Thematic Focus
The first cycle of C3 Labs is thematically focused on the food-biodiversity-climate nexus, particularly around complex challenges relating to agriculture, food systems, land use, forests and ecosystem restoration and the connection to water, biodiversity and climate impacts. In future phases, co-convenors of Labs from government and core development partners will select the nexus issue they wish to convene focus on.
C3 Labs vision and impact
WE FACILITATE LABS IN LOCAL, COUNTRY CONTEXTS AND COMMUNITIES OVER A LONG HORIZON, TO:
Build community across organizational boundaries
Strengthen trust and relationships as the foundation for effective collaboration and create a community of leaders and change agents collaborating over the long term. Part of the process includes:
- Identification of pioneers; the Lab convenes leaders and change agents already driving more collaborative and systemic approaches in their organisations and in their work.
- Building trust and relationships that transcends organisational boundaries.
- Creating an on-going network of influencers and change makers across organisational boundaries that can continue to catalyse change across the development system.
IMPACT ACHIEVABLE IN THE SHORT TERM (1-2 YEARS)
Strengthen capacity in systems approaches
Build capacity in systems thinking & collaborative leadership: strengthen leadership capacities and skills in using collaborative and systems change methodologies. Participants will be supported to assess and strengthen (a) their own personal capabilities and (b) their organisations, projects and initiatives in terms of:
- Understanding and applying complexity and systems thinking
- Strengthening leadership capabilities for leading systemic change
- Effective application of collaborative methodologies for working with systemic challenges
- Catalysing change through dialogue and participatory processes
- Breaking down internal organisational silos
- Adjusting organisational processes to become more agile and adaptive
- Identifying how to incentivise and support greaterinter-institutionalcollaboration
- Influencing donor funding requirements to support more systemic, collaborative and adaptiveapproaches
- Influencing political and public narratives and mindsets to support more systemic, collaborative and adaptive approaches
IMPACT ACHIEVABLE IN THE SHORT TERM (1-2 YEARS)
Unlock existing opportunities for collaboration
Strengthen collaboration and unlock value in existing programmes, initiatives and institutions. This includes:
Mapping the system:
- Key stakeholders and their relationships
- Inter-action / feedback loops between key drivers and impacts
- Interventions and leverage points
- Where and how Lab participants are working within the system
Mapping potential collaboration opportunities:
- Potential synergies and opportunities for collaboration between different institutions, programmes and initiatives that Lab participants are involved with
- Enablers and barriers to effective collaboration
IMPACT ACHIEVABLE IN THE SHORT TERM (1-2 YEARS)
Incubate new systemic change initiatives
Co-create and mobilize investment into new initiatives that embed collaborative and systemic approaches from the outset. This includes the realisation of collaboration and testing systems finance opportunities:
- Participants self-organise into groups to collaborate on specific opportunities, applying systems thinking approaches, including attention to individual capabilities, collaboration methodologies, organisational enables and barriers and system-wide incentives
- Co-creation and incubation of new opportunities to address complex challenges, where systems thinking, financial systems innovation and collaboration is integrated from the outset
IMPACT ACHIEVABLE IN THE MID TERM (2-5 YEARS)
Transform institutions
Transform institutional structures and processes to support more agile, adaptive, collaborative and systemic ways of working.
A key objective for the Labs is to accelerate the mainstreaming of more collaborative and systemic approaches to tackling complex environmental challenges. A key part of this is changing the “rules of the game”, particularly in terms of funder requirements, organisational culture, operating policies & procedures, methodologies & practices, and – more broadly – institutional reform.
We believe C3 Labs can help inform governments, donors and development agencies working on these issues – and can build a community of leaders across organisational boundaries to innovate and collaborate to solve these issues.
IMPACT ACHIEVABLE IN THE LONG TERM (5-10 YEARS)
