Alliance of Development Practitioners
The global reference body for the development sector
Meaningful development starts with specialization, grows through partnership, and is achieved through excellence. ADP qualifies and accredits the professionals who make it happen.
- Independent non-profit
- Open access · CC BY 4.0
- Examinations by certN
- Practitioner-built standards
What ADP does
ADP works in partnership with practitioners and institutions worldwide through three connected activities.
Standards
We develop open professional frameworks for the development sector — co-created with global networks of practitioners and subject-matter experts, published under permissive licences so the field can use, translate, and build on them.
Standards portfolioCertifications
We design professional certifications and have them examined independently by certN, our exam partner. ADP owns the standard; certN runs the exam. The credential is stronger because the two are separate.
About SIPCTrainer accreditation
We accredit the trainers who prepare candidates for ADP certifications — across four tiers, in every region and major language, against published criteria.
Become accreditedThe Practice Guide
The Social Innovation Practice Guide
An open methodology for designing, testing, and delivering social innovation. The foundation of SIPC certification — written by practitioners, reviewed openly, and free for the field to adopt.
Download the guideCurrent standard
Social Innovation Practitioner Certification
SIPC is ADP's flagship credential — a professional certification for people designing and delivering social innovation in NGOs, foundations, multilaterals, and impact-led organisations.
Candidates prepare with an accredited trainer or self-study, then sit a proctored examination administered by certN. Pass, and you are certified by ADP — internationally recognised, independently verified, anchored in a public body of knowledge.
More standards are on the way
SIPC is the first of several standards ADP is developing for the development sector. New bodies of knowledge are being co-created through open, global networks of practitioners and subject-matter experts.
About ADP
Practitioner-built, volunteer-led, independent by design
ADP is an independent, non-profit professional body dedicated to developing competencies, building knowledge, and raising professional practice across the international development sector.
We work through a free, transparent, and fair collaborative approach: standards are co-created with practitioners; certifications are examined independently by certN; trainer accreditation is governed by public criteria.
Built by practitioners. Open to you.
Volunteer as a subject-matter expert, translate the site into a new language, or submit feedback on the Practice Guide. The standards belong to the field — your contribution shapes them.