IPA organized a seminar in collaboration with International Growth Center (IGC) on 16 July 2017.The seminar, titled “Seeds of Change in the Garments Industry,” brought together researchers working in different areas of the the garment industry in Bangladesh.In this seminar, IPA researcher Christopher Woodruff, Professor of Economics at Oxford University, presented his research findings on the effectiveness of women in higher level positions in the garment industry.He suggested that promoting women in higher level positions may help the industry meet the shortage of skilled labor in those positons.

IPA Philippines conducted an Introduction to Impact Evaluation Workshop for the Association of Foundations.The Association of Foundations is a network of NGOs and private sector foundations.The workshop was designed to inform them of existing evidence and the use of data and evaluations in programming.

From 10—14 July, IPA together with J-PAL Africa, held a five-day training course on evaluating social programs aimed at providing a thorough understanding of randomized evaluations and pragmatic step-by-step training for conducting one’s own evaluation.Some of the topics covered included benefits and methods of randomization, choosing an appropriate sample size, and com- mon threats and pitfalls to the validity of experiments. The Executive Education course brought together researchers, policymakers, donors, and advo- cates of evidence and evidence-informed policy from across the globe.