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Centre for Sustainable Agrifood Systems

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STARTProject Development Toolkit

Workshop tool

Problem exploration

Use this when your consortium needs a shared, 360-degree understanding of the research problem.

Where it’s used:Step 3: Problem exploration

How to use it

Work through the six questions of the problem exploration tool together:

  1. What is the key issue you are trying to address?
  2. Why is it important?
  3. Who is it a problem for?
  4. What or who is causing the problem?
  5. What evidence do you have that this is worth the investment of time and resources?
  6. Can you think of the problem differently? Can it be reframed?

How to run it:

  1. Present the research problem that you also sent in your concept note.
  2. Kick off by answering the first question yourself.
  3. The other participants present their answers. Write all answers down as you go.
  4. Go through each question, addressing the key issues one by one: why is answer 1 important, why is answer 2 important, etc.

Make sure everyone gets to share their insights and ideas.

Problem exploration toolA cycle of six questions: 1 What is the key issue you are trying to address? 2 Why is it important? 3 Who is it a problem for? 4 What or who is causing the problem? 5 What evidence do you have that this is worth the investment of time and resources? 6 Can you think of the problem differently? Can it be reframed? Then back to question 1.1. What is the key issue you are tryingto address?2. Why is it important?3. Who is it a problem for?4. What/who is causing the problem?5. What evidence do you have this isworth the investment of time andresources?6. Can you think of the problemdifferently? Can it be reframed?
The problem exploration cycle (handbook p. 14).

Video

Running Workshop 3: Problem explorationPlaceholder video

0:45· How a facilitator runs the problem exploration and assumptions mapping workshop.

Source: START Triple-I project development tool kit, pp. 13–14.