Two short pieces give us the next flavour of on the ground research in the DRC, reposted from the Bukavu Series. First, Eric Batumike Banyanga on ‘When an Armed Guide is Imposed on You: Navigating Research in a Conflict Zone’. Introduction to the Bukavu series here. Search on ‘Bukavu’ for the other posts in the series or see list at end

How do you do research in a war zone? Josaphat Musamba in the latest of our reposts from the Bukavu series. Introduction to the Bukavu series here. Search on ‘Bukavu’ for the other posts in the series. Original post here. To begin with, it’s important to underscore general principles and guidelines, which don’t necessarily relate to the risks of intimidation,

Next in our series of reposts from the Bukavu Series, Vedaste Cituli Alinirhu explains why importing methodologies from outside doesn’t always work. Introduction to the Bukavu series here. Search on ‘Bukavu’ for the other posts in the series. Original post here. One qualitative technique popular among researchers is the use of focus groups. But this technique is also subject to

Next up in this series of posts from the Bukavu workshops, we get into the nuts and bolts of the power differentials within the research ‘supply chain’, with Judith Nshobole. Introduction to the Bukavu series here. Search on ‘Bukavu’ for the other posts in the series. Original post here. Power imbalances between “donor-researchers” and “recipient-researchers” at the outset of a

Next up in this series of posts from the Bukavu workshops, Francine Mudunga discusses some messy issues that face many researchers. Original post here. A researcher is, first and foremost, a human being. As such, she is a product of her society. She is defined by a particular worldview, a specific collection of values and beliefs, and a certain frame

Next up in this series of posts from the Bukavu workshops, Jérémie Mapatano Byakumbwa  discusses some messy issues that face many researchers. Original post here. In my own experience as a researcher in eastern DRC, there have been numerous occasions on which I have had to deal with explicit demands for money (or for some sort of tip) from my

There’s a lot of attention on this blog to localizing aid (increasing the power and resources in the hands of local organizations rather than white men in shorts), but what about localization of research? For the next few weeks, I am largely handing over the blog to the Bukavu Series, a set of blog posts (and now a book) written

Guest post by Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah, Chief Executive, Oxfam GB In the past few weeks Oxfam’s work on anti-racism has attracted some criticism. Various commentators have characterised it as “woke posturing” or “anti-white.”   I think they have got it wrong. Let me explain why tackling racism is an integral part of Oxfam’s mission.   It is almost 80 years since a small group of volunteers,

Lots of people are hailing a surge in pandemic-driven ‘localization’ as one of the silver linings of the current grimscape. The argument goes that lockdowns have suspended aid’s standard ‘white men in shorts’ operating model, allowing local organizations to expand into the space, run their own responses, (eg to humanitarian emergencies) and generally take more control of the aid process

Changing power requires us to see the world differently. So as a final burst of energy to round up the lessons, insights and guiding lights from these two years of the Power Shifts project, we have set out to co-create a ‘virtual gallery for shifting power’. Through collaborating with two wonderful illustrators, we’ve attempted to find more creative ways to

Read this in English here. Desafiar al poder fundamentalmente implica cambiar nuestra mirada. La manera en que actuamos en nuestros mundos depende de cómo los vemos, por lo tanto cambiar nuestra forma de ver se convierte en un paso esencial para transformar nuestro actuar. Si no exploramos diversas formas de expresar(nos), de ver(nos) y de (re)crear(nos), limitamos nuestras posibilidades colectivas.

Leer esta historia en español. The work of shifting power is fundamentally the work of changing our gaze. People act on how they see, and to change how we see, is to radically change how we act. By not exploring other forms of expressing, looking and creating, we’re limiting ourselves.  The development space is fixated on the written word. We