Putting People First: Enabling Empathy in Policymaking

PUTTING PEOPLE FIRST:
ENABLING EMPATHY IN POLICYMAKING

UNICEF, Reboot and the Centre for Social Innovation are pleased to invite you to an intimate discussion on how an empathetic approach to policymaking can drive social innovation. We would love for you to join us!

New approaches in policymaking increasingly argue that empathy is a crucial—and often overlooked—ingredient in delivering better outcomes. Empathy entails developing a deep understanding of and appreciation for people’s lived experiences. Applied to policymaking, empathy supports the design of policies that are more effective at responding to the capacities and constraints of the individuals they are meant to serve. Institutions that “operationalize empathy" in the policymaking process through ethnography, co-creation, and iteration can develop social interventions that are more suited to the nature of complex and seemingly intractable challenges.

Come join us next week, along with a select group of practitioners, policymakers, and thought leaders, to explore the potential of greater uses of empathy in policymaking in the context of international development. Drawing on our recent work with UNICEF in the North Atlantic Autonomous Region of Nicaragua, we’ll discuss:

1. What does operationalizing empathy look like in practice?
   
2. What potential does operationalizing empathy hold for empowering human development?
   
3. What are the challenges to realizing empathy’s potential in policymaking?

FEATURING

NATALIA ADLER
Chief of Social Policy
UNICEF Nicaragua

RAFAEL VILLA
Co-Founder
Social enterprise start-up P-Lab

ZACK BRISSON
Co-Founder and Principal
Reboot