Student Projects

 

The Challenge

​

The GPPN invites students to develop concrete policy proposals that address significant challenges related to fragmentation in any policy domain. Proposals may incorporate public, private, or hybrid approaches and should be grounded in rigorous analysis while remaining practical and implementable.

​

Your pitch should be directed at government/public agencies at any level—local, municipal, regional/subnational, national/federal, or international organizations. While your solutions may involve private sector actors, civil society organizations, or other non-governmental entities as implementing partners or stakeholders, the primary audience for your proposal must be a public sector decision-maker or agency with the authority to adopt and implement your policy.

All proposals must clearly identify:

​

• Policy actor(s): The specific government or public agency that your proposal is directed to (local, subnational, federal governments, or international organizations such as United Nations agencies, World Health Organization, World Bank, etc.)

• Policy domain: The specific policy area you are addressing (e.g. public health, education, climate policy, labour markets, etc.)

• Policy problem(s): The concrete problem(s) your proposal aims to solve, including how fragmentation manifests in this context

​

We are looking for proposals that demonstrate:

​

1.Argumentation 

• Precise identification and analysis of the target population, territory, or governance context

• Clear articulation of how fragmentation manifests in your chosen policy area

• Thorough problem analysis that precedes discussion of solutions

• Explicit consideration of stakeholder divisions, competing interests, or jurisdictional complexities

​

2.Analytics & Evidence 

• Strong use of data, empirics, and analytical methods

• Evidence-based approach to understanding the problem and supporting your proposed solution

• Appropriate quantitative or qualitative analysis

• Clear demonstration of how evidence informs your policy design

​

3.Implementation Strategy 

• Astute understanding of political economy and stakeholder interests

• Realistic assessment of implementation barriers related to fragmentation

• Clear mechanisms for building coalitions or navigating opposition

• Consideration of sequencing, timing, and institutional capacity

• Attention to how your policy functions across divided contexts

​

4.Learning & Adaptation 

• Mechanisms for monitoring, evaluation, and course correction

• Multiple scenarios or contingencies based on different levels of cooperation/resistance

• Awareness of when similar solutions have been tried previously

• Understanding of why past efforts succeeded, failed, or required modification

• Built-in flexibility to adapt to changing political or social conditions 

​

​

To see examples of past proposals, please watch the four presentations on the GPPN website from the São Paulo conference: https://www.gppnetwork.org/saopaulo2023

 

Teams 

​

Students should form teams of 2 to 4 members. Each student may participate in only one team. Each school is invited to send a maximum of 4 teams, and up to 16 students in total. 

​
 

Criteria 

 

Proposals will be assessed against the following criteria, which are equally weighted. These are the same criteria as will be used at the conference.

 

a) Problem : policy analysis and strength of design (i.e. if it is based on sound analytical principles) (25%),

b) Solution : implementation concerns including awareness of stakeholder interests (25%),  (relevance of the solution) 

c) Implementation : Mechanisms for learning, self-correction and refinement over time (25%), (setting up the proposal over time : the proposal must include differents scenarios) 

d) Presentation : Quality of presentation (25%) (clarity, legibility, compliance with instructions)

 

Format 

 

Selected teams and proposals selected to participate in the GPPN Conference 2026 will each give a presentation (in English) on the first day of the conference, for up to 3 minutes.

 

Selected proposals (finalists) will receive detailed feedback from the Jury of Deans. Finalists will then present again on the second day of the conference. This second presentation will be for up to 5 minutes, followed by questions from the Jury.

 

Please note that attendance is mandatory during the days of the Conference for all the students selected.

​​

​