webinar series on January 23! We will continue these fascinating discussions around behaviors shaping the economic decisions people make about investing in the future. Researchers Bruce Wydick, Sarah Janzen and Richard Anthony Gallenstein will talk about inequality, aspirations and hope. Links to the papers the speakers will discuss are on our website: https://lnkd.in/gBYEbwUV Sophie Javers Kara E. Reeve Kathryn Stahlberg, PhD

“It is so rewarding to see our study appreciated and stakeholders engaged to better understand the study, findings, and offer possible reasons behind the findings.” -Mercy Kamau, ALL-IN principal investigator Congratulations to Mercy for showcasing the type of locally-led research and collaboration that the Feed the Future Advancing Local Leadership, Innovation and Networks (ALL-IN)?research program* is all about. This Kenyan-led learning and academic-government collaboration has the potential to grow a culture of evidence-based policymaking. *ALL-IN is co-directed by MRR and International Centre for Evaluation and Development (ICED)

Call For Proposals ?? The Global Resilience Partnership, Shockwave Foundation, and Munich Re Foundation have launched the third phase of The Resilient Agriculture Innovations for Nature (RAIN) Challenge. Initiatives from East Africa are welcome to submit proposals that aim to achieve sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural transformation. The #RAINchallenge aims to identify and nurture seed-level innovations and scale them to investable, bankable, and financially viable projects. Winners will receive tailored mentoring, a monetary award of up-to USD 50,000, be connected with investors and much more!!! Eligible countries: Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda ?? See link for details and how to apply: https://bit.ly/3VsPiED ???Deadline: 31 Jan 2025 #RAINChallenge Shockwave Foundation Munich Re Foundation Jesper H?rnberg Gerald Mgesi David

Insurance can be an important tool for increasing #resilience, but those who could benefit may not have cash on hand to purchase a premium. Read how our Village Insurance Savings Account (VISA) model makes insurance more accessible and inclusive: https://lnkd.in/gRrMa_6b #FinancialInclusion #InclusiveInsurance #IndexInsurance #ClimateRiskInsurance

Seaweed is once again showing promise for making cattle farming more sustainable. A new study by researchers at the UC Davis found that feeding grazing beef cattle a seaweed supplement in pellet form reduced their methane emissions by almost 40% without affecting their health or weight. The study was published today (Dec. 2) in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). This is the first study to test seaweed on grazing beef cattle in the world. It follows previous studies that showed seaweed cut methane emissions 82% in feedlot cattle and over 50% in dairy cows. Read more about the study by visiting https://ucdav.is/3CT0AM1. #OurUCDavis Image description: Beef steers graze on a ranch. The machine nearby releases a seaweed supplement while also measuring the cattle's methane emissions. A blue gradient with white text reading "Feeding Grazing Cattle Seaweed Cuts Methane Emissions by Almost 40%" is place over the image.

Have you heard about the Cumulative Avoided Losses (CAL) Metric, developed by MRR researchers to measure economic resilience? A single number that quantifies economic resilience over time, the CAL Metric reflects the actual economic resilience experience of households. Check it out on ResilienceLinks: https://lnkd.in/gC9_Kzts #ResilienceMeasurement #EconomicResilience #FeedtheFuture Sarah Sitts Tara Chiu Sophie Javers