Introducing Solution Exchange
What it is; the services we offer; the SE Global team
What is Solution Exchange?
Solution Exchange is a United Nations Agency-sponsored facilitation service for development professionals. It organizes practitioners according to their professional disciplines into "Communities of Practice" and puts them to work sharing their knowledge, insights and experience to address development challenges. A Solution Exchange-facilitated Community has a simple goal - to collectively identify and address the issues its members face, both individually and as a Community. Community members come from across a country's organizational spectrum to interact on a continuous basis to learn, share and work together. Solution Exchange organizes Communities that can add value by  Capturing practical, undocumented knowledge, experience and innovations  Improving practitioner effectiveness - no 're-inventing the wheel'  Expanding partnership/sponsorship opportunities  Offering positive, constructive contributions for decision-makers seeking feedback  Providing the full range of perspectives around an issue Solution Exchange services have also been adapted to knowledge-sharing networks of specialists addressing regional and inter-regional development priorities.
How does it work?
Solution Exchange is about peer-to-peer problem solving - both virtually and face to face.... Virtual: Everyone in a Community is a member of a mail group moderated by a senior domain specialist and a research associate located in a UN Agency. When you face a challenge, e-mail it to the Community. Over the next 1-3 weeks members respond with advice, experience, contacts or other suggestions to help you out. Once the query closes the discussion and the resources recommended are synthesized into a Consolidated Reply that is circulated to Community members. Face-to-face: Community members meet in annual forums and regional events to interact, learn and make new connections. Members also collaborate on assignments, tapping into each others' knowledge, expertise and different perspectives.
Solution Exchange Services
Help - for members seeking experience and advice on issues they face The UNDP official covering the Bihar flood relief received from Disaster Management and Water Community members over 60 examples of low-cost emergency water purification systems, in one week. Consult - for decision-makers seeking feedback on draft policies or programmes The official charged with developing a national policy on ICT in education tapped the ICT for Development and the Education Communities to expand the consultation process across India Discuss - for brainstorming on key issues of wide concern to the Community AIDS Community members encouraged the wider adoption in India of community-based responses to HIV through the "AIDS Competency Process" (ACP) Collaborate - for members working in small groups to produce a quick, strategic deliverable such as a project proposal, strategic plan, or pilot project The Food & Nutrition Security Community introduced a successful pilot scheme to increase the nutritional content of the Indian national school feeding initiative (the "Mid-Day Meal Programme")
The SE Global Outreach Team
	Adviser: Steve Glovinsky Steve has worked for more than 35 years as a UN official, as a manager of UNDP’s development programmes and adviser to over thirty governments in public management and reform. He created UNDP’s knowledge networks and was instrumental in setting up Solution Exchange in India. In his capacity as advisor, he is helping set up Solution Exchange to other countries. He is based in the United States.
	Knowledge Management Training Specialist: Nupur Gupta Nupur is responsible for designing customized training packages, delivering trainings and providing support to Solution Exchange Facilitation Teams. Prior to joining Solution Exchange, she worked with UNDP- India as Research Associate for Disaster Management Community and was responsible for moderating the DM Community consisting of Disaster Management practitioners from India. Additionally, she was involved in designing and conducting trainings for SE India Resource Teams on managing Communities of Practice, creating Knowledge Products and advanced IT skills. She also provided strategic support for internal and external Knowledge Management for the UNDP' Disaster Risk Reduction Programme . In the past she has been involved in designing Village Knowledge Centres in Pakistan and moderating the Asian Disaster Reduction and Response Network (ADRRN).
	Associate Outreach Coordinator: Ramya Gopalan Ramya is located at UNDP's Asia-Pacific Regional Center (APRC) where she is the focal point for Communities of Practice including Solution Exchange interests. Ramya began with the UN in India in 2005 as the Research Associate for the Solution Exchange Water Community, supporting community discussions and networking activities. In 2008 she joined the Outreach Unit, and in that capacity provides operational assistance and backstopping to Solution Exchange Communities.
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Contact us at coordinator at solutionexchange-un.net

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