Research and publication principles.

Define the research question, place, people involved and intended use before beginning. Include affected people in framing and interpretation, recognise local knowledge and agree credit and any compensation. Examine whose interests, agency and perspectives may be overlooked.

Before involving people, explain the purpose, activities, voluntary participation, foreseeable risks, intended use of their contribution and how to withdraw, including any limits once findings are anonymised or published. Obtain informed participation consent and required permissions; provide a project-specific privacy notice before collecting personal data.

Collect only what is needed, agree access and retention, and protect identities and confidential material. Sensitive research or work involving vulnerable people requires an appropriate ethics and safeguarding review before it starts. Public enquiry forms are not a route for health records or sensitive research data.

Record methods, sources, assumptions and limitations. Distinguish observed evidence, interpretation, plausible futures and preferred directions; scenarios are not predictions. Examine relationships, power and possible social and ecological effects when assessing regenerative potential.

Research contributions undergo evidence checks and critical review. Design contributions test the assumptions relevant to their proposition. Report contradictory findings and uncertainty; neither a prototype nor a short study establishes long-term impact.

Before publication, review evidence, clarity, permissions, confidentiality and attribution. Obtain permission for identifiable quotes, images or contributions and respect restrictions on community, employer and client knowledge. A showcase does not remove these requirements.

Publish with named authors and contributors, a date, methods, sources, limitations and a clear reuse licence or permission statement. Disclose material use of AI and check its outputs; AI-generated material is not a substitute for evidence. Ownership and publication permissions are agreed under the participation terms or project agreement.

Report an error, confidentiality concern or permission issue to hello@refuture.africa. We will review it, correct or restrict affected material where appropriate, and explain the outcome. Personal-data requests follow our privacy policy.

Updated 13 October 2026. Questions: hello@refuture.africa.