The launch will take place on Wednesday 7th June from 12:30pm to 4:00pm. Following a complimentary lunch, participants will have the opportunity to hear about the planned work for the new centre and also to hear from leading international experts from the Campbell Collaboration on the current stage of evidence and its use in a range of policy areas including: education, crime and justice, social care and international development.

The complementary training that is being offered on Thursday and Friday (8th and 9th June) is now fully booked and a waiting list system is being operated. However, there are still some spaces left for those wishing to attend the launch event on Wednesday afternoon. If you wish to attend, please contact David Piekaar (on d.piekaar@qub.ac.uk or telephone 028 9097 5956) to reserve a place as soon as possible.

THE LAUNCH EVENT

12:30pm - 4:00pm, Wednesday 7 June 2017
The Council Chamber, Queen's University Belfast

The launch will begin with a buffet lunch at 12:30pm, followed by keynote international speakers from the Campbell Collaboration who will provide an overview of the current issues and challenges facing the use of evidence to inform policy and practice in education, social care, crime and justice and international development. Speakers include:

• Professor Paul Connolly, "Evidence-informed policy and practice in the UK and Ireland: The role of the Campbell Centre". Paul is Director of the UK and Ireland Campbell Centre and Dean of Research, Faculty of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Queen's University Belfast. Paul is also founding Director of the Centre for Evidence and Social Innovation and has extensive expertise in undertaking randomised controlled trials of education and social interventions.
• Professor Julia Littell, "Better evidence: the value of Campbell systematic reviews". Julia is Co-Chair and Editor-in-Chief of the Campbell Collaboration and Professor within the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research, Bryn Mawr College, USA. Julia's research focuses on home- and community-based services for children and families, methods of research synthesis, and the uses and misuses of research in policy and practice.
• Peter Neyroud, "Systematic reviews that can change our world". Peter is Co-Chair of the Crime and Justice Coordinating Group of the Campbell Collaboration and based in the Institute of Criminology, Cambridge University. Peter has previously spent 30 years in the police service, including as Chief Constable of Thames Valley.
• Professor Terri Pigott, "The role of evidence in education". Terri is Co-Chair of the Methods Group of the Campbell Collaboration and Dean of the School of Education at Loyola University Chicago, USA.  Terri is a world-leading expert in methods of meta-analysis.
• Dr Howard White, "Why and how to use systematic reviews for better policy and practice". Howard is Chief Executive Officer of the Campbell Collaboration and previously founding Executive Director of the International Initiative for Impact Evaluation (3ie). Howard has previously led the impact evaluation programme of the World Bank's Independent Evaluation Group.