Science Dialogue Day – Empowering Leadership Programmes: Understanding Rationales and Assessing Impact

Veranstaltungsart
Event Series

Ort / Datum
Bonn, 08.12.2025

Veranstalter

German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS) in cooperation with the Academy of International Affairs (AIA)

Background & Rationale of the Science Dialogue Day

The Science Dialogue Day is a collaborative format initiated by the Managing Global Governance (MGG) Programme at the German Institute of Development and Sustainability (IDOS). It aims to strengthen exchange and cooperation among leadership academies and training programmes in North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) that are committed to sustainable development and international cooperation.

Across NRW, a growing number of research, training, and policy-oriented institutions have established academies and capacity-building initiatives to prepare young professionals and emerging leaders for global challenges. These programmes share a belief in the power of dialogue, peer learning, and evidence-based leadership development to advance the 2030 Agenda and foster just, inclusive, and sustainable societies.

At the same time, many of these initiatives operate independently, with limited opportunities for regional coordination and peer learning across institutional boundaries. The Science Dialogue Day series was established to address this gap — creating a platform for structured reflection, mutual learning, and collaboration among leadership programmes in NRW. The format allows directors and coordinators to share approaches, compare methodologies, and identify complementarities, ultimately contributing to a more cohesive regional ecosystem of transformative leadership development.

Objectives of the Science Dialogue Day II

Building on these foundations, the second Science Dialogue Day deepens the exchange by focusing on two interrelated dimensions: (1) understanding the rationales and evolving mandates of leadership programmes, and (2) exploring how to conceptualise and assess their impact.

The upcoming Science Dialogue Day seeks to:

  • Facilitate a structured exchange on the conceptual foundations, objectives, and structures of leadership programmes in NRW, situating them within current global and regional challenges in times of geopolitical, ecological, and social uncertainty.
  • Reflect on impact assessment and theories of change in leadership programmes, identifying approaches, challenges, and lessons learned.
  • Use the Managing Global Governance (MGG) Network as a case study to illustrate potential impact at individual, organisational, and systemic levels, and relate this to enabling factors.
  • Strengthen regional ties and foster long-term collaboration among leadership academies and networks in NRW.

Expected Outcomes

  • Improved understanding of the conceptual and institutional diversity of leadership programmes in NRW.
  • Shared insights on impact assessment and the use of theory-of-change frameworks.
  • Identification of common challenges and opportunities for future collaboration, joint research, or policy engagement.
  • Strengthened peer learning network among participating institutions and programmes.

Programme

9:30 – 9:45: Welcome and Introduction

  • AIA and IDOS introduce the Science Dialogue Day format and objectives of the meeting

9:45 –11:00: Understanding the Rationales of Leadership Programmes

  • Sharing Similarities and Differences

11:00 – 11:30: Break

11:30 – 12:15: Peer Learning – Impact in leadership programmes

  • Share challenges and best practices across programmes

13:00 – 13:30: Future Outlook

  • Collect topics of joint interest
  • Discuss rotation Host – and responsibilities

13:30 – 14:30: Networking and Joint lunch

 

Hinweis

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