{"id":3301,"date":"2017-06-22T03:21:23","date_gmt":"2017-06-22T10:21:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/coyotecommunications.com\/coyoteblog\/?p=3301"},"modified":"2017-06-19T10:41:22","modified_gmt":"2017-06-19T17:41:22","slug":"undpnudge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/coyotecommunications.com\/coyoteblog\/2017\/06\/undpnudge\/","title":{"rendered":"Behavioural Insights at the United Nations \u2013 Achieving the 2030 Agenda"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>The United Nations has embraced the use of behavioral science to help it craft effective development activities and interventions. As it notes on this November 2016 blog<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Across the globe, all people \u2013 poor or rich \u2013 sometimes make choices that are not conducive to their own well-being. Saving enough for retirement, eating healthy, investing in education \u2013 all too often we humans postpone intended actions to \u2018tomorrow\u2019, succumb to inertia or get stuck in habits.<\/em><\/p>\n

In light of the extensive research on the cognitive biases that influence human decision-making, there is a broad consensus that traditional economic models are insufficient for effective policy-making. Behind every policy lie assumptions about how humans will behave in light of new regulations and why we act the way we do.<\/em><\/p>\n

UNDP has embraced the idea of network nudges<\/em>, where people are influenced by the behavior of friends and members of their\u00a0extended social network, and that\u00a0people observe other people\u2019s behavior as guidelines for what\u2019s acceptable and desirable. UNDP has been cooperating with\u00a0the UK Behavioural Insights Team<\/a>\u00a0since 2013, and UNDP’s\u00a0report, Behavioural Insights at the United Nations \u2013 Achieving the 2030 Agenda<\/a>, advocates this approach for inclusion in every policy maker\u2019s toolbox and presents 10 valuable case studies. This is from the page at the aforementioned link:<\/p>\n

In 2016, the UNDP Innovation Facility collaborated with the newly engaged UN Behavioural Science Advisor to work on behaviorally-informed design with 8 UNDP Country Offices in all 5 regions: Bangladesh, Cameroon, China, Ecuador, Jordan, Moldova, Montenegro and Papua New Guinea. This Progress Report highlights the potential of behavioural insights to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and provides an overview of the 8 initiatives.<\/em><\/p>\n

Behavioural insights draw from research findings from psychology, economics and neuroscience. These insights about how people make decisions matter for development. They matter for policy-formulation and addressing last mile problems.<\/em><\/p>\n

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon noted that, \u201cIn order to succeed, Agenda 2030 must account for behavioural insights research\u2026 Our organization, our global agenda \u2013 and most importantly the people worldwide they are intended to serve \u2013 deserve nothing less than the best science available. A human-centered agenda requires a rigorous, research-based understanding of people.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

The report shows that approaching development challenges with behavioural insights leads to better diagnoses of problems and to better designed solutions. Public policy and programme officials around the world can achieve better outcomes \u2014 often at low or no cost \u2014 simply by leveraging our current understanding of human psychology and behaviour.<\/em><\/p>\n

In January 2016, the UN Secretary-General appointed two “Behavioural Insights Advisors” for initially six months. They worked with the UNDP Innovation Facility<\/a> to improve uptake of an e-waste recycling<\/a> solution in China, crowdfunding efforts for green energy<\/a> in Ecuador, the anti-corruption initiative \u2018Phones Against Corruption<\/a>\u2019 in Papua New-Guinea, and more.<\/p>\n

Wikipedia actually has some good pages that provide an overview of these and related subjects:<\/p>\n