Capturing Collaborative Challenges: Designing Complexity-Sensitive Theories of Change for Cross-Sector Partnerships

Systems change requires complex interventions. Cross-sector partnerships (CSPs) face the daunting task of addressing complex societal problems by aligning different backgrounds, values, ideas and resources. A major challenge for CSPs is how to link the type of partnership to the intervention needed to drive change. Intervention strategies are thereby increasingly based on Theories of Change (ToCs). Applying ToCs is often a donor requirement, but it also reflects the ambition of a partnership to enhance its transformative potential. The current use of ToCs in partnering efforts varies greatly. There is a tendency for a linear and relatively simple use of ToCs that does limited justice to the complexity of the problems partnerships aim to address. Since partnership dynamics are already complex and challenging themselves, confusion and disagreement over the appropriate application of ToCs is likely to hamper rather than enhance the transformative potential of partnerships. We develop a complexity alignment framework and a diagnostic tool that enables partnerships to better appreciate the complexity of the context in which they operate, allowing them to adjust their learning strategy. This paper applies recent insights into how to deal with complexity from both the evaluation and theory of change fields to studies investigating the transformative capacity of partnerships. This can (1) serve as a check to define the challenges of partnering projects and (2) can help delineate the societal sources and layers of complexity that cross-sector partnerships deal with such as failure, insufficient responsibility taking and collective action problems at four phases of partnering

Two ppp facilities: survey results: the applicants’ perspective

The Partnerships Resource Centre (PrC) distributed a survey in the autumn of 2013 to all applicants of the Sustainable Water Fund (FDW) & the Facility for Sustainable Entrepreneurship and Food Security (FDOV) in order to gain a better understanding of the application procedure experience. The survey explored the applicants’ perspectives on the motives of organizations to apply for the facilities, the way they experienced the procedure, and suggestions for improvements. This report provides a concise overview of the main findings and conclusions of this study

Granulocytes are unresponsive to IL-6 due to an absence of gp130

IL-6 mediates broad physiological and pathological effects through its receptor signal transducing unit gp130. Due to the reportedly wide cellular expression of gp130, IL-6 is thought to signal ubiquitously via gp130 complex formation with membrane-bound IL-6Rα or soluble IL-6Rα. gp130 signaling primarily induces p-STAT3 and p-STAT1. In contrast to the previous dogma, we show in this article that circulating mouse and human granulocytes are unable to induce p-STAT3 or p-STAT1 after stimulation with IL-6 or an IL-6/soluble IL-6R complex. Furthermore, we demonstrate that this is due to a lack of gp130 expression on mouse and human granulocytes, despite their expression of membrane-bound IL-6R. Importantly, the absence of gp130 is not only a feature of mature granulocytes in healthy individuals, it is also observed after allogeneic stem cell transplantation. Moreover, granulocyte gp130 expression is lost during maturation, because granulocyte-monocyte progenitor cells express gp130 and respond to IL-6. Given that granulocytes constitute 50-70% of circulating leukocytes, this indicates a significantly smaller scope of IL-6 signaling than previously anticipated and has important implications for therapeutic IL-6 inhibition and the mechanisms of action thereof

Effect of Antiplatelet Therapy on Survival and Organ Support–Free Days in Critically Ill Patients With COVID-19

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