Featured image for “‘Imagine There’s No Money’ – a thought experiment on aid without $”

‘Imagine There’s No Money’ – a thought experiment on aid without $

November 2, 2022
Gave a ‘Sussex Development Lecture’ last week. The title (with apologies to John Lennon): ‘Imagine there‘s no Money; It‘s easy if you try‘. Here’s the powerpoint – feel free to nick the slides. Some points from what I learned both from writing the lecture and the Q&A: Firstly, on aid quantity, I have been trapped in a bit of a
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Featured image for “Can the UK become a development superpower again? Stefan Dercon’s memo to the new Development Minister”

Can the UK become a development superpower again? Stefan Dercon’s memo to the new Development Minister

November 1, 2022
Great, pull-no-punches twitter thread from Stefan Dercon in response to the new UK Government’s decision to appoint Andrew Mitchell as Minister for Development (still within the merged FCDO though). Here’s an edited version, with his permission. Welcome Mr Mitchell, but you have your work cut out. All eyes will be on the budgets. They are in an absolute mess. A
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Links I Liked

October 31, 2022
The prospects for war with China: Why Chris Blattman sees a serious chance of World War III in the next decade Oxfam is expanding its paid trainee scheme. Spend 15 months working for Oxfam GB . No formal qualifications needed; just a commitment to fight for a more equal world. Apply by 9 Nov. Five international NGOs launch fresh bid
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Featured image for “Development Nutshell: round-up (21m) of FP2P posts, w/b 24th October”

Development Nutshell: round-up (21m) of FP2P posts, w/b 24th October

October 29, 2022
No excerpt
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Featured image for “‘Voluntourism’: Cultural exchange or doing development badly?”

‘Voluntourism’: Cultural exchange or doing development badly?

October 27, 2022
LSE International Development student Henry Whitelaw draws on his experience with a volunteering programme in the Pacific islands to ask whether ‘voluntourism’ can facilitate meaningful development. First published on the LSE International Development blog. As students of development and keen volunteers, we are repeatedly warned of the bogeyman of ‘voluntourism’ – a vicious creature lurking beneath the well-meaning façade of
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Featured image for “Book Review: Transnational Advocacy in the Digital Era.”

Book Review: Transnational Advocacy in the Digital Era.

October 26, 2022
Spoke on a panel last week in UCL’s Policy and Practice lecture series. The topic was Nina Hall’s new book, Transnational Advocacy in the Digital Era (putting in the discount code ASFLYQ6 will get you 30% off, btw). Some thoughts. The book explores a new-ish generation of digital advocacy organizations with professional staff. MoveOn was the first, established in the
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Featured image for “Top Tips and Dilemmas in Influencing from seven senior Aid Leaders”

Top Tips and Dilemmas in Influencing from seven senior Aid Leaders

October 25, 2022
Last in the current snapshots of the GELI Influencing programme I’ve been leading this year. We’ve had blogs on all the other elements – the Face to Face meetings, the ‘user experience’, the podcasts with experts. Here’s a write up (Chatham House rule) of the missing piece – the online modules, in this case on analysis. 7 senior aid folk
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Featured image for “Links I Liked”

Links I Liked

October 24, 2022
I grew up in Bath. This is how we protest there…. Heads up. I’m giving the 1st Sussex Development Lecture of 2022 on Wednesday (4-5.30). Title? “Imagine there’s no money, it’s easy if you try: what could global solidarities look like beyond the big cheque?” Register in person/online here. Is liberal democracy essential to human development? Good piece from Branko
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Featured image for “Development Nutshell: round-up (25m) of FP2P posts, w/b 17th October”

Development Nutshell: round-up (25m) of FP2P posts, w/b 17th October

October 22, 2022
No excerpt
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Featured image for “SoupGate, the radical flank and the politics of good taste ”

SoupGate, the radical flank and the politics of good taste 

October 20, 2022
You’ve probably seen the Just Stop Oil protesters throwing tomato soup over Van Gogh’s Sunflowers at the National Gallery this week – the video on Twitter has over 35 million views, and everyone is talking about it. In particular, a big debate about whether this is just vandalism or smart protest. Tom Aston reflects. In an interesting blog, James Ozden criticizes those talking heads in the UK
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Featured image for “As Oxfam turns 80, here are three big ideas that I think will shape its future…”

As Oxfam turns 80, here are three big ideas that I think will shape its future…

October 19, 2022
Eight decades after Oxfam began with a meeting in an Oxford church, we must respond to challenges our founders could not have dreamed of, from re-imagining what an international NGO should be, to the need for totally new sources of funding, to the world-changing impact of technology, says Oxfam GB CEO Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah One of my favourite bits of Oxfam
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Featured image for “‘Think Chess not Checkers’: Wilf Mwamba on the role of Analysis in effective Influencing”

‘Think Chess not Checkers’: Wilf Mwamba on the role of Analysis in effective Influencing

October 18, 2022
For our Global Executive Leadership Initiative training on influencing, I interviewed Wilf Mwamba, a long term FCDO/DFID practitioner-thinker on TWP, now working in the private sector. With GELI’s permission, I’m reposting here, along with an abbreviated transcript. The podcast is 25 minutes – well worth it, IMO. WM: I work for DAI Global, a US international consultancy firm. I’m leading a
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