“We don’t need new evidence to make evidence-based policy”
I loved this when you said it in your talk. @katejsim, do you stand by this one? 
Notes from January 2019.
Well, if the quote stands in isolation from the rest of the context…I think I might still stand by it??? That sentiment was in response to how the rhetoric of “evidence-based policy” can dismiss and overlook the knowledge that frontline workers and researchers and survivors already have about interventions, funding, resources, etc.
An example: I participated in a hackathon several years ago about sexual harassment that was really framed around the novelty of leveraging big data analytics to inform social change, and the key finding at the end of the day was: sexual harassment affects women’s public lives and women adopt extensive safety practices.
I think we can skip on that kind of “”“evidence.”""" Instead, I’m thinking of what would come out of a well-funded event that centers on the insights of frontline practitioners and survivors/victims for more local, actionable interventions.
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I really like this aspect of your work – how more, “bigger” data is positioned as the solution to a problem of harassment, but the problem was never about having “insufficient evidence” in the first place, and never has been. Also as though the work frontline workers were doing before wasn’t based in “evidence”. It’s interesting because a recurring theme in the NGI coding right now, this desire to create an all-singing all-dancing new flashy tech solution, when the real answer is supporting existing practices and simple solutions, building on existing research.
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This, of course, relates to my favourite Kate Sim mantra – “Do Less” (better).
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Your hackathon experience is a prime example of how focusing on big data might not always provide the best insights. Instead, putting resources into events that center on the input of those who’ve been in the trenches, like frontline practitioners and survivors, can lead to more effective, locally relevant interventions.
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