As they grapple with the challenge of malnutrition, many nutrition policymakers and leaders have voiced a demand for evidence on how nutrition improves, and how to (proactively) improve nutrition outcomes. It is a call for experiential learning that draws upon the experiences of policymakers, nutrition leaders, program managers, and implementers in making decisions on what to do in real time in different country contexts. This was the essential rationale for the Stories of Change (SoC) initiative in 2015–2016, led by IFPRI/Transform Nutrition. SoC sought to capture and support experiential learning on how to address the undernutrition challenge in different settings. Drawing upon six case studies of countries that had experienced significant success in driving down rates of child stunting, SoC shed light on the drivers and pathways of nutrition-relevant change -- with a particular focus on the determinants of political commitment, policy and program coherence, and effective implementation of nutrition-relevant actions.

SoC sought to inspire, as well as inform action. From its inception, it revolved around a stakeholder engagement process that included focus groups, and in-country consultations -- from study design to discussions of initial findings and dissemination of core lessons and recommendations. There were several audiences, from high-level (potential) champions to mid-level program implementers, public and private sector actors, civil society and academia.

The first phase of this work involved the publication of the Nourishing Millions book in 2016 followed by a special issue of Global Food Security in 2017, featuring 10 papers (including 6 country case studies).  A second wave of case studies started in 2018 (led by POSHAN, A4NH, Transform Nutrition West Africa) in several countries in Africa and Asia, including several Indian states. And in 2019, a new set of studies was initiated – “Stories of Challenge” – focusing on how countries are grappling with the challenge of addressing the obesity epidemic.

Researchers involved in the Stories of Change studies have contributed to several global efforts, including the Exemplars in Global Health program and the Scaling Up Nutrition movement.

Project outputs:

To explore the Stories of Change in Nutrition outputs, please click on the 'General' tab for global studies and use the map to view case studies of countries.

General

Journals Special Issue:

• Gillespie, Stuart, ed.; van den Bold, Mara, ed.; Menon, Purnima, ed.; Nisbett, Nicholas. ed. 2017. Stories of Change in Nutrition. Global Food Security 13(June 2017): 1-88. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/22119124/13

Journal Articles:

• Bhutta, Zulfiqar A.; Akseer, Nadia; Keats, Emily C.; Vaivada, Tyler; Baker, Shawn; Menon, Purnima; et al. How countries can reduce child stunting at scale: Lessons from exemplar countries. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Article in press. First published online on July 21, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqaa153
• Gillespie, Stuart; van den Bold, Mara. 2017. Stories of change in nutrition: An overview. Global Food Security13(June 2017): 1-11. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2017.02.004
• Headey, Derek D.; Hoddinott, John F.; and Park, Seollee. 2017. Accounting for nutritional changes in six success stories: A regression-decomposition approach. Global Food Security 13(June 2017): 12-20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2017.02.003

• Nisbett, Nicholas; van den Bold, Mara; Gillespie, Stuart; Menon, Purnima; Davis, Peter; Roopnaraine, Terry; Kampman, Halie; Kohli, Neha; Singh, Akriti; and Warren, Andrea. 2017. Community-level perceptions of drivers of change in nutrition: Evidence from South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Global Food Security13(June 2017): 74-82. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2017.01.006

• Gillespie, Stuart, ed.; van den Bold, Mara, ed.; Menon, Purnima, ed.; Nisbett, Nicholas. ed. 2017. Stories of Change in Nutrition: Perspectives. Global Food Security13(June 2017): 83-88. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2017.02.002

Book and Summary:

• Gillespie, Stuart, ed.; Hodge, Judith, ed.; Yosef, Sivan, ed.; and Pandya-Lorch, Rajul, ed. 2016. Nourishing millions: Stories of change in nutrition. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896295889
• Gillespie, Stuart, ed.; Hodge, Judith, ed.; Yosef, Sivan, ed.; and Pandya-Lorch, Rajul, ed. 2016. Nourishing millions: Stories of change in nutrition: Synopsis. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/9780896299900

Discussion Papers:

• Gillespie, Stuart; van den Bold, Mara. 2015. Stories of change in nutrition: A tool pool. IFPRI Discussion Paper 1494. Washington, D.C.: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). http://ebrary.ifpri.org/cdm/ref/collection/p15738coll2/id/130077

Briefs:

• Gillespie, Stuart. 2017. What works in the real world? Synthesis brief. Stories of Change in Nutrition. Brighton, UK: Transform Nutrition. https://ebrary.ifpri.org/digital/collection/p15738coll2/id/133863
• Aryeetey, Richmond; Atuobi-Yeboah, Afua; van den Bold, Mara; and Nisbett, Nick. 2020. Ghana country brief: Understanding the differences between child stunting and anemia reduction and identifying outstanding challenges. Stories of Change in Nutrition. Dakar, Senegal: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.133864
  • French version: https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134460
• Turowska, Zuzanna; and Becquey, Elodie. 2020. Lessons from a case study: Burkina Faso. Stories of Change in Nutrition. Dakar, Senegal: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134461
  • French version: https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134459

Blogs:

• Gillespie, Stuart. 2017. Back to the storyboard.
• Shiell, Edwyn. 2016. Making malnutrition history – one story at a time.

Events:

• Nourishing Millions: Stories of Change in Nutrition (2016)
• UK book launch of Nourishing Millions (2016)
• What works to improve nutrition? Success stories and lessons learned from six countries (2016)

Presentation

• Stories of Change: Burkina Faso (2021)