Empowerment in Sharing – Who Benefits?

Who Benefits When We Share Rather than Compete?

Executive Summary

ESD teachers and practitioners often operate in silos, competing for limited funding, recognition, or reach. Yet, sharing knowledge, resources, data, and best practices can amplify impact. This paper makes the case that sharing:

1. Helps practitioners learn, avoid duplication, improve quality, raise credibility.

2. Strengthens the ESD ecosystem by building shared infrastructure, accelerating innovation, improving scale and sustainability.

3. Advances the broader safety movement by bringing coherent evidence, policy leverage, and system alignment.

4. Most importantly, improves protection for vulnerable populations globally: survivors, marginalized groups, and low‑resource contexts.

1. Why Sharing Matters: Key Benefits Backed by Evidence

1.1 For Teachers & Practitioners

• Faster learning & quality improvement: Sharing manuals, evaluation tools, and feedback reduces duplication and improves fidelity.

• Access to broader networks and mentorship.

• Greater recognition and legitimacy through shared evidence.

1.2 For the ESD Ecosystem

• Avoiding duplication and wasted resources.

• Better data, measurement, and knowledge base through shared monitoring instruments.

• Innovation through a combination of approaches.

1.3 For the Safety Movement & Policy Systems

• Stronger advocacy with coherent shared evidence.

• Synergies in prevention and response systems.

• Improved equity and scale through shared resources.

1.4 For the Most Vulnerable Globally

• Adaptation to local contexts.

• Inclusion of marginalized groups.

• Faster response to emerging harms.

2. What the Research Says

• Tanzanian study: Knowledge gaps among health workers highlight need for shared implementation knowledge (PMC, 2023).

• South African survey: Employees called for greater collaboration across sectors (BMC Women’s Health, 2023).

• Nonprofit sector: Collaboration improves efficiency, competition leads to fragmentation (Curley, 2021).

• Data-sharing systems: GBVIMS improves prevention and response through consistent data collection (World Bank, 2021).

  
  

3. Barriers to Sharing & How They’re Overcome

Barriers include competition for funding, intellectual property concerns, lack of shared infrastructure, and quality concerns. Strategies: collaborative grants, open licensing, shared repositories, peer reviews, and mentorship.

4. Who Gains Most: Comparative Impact

Teachers: improved skills, recognition, networks. ESD organizations: better quality, larger scale, cost savings. Safety/GBV movement: coherent advocacy, policy uptake. Vulnerable populations: context-appropriate programs, inclusive design, rapid adaptation.

5. A Call to Action: How ESD Teachers & Practitioners Can Share More Deeply

1. Open licensing of curricula and resources.

2. Standardize evaluation & data tools.

3. Participate in peer learning networks.

4. Joint grant/advocacy efforts.

5. Transparency about failures and adaptations.

6. Implications & Call for Organizations that Fund & Support ESD

Funders should reward sharing. Networks should provide repositories. Policymakers should support standards and data-sharing. Academic partners should publish comparative studies.

7. Conclusion: Shared Empowerment is Multiplied Impact

ESD thrives when teachers and practitioners collaborate and share. Sharing strengthens the movement, enhances protection for the vulnerable, and ensures the system is responsive, adaptive, and inclusive.

References

• Mtaita, C. et al. (2023). Knowledge, Implementation, and Gaps of GBV Management among Health Workers in Tanzania. PMC.

• Davis, C., Kuhudzai, A., Dalal, K. (2023). Knowledge, perceptions, beliefs, and opinions about GBV among employees in South Africa. BMC Women’s Health.

• Curley, C. (2021). Competition and Collaboration in the Nonprofit Sector. Indianapolis University Study.

• Bunger, A. C. et al. (2014). Collaboration, Competition, and Co‑opetition in Nonprofit Organizations. PMC.

• World Bank (2021). Developing data to end violence against women and girls. World Development Report.

• SVRI. What works in preventing gender based violence? Knowledge Sharing Resources.