Frequently Asked Questions

As described on the Program page, these projects were derived through a three-year process working with over 650 individuals across India and the world.  At each step, workshops employing specific social innovation techniques such as value mapping and theory of change were used to identify:

1. 1. • Common interests among individuals from different sectors (our Focus Areas)

      • Current efforts (our Concept Notes)

      • Knowledge gaps (our Projects)

      • Shared goals (our Summit)

Semantic analysis and qualitative techniques combined inputs from each stage into summaries with attribution to the workshop participants.  These summaries were again combined into the current project ideas.  As such, each project maintains a "paper trail"  with attribution.

These projects were derived analytically using the steps in FAQ 1 with the following Contributors.

Interested individuals from academia, NGOs, industry, government, and other sectors who have knowledge in a project area will be invited to join the project as a consortia member. Consortia members will meet regularly with each other and via the selected SAGE Fellows to complete the identified objectives for the project.  The echo network and implementation partners will coordinate program management and evaluation according to agreed milestones and deliverables.

While the exact size will depend on the expertise required, we anticipate 3-5 individuals at each component stage (capacity building, innovation, research, or digitization) and 15-20 individuals from different organizations and sectors for each consortium project.

Consortium members will have different duties depending on their existing capabilities.
All members will:

1. 1. • Advise on project objectives and outcomes

      • Participate in consortia meetings

      • Share relevant resources such as data, tools, knowledge, or other infrastructure if already existing in their organization

      • Evaluate and test outputs in their organizations and target regions

In addition, members may choose to:

1. 1. • Act as main academic advisor or co-advisor to a fellow (if affiliated with an academic institution)

      • Host a fellow at their organization for a short while

      • Serve as contributors to perform research and collect data that is in line with their current interests (i.e., with a current student or researcher)

      • Participate in master classes, panel sessions, and workshops to communicate information in their home area

The SAGE Fellows are Indian and International students who will be registered at participating institutes in the consortia. The Fellows will be selected through National and International calls in early 2024.

The projects will be supported for three years (a typical PhD fellowship period).

Through our network organizations and supporters, each SAGE Fellow is expected to receive a fellowship to cover their salary, fees, travel, and modest research costs.