EviEM building capacity in systematic review and map methodologies

The first training workshop was held by project leader Neal Haddaway at the Global Evidence Synthesis Initiative (GESI) located at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon. GESI aims to enhance the capacity of low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in synthesizing evidence, and to use evidence to support practice and policy across disciplines such as agriculture, economics, education, environment and health. The two days’ workshop included lectures on all steps of systematic reviews and maps, including practical exercises.

After the training in Lebanon, Neal visited the African centre of Stockholm Environment Institute, EviEM’s hosting organization, in Nairobi, Kenya. A similar training programme was held at the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF) where the SEI office is located. The training was held for all interested SEI colleagues, but other partner organisations working at the ICRAF centre were also invited.

At the exact same time, but in another continent namely Asia, project leaders Biljana Macura and Magnus Land, held the same systematic review training with SEI colleagues at the SEI centre in Bangkok, Thailand. There was a great interest among all participants, and many colleagues were keen on implementing the systematic review and mapping methodologies to their ongoing projects. The interest among the participants was seen as a great success of the trainings, since EviEM aims to increase the use of systematic approaches to evidence synthesis in the environmental field. Building capacity is one way to accomplish that aim.