Reflection – Learning Launch

Challenge    I have chosen as a challenge setting up a healthy food procurement policy for my city. This will cover any  and all means by which the city government procures food, and includes food served in school canteens,  drug rehabilitation centers, day care centers, city jails, hospitals, universities, and those sold in  establishments occupying city government property.    Selection    I have chosen Learning Launch as a tool for this challenge, to have a working prototype for the city. Time  is of the essence, because the necessity for healthy diets is urgent in our society. It is important to make  a small and cheap gamble in introducing this policy, because city government resources are finite, and  failing heavily will jeopardize other city services. Also, in case this learning launch fails, it can be tabled  for another time, because there will always be a need to promote healthy diets to the citizens of the city.    Application    After finding out what is, I conduct stakeholder consultations in order to develop this healthy food  procurement policy. I ask each stakeholder about their particular needs, about the feasibility of a  healthy food procurement policy, and possible challenges in the delivery of this policy. I learn about  their unarticulated needs, by observing how they eat in a normal day. I then draft a policy for the city  administration to implement. This includes meal preparation methods, nutrition guidelines, sample  menus, implementation guidelines, and monitoring and evaluation methods.    According to Ed Hesse in his video on the Learning Launch Tool, the purpose of a learning launch is not  to prove you’re smart, but to get the truth which either confirms or disconfirms our assumptions. For  this application, it should be no different. The policy will be pilot tested, and during this pilot test, I will  gather important data. This data will include the availability of healthy food options, the changes in  government expenditure upon implementation of the policy, the reception of constituents toward food  options, and the improvement in medium-term health outcomes of these constituents.    Upon collection of the data, I will be able to analyze both the effectiveness of the policy and its  economic feasibility, while also gauging its acceptability to constituents. Should the policy be ineffective  or infeasible, the policy will be tabled for future reference. If it is effective, but quite infeasible, research  will be done to increase economic efficiency. If it is a little bit ineffective, but is feasible, I will find out  which parts of the policy may be calibrated to address the ineffective parts. If there is a lot of negative  reception to the policy, which is otherwise effective and feasible, I will try to implement adaptation  strategies to help people buy into the policy, or to make the policy more palatable to constituents.    Insight

Applying the learning launch has taught me that introducing policies can be eased in, instead of being  forced upon constituents. Forcing upon constituents can lead to backlash, especially when it involves  behavioral changes, such as with diets. Starting small, fast, and cheap can help us make quick  adjustments on the go, and should the policy be a failure, it hasn’t involve massive investments in time,  money, and manpower yet.    Approach    Perhaps next time, I would use mind mapping first, before jumping into the pilot test. I will ask various  stakeholders to help me create a mind map of what a healthy food procurement policy would look like.  This also helps create more stakeholder buy-in, because they will feel a sense of ownership in the policy.  Having a mind map will help make the learning launch even more effective and successful.


Reflection – Learning Launch Challenge I have chosen as a challenge setting up a healthy food procurement policy for my city . This will cover any and all means by which the city government procures food , and includes food served in school canteens , drug rehabilitation centers , day care centers , city jails , hospitals , universities , and those sold in establishments occupying city government property . Selection I have chosen Learning Launch as a tool for this challenge , to have a working prototype for the city . Time is of the essence , because the necessity for healthy diets is urgent in our society . It is important to make a small and cheap gamble in introducing this policy , because city government resources are finite , and failing heavily will jeopardize other city services . Also , in case this learning launch fails , it can be tabled for another time , because there will always be a need to promote healthy diets to the citizens of the city . Application After finding out what is , I conduct stakeholder consultations in order to develop this healthy food procurement policy . I ask each stakeholder about their particular needs , about the feasibility of a healthy food procurement policy , and possible challenges in the delivery of this policy . I learn about their unarticulated needs , by observing how they eat in a normal day . I then draft a policy for the city administration to implement . This includes meal preparation methods , nutrition guidelines , sample menus , implementation guidelines , and monitoring and evaluation methods . According to Ed Hesse in his video on the Learning Launch Tool , the purpose of a learning launch is not to prove you ’re smart , but to get the truth which either confirms or disconfirms our assumptions . For this application , it should be no different . The policy will be pilot tested , and during this pilot test , I will gather important data . This data will include the availability of healthy food options , the changes in government expenditure upon implementation of the policy , the reception of constituents toward food options , and the improvement in medium - term health outcomes of these constituents . Upon collection of the data , I will be able to analyze both the effectiveness of the policy and its economic feasibility , while also gauging its acceptability to constituents . Should the policy be ineffective or infeasible , the policy will be tabled for future reference . If it is effective , but quite infeasible , research will be done to increase economic efficiency . If it is a little bit ineffective , but is feasible , I will find out which parts of the policy may be calibrated to address the ineffective parts . If there is a lot of negative reception to the policy , which is otherwise effective and feasible , I will try to implement adaptation strategies to help people buy into the policy , or to make the policy more palatable to constituents . Insight Applying the learning launch has taught me that introducing policies can be eased in , instead of being forced upon constituents . Forcing upon constituents can lead to backlash , especially when it involves behavioral changes , such as with diets . Starting small , fast , and cheap can help us make quick adjustments on the go , and should the policy be a failure , it has n’t involve massive investments in time , money , and manpower yet . Approach Perhaps next time , I would use mind mapping first , before jumping into the pilot test . I will ask various stakeholders to help me create a mind map of what a healthy food procurement policy would look like . This also helps create more stakeholder buy - in , because they will feel a sense of ownership in the policy . Having a mind map will help make the learning launch even more effective and successful .