Building Systems Thinking Capacity Across Global CFaH: Inside the GHR CADA Programme
Global CFaH
Addressing the complex challenges of food systems, nutrition, and planetary health requires more than technical expertise. These challenges are shaped by overlapping social, environmental, economic, and policy dynamics, and cannot be understood or addressed in isolation. Recognising this, the Global Community Food for Human Nutrition and Planetary Health (Global CFaH) project, alongside the COHESION-I project, has been investing in systems thinking as a core approach to research and intervention design.
Through the NIHR Global Health Research Cohort Academic Development Award (CADA), researchers and practitioners across the Global CFaH Project settings (the Caribbean, Fiji, The Philippines), and COHESION-I partner countries (India, Peru, Colombia, Mozambique, Nepal and the UK) have been strengthening their capacity to work with complexity in more deliberate and applied ways. Running from July 2025 to February 2026, the programme has brought together a global cohort of NIHR Academy Members to build practical skills and apply them directly within their respective research contexts.
Photo: Members of the Fiji Team at the CADA Writing Retreat, with guest speaker Dr Miriam Alavardo. January, 2026
Food systems in small island settings are shaped by multiple, interconnected pressures, including increasing dependence on imported foods, rising rates of diet-related non-communicable diseases, and growing climate vulnerability. These dynamics interact in ways that are often difficult to disentangle, and traditional linear approaches to research and intervention design are not always sufficient responses. Systems thinking offers an alternative, providing tools to better understand relationships within these systems, identify leverage points for change, and design interventions that are grounded in real-world complexity.
The CADA programme was designed to move beyond theory and embed this way of thinking into practice. Participants began with structured training through the System Dynamics Summer School in July 2025 and the Human-Centred Systems Thinking course delivered by IDEO U across several cohorts. These courses introduced core concepts such as feedback loops, system behaviour, and the role of human-centred design in complex problem-solving, establishing a shared foundation across the cohort.
This initial training phase was followed by a more applied learning period, during which participants engaged in expert-led workshops, collaborative exercises, and ongoing mentorship. Here, the focus shifted from understanding systems thinking conceptually to using it in practice. Participants worked through how these approaches could be applied to their own research areas, including food systems, nutrition, and health, drawing directly on data and experiences from their country contexts.
Photo: Members of the Philippines team, at the writing retreat - February 2026
A central component of the programme was the series of in-person writing retreats held in February 2026 across Global CFaH project sites in the Caribbean, Fiji, and the Philippines. These retreats created dedicated space for participants to consolidate their learning, develop written outputs, and engage in deeper reflection alongside peers and mentors. Grounded in local realities, the retreats supported participants in translating systems thinking approaches into concrete analyses and outputs relevant to their specific settings.
Photo: Members of the Caribbean team, at the writing retreat - February, 2026
The programme culminated in an online closing conference, where participants shared insights from across regions, reflected on key lessons, and discussed how systems thinking can continue to inform their work, moving forward. Bringing together perspectives from multiple countries and disciplines, the conference highlighted both the diversity of contexts and the shared challenges that underpin food systems globally. Throughout the programme, the strength of the CADA approach lay in its ability to connect global learning with local application. Participants were drawn from Global CFaH sites and COHESION-I project countries. This created opportunities for cross-regional exchange while ensuring that learning remained grounded in the realities of each setting. As the programme concludes, its impact is already visible in the strengthened capacity of participants to apply systems thinking within their work. This includes the ability to analyse complex food systems more holistically, integrate multiple forms of evidence, and design interventions that respond to interconnected challenges. The writing retreats and collaborative processes have also supported the development of outputs that will contribute to both academic and applied knowledge.
Photo: Caribbean and COHESION-I Online GHR CADA online writing retreat, February, 2026
Looking ahead, the approaches and skills developed through CADA will continue to shape how Global CFaH engages with food systems challenges across its project sites. By embedding systems thinking into research, community engagement, and intervention design, the project is better positioned to support sustainable, context-responsive improvements in food systems, nutrition, and health outcomes.