Dear John,

From our earliest days, IPA has worked side by side with researchers, donors, organizations, and governments from low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), building a network of local partnership essential to our commitment to improve lives through high-quality research and evidence-based solutions.

Guided by the recognition that local knowledge strengthens our research and policy work, IPA implemented a Researcher Diversification Strategy (RDS) in 2021 to ensure our work is equitable for, empowering to, and driven by people living in the countries where we work. Whether through enhancing access to funding for researchers from LMICs, supporting early career researchers, or strengthening partnerships with universities, IPA is committed to addressing barriers that challenge LMIC researchers from participating in global research opportunities.

This vision comes to life through the inspiring journeys of researchers at different stages of their careers. Researchers like Nouréini Sayouti, who is now a Research Scientist in the Applied Research & Methods Group (ARM Group) at IPA; Michelle Twali, who did her postdoctoral fellowship at IPA, and is now breaking new ground at New York University in research on displaced communities; and Nil Simancas, a Venezuelan refugee in Colombia, who found a sense of community and purpose by working as an enumerator with IPA Colombia.

One of the RDS goals is to ensure that by 2025, at least 60 percent of IPA projects include researchers from LMICs. And we are almost there! Currently, 50 percent of our active projects include LMIC researchers.

This commitment is about more than numbers—it’s about increasing the participation of researchers like Nouréini, Michelle, and Nil to take charge of the research and policies that affect their communities and to make our work locally grounded and responsive to the needs of people in countries where we work.

Your support, and the support of others like you, is critical to helping us discover the next generation of evidence-based solutions, driven by the people living in the countries where we work.