January 13, 2022

EDC Talks: Listening to Youth

The pandemic has required researchers to rethink how they gather data. Teré Mokamad offers her experiences in the Philippines.

When the COVID-19 pandemic led to lockdowns in the Philippines, EDC’s Teré Mokamad needed to find new ways to reach young people who were participating in the USAID Opportunity 2.0 program. She found that phone and video were useful tools—but that truly connecting with them required more than just tech.

“When you work with young people, it’s really important to establish good rapport with them,” says Mokamad. “Connectedness with young people is the key for them to open up, to share information, and to share their real views and feelings.”

In this video, Mokamad discusses how the research methods used in the USAID Opportunity 2.0 project changed as a result of the pandemic, and how she remained flexible despite considerable obstacles.