Ideas to Action: A Life and Career Defined by Jessica Brinton
In early 2012, the Center for Global Development teamed up with the African Population and Health Research Center (APHRC) to form a working group that addresses the gap in statistics and data used by countries, development partners, and local and regional institutions throughout Africa. The Data for African Development Working Group, which consists of members from diverse backgrounds in statistics, international organizations, and practitioners in the region, seemed like a natural partnership for CGD as it underscores the critical role high-quality data plays in promoting better practices and policies for development. It also aligns with our emphasis on rigorous, data-driven research and the value of CGD’s open data policy.
When the working group, led by APHRC Executive Director Alex Ezeh and CGD fellows Amanda Glassman and Justin Sandefur, found the need for to a skilled professional to coordinate the group’s operations from APHRC’s headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya, Jessica Brinton, then media relations coordinator at CGD, applied for the position and was hired. Jess saw packing up and moving half-a-world away as the next reasonable step in her career. “I have always felt it is incredibly important for development professionals to spend time living in the developing world, and moving to Kenya to work with an amazing organization like APHRC, while still working closely with CGD, was the opportunity of a lifetime,” she said.
As Jess had worked closely with CGD working group efforts in the past, she found that she was able to bring many of the skills she acquired while working with Lawrence MacDonald and the communications team to her new role. From day one, Jess played a crucial role in expanding APHRC’s outreach functions, from developing the new working group program to playing an integral role in an organization-wide policy outreach and communications plan. She also helped build and manage their online communications, which included encouraging her new colleagues at APHRC to blog about their ideas. “I really feel I have been able to take what I learned at CGD and apply it to the Kenyan context at APHRC, which has been a simultaneously challenging and extremely rewarding experience for me,” Jess reflected. “I am very excited to start my second joint working group, this time in cooperation with the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA), on ageing and the demographic dividend in Africa, in June.”
Life in Nairobi has also been an eye-opening experience, providing Jess with exciting opportunities to travel and enhance her first-hand knowledge about development. While working for APHRC, she attended the Civil Registration and Vital Statistics Conference in Durban, South Africa, participated in the African Statistical Yearbook Validation Workshop in Cote d’Ivoire, and travelled to Bangladesh to run a working policy dinner through Partners in Population and Development. Jess was also able to witness democracy in action as she watched Kenya’s tumultuous election year unfold during the run-up to what proved to be peaceful elections last March.
Jess has maintained ties with the Center by welcoming travelling CGDers to visit her in Kenya and hearing CGD research being regularly cited at various conferences and meetings. She has also had opportunities to work with reporters and writers she had assisted while working at CGD.
Jess’ love for travel, adventure, and a good challenge, along with her desire to make a positive impact in the world, have been vital to her career. We at CGD and Jess’s many friends in our alumni network will be eager to see more of her contributions to development and to follow wherever her journey takes her next.
Jessica currently lives in Nairobi, Kenya and is a program coordinator at APHRC. At the time this article was written, she was working remotely from CGD’s offices to coordinate the Data for Development Working Group meeting, which will launch its findings and recommendations later in 2013.