Harnessing Evidence for System Change (POPH90311)

This subject equips participants to build their knowledge, skills and capacities for change-making influence and advocacy in their workplace or organisational setting. Through different disciplinary, theoretical and conceptual frames, students will Increase their understanding of cycles of evidence creation and implementation, policy and policy change, stakeholder engagement and complex adaptive systems thinking, and building in cycles of inquiry and evaluation.

Drawing on both lived experience and industry-based examples, students will examine principles for multi-disciplinary working, explore models for working with stakeholders and identify ways to progress effective actions with limited resources.  Reflecting on the realities of their own position, students will increase their awareness of different operational levels of power (including challenges and strategies for women in power), and dynamics of conflict and conflict management. 

Drawing on students’ own understanding of workplace situations, the focus will be on practising and enhancing skills in building influence, including effectively communicating with power, speaking to culture, discerning the type of evidence that best suits different audiences; orally presenting evidence, harnessing different levels of evidence (eg peer reviewed literature, theoretical models, research surveys, narrative stories, consumer voice), preparing graphics and crafting an elevator pitch.