Creating genuine co-creation: DELITES Case study of co-creation with OPDs

• In Event: Voice and Ownership: Partnering with Organizations of Persons with Disabilities in Education Programming

Proposal

Despite the fact that there has been increased prioritization of “localization” and “co-creation” in the Global North development space, true co-creation of research or project design with local partners remains challenging for Global North partners to successfully accomplish. Oftentimes this stems from the fast pace of development projects and the tight budgets. Centering co-creation takes extensive both time and money; timelines are often fast-paced and research or project design must be finished quickly, leaving little time to onboard partners who may have governmental or organizational delays. Project design occurs at the beginning of project planning, often coinciding with partner selection timelines. When timelines allow for genuine co-creation, there is often resistance because of budget implications of the increased amount of people and time required for successful co-creation.

Although there are significant obstacles to genuine co-creation, it proves essential for the success and sustainability of projects; in-country partners have real knowledge of project implementation and consideration that Global North partners may not consider. Co-creation is even more important when striving for inclusive programming and working with traditionally marginalized people that may have different needs or considerations that need to be integrated throughout the project design. Partnering with Organizations for People with Disabilities (OPDs) is key to co-creating project design that is successful and inclusive.

This presentation looks at the DELITES Study Partner Retreat as a case study into the process of co-creation with a Global North partner and three OPDs to plan for a two-year study on deaf education. This presentation will explore what worked well, what could have been improved, and how we can improve co-creation while partnered with OPDs.

Author

• Annie Conaghan, University of Notre Dame-Pulte Institute of Global Development