Overview

en-net is a free and open resource established primarily to enable field practitioners in remote locations to have access to prompt technical advice for operational challenges for which answers are not readily accessible in current guidelines. It also provides space for informal discussions of approaches to challenging or atypical situations and innovative technical responses.

There are currently 7 theme areas within which there is ongoing research and development and for which an informal collaboration between field practitioners and technical specialists is deemed to be potentially beneficial to both parties. The areas are:

• Prevention and treatment of severe acute malnutrition
• Prevention and treatment of moderate acute malnutrition
• Assessment (including nutrition assessment, food security assessment,
  livelihoods assessment, integrated nutrition assessment)
• Infant and young child feeding interventions
• General food distributions
• Livelihoods interventions (including cash)
• Humanitarian systems

In the event that a query does not fit easily under one of these headings, users are encouraged to submit the question anyway. Additional theme areas may be added to the site if sufficient demand arises.

In order to include practitioners who are unable to access the internet, discussions that are deemed to be of interest to a wider group will be summarised and reported in Field Exchange magazine.

Mechanism

Questions posted will be received by the Forum Moderator and responded to or referred if the solutions are obtainable via the published literature. Where a question is deemed to be of greater general interest and may benefit from peer input, it will be posted on the site for general response.

If a question is deemed by the moderator to be particularly challenging, it will be escalated for input from a Technical Expert, an expert in the thematic area. Expert input will be sought as the 'last resort'.

Each discussion/debate will be permitted to run for a given time (2–3 weeks) before being concluded and archived. At this stage the moderator will summarise the conclusions and best available solution. If individuals wish to continue discussion, they are then requested to do so via personal email and to feedback any significant future outcomes to the site.

Users, particularly those who pose questions, will be invited to submit feedback on how they used the information and whether it led to a change in practice.

Users may register to receive email alerts when there are new postings in their area of interest.

Principles of participation

Users are requested to respect the views of others and to participate in discussions in the spirit of an informal exchange of ideas and experience.

The forum is open to all and as such ENN takes no responsibility for the quality, accuracy or appropriateness of responses by users.