The Impact Post | Stepping into Good Governance
Issue # 61 | Wednesday, 4 February 2026
Welcome to this edition of The Impact Post!
In today’s hyper-connected yet deeply complex development landscape, we often celebrate the "what"—the progressive laws for women’s leadership, the ambitious skilling program numbers, or the cutting-edge AI tools promising social impact. Yet, the gap between intention on paper and impact on the ground remains stubbornly wide. The bridge across that gap is governance, not just as high-level policy, but as the practical, often messy machinery that translates goals into reality. In this issue, we explore why robust governance is the essential thread connecting diverse challenges: from the gritty reality of ensuring accurate field data and the invisible barriers facing female representatives in local councils, to the systemic hurdles stalling India's AI revolution at the pilot stage. These stories underscore a critical truth: for sustainable development to succeed, our data protocols, social realities, and technological ambitions cannot exist in silos, they must actively speak to one another.
Happy Reading! We hope this wrap-up sparks fresh inspiration for the year ahead and reinforces your belief in the power of innovative governance.
Looking Forward in 2026
It’s the end of January, and we’re gearing up to close the financial year. As we enter this busy time of closures and planning for the next year, here’s a quick glimpse into what trends we should keep in mind looking into 2026.
Why AI for Social Impact in India Is Stalling at the Policy Layer
For the past year, NuSocia has been evaluating different AI solutions at different stages, from different sectors and this nascent field has taught us some hard lessons. In the last three years, India has witnessed an unprecedented expansion of AI experimentation in the development sector. There is political will, there is funding, there is no dearth of amazing enginering experience, but many AI social innovations die in their process of maturity. In this article, the NuSocia Translational Research Center uncovers some reasons for this and highlights ways out of this quamire for actors across the social development world.
For more information, learnings, and tools (frameworks) on evaluating AI solutions, reach out to nilakshi@nusocia.com, for more information.
When Representation Does Not Mean Access: Gender, Identity, and Local Governance in Practice
When leadership is symbolic rather than substantive, whose priorities actually shape decision-making? A recent socio-economic assessment in Maharashtra discovered that even with women officially holding the highest village offices, they were explicitly barred from speaking to researchers. The consequence of this silenced leadership is visible in the village itself: paving blocks and open gyms take precedence over desperate needs for safe drinking water and streetlights. This article from our on-ground delivery team examines how the invisibility of elected women leads to the invisibility of vital community issues.
NuSocia Pulse | Stories From the Ecosystem & Beyond
Grassroots Data Governance
We all know the feeling. You’re on a field visit, energized by the sight of a skilling program in action. The students are engaged, the trainers are passionate. But then you open the MIS dashboard, and the numbers... don’t seem to match the reality on the ground. In this piece, our field researchers bring a story of data governance to life and suggest what NGO’s can do about it to prevent choas on the ground.
February 2026 Events You Should Know About
EvalFest 2026 | February 10 - 13 | New Delhi
Every year, the Evaluation Community of India and EvalYouth India host EvalFest, a gathering of evaluators to explore the changing landscape, learn from each other, and build a better world through better metrics. This year’s focus is on Evaluations in Complex and Evolving Contexts: Harmonising youth, innovation, and impact.
To know more and participate click on the link below.
India AI Impact Summit 2026 | February 16 - 20 | New Delhi
The first of its kind AI Impact Summit is taking place in New Delhi this year, 16-20th of February. A plethora of pre-summit events are taking place in the run-up, with side events focusing on AI research during the days of the summit. Keep your ears and eyes tuned for updates and click on the link below to register and participate.
This breakdown of the implementation gap is spot on. The AI pilot graveyard point really captrues how tech can hit a ceiling when governance infrastructure isnt there to scale it. I once saw a similar pattern in skilling programs where impressive initial results couldnt translate because the data systems didnt talk to eachother.