2014: Volume 45
Volume 45 Number 5 August 2014
Edited by: Anuradha Joshi and Markus Schultze-Kraft
The past two decades have seen an enormous increase in academic and policy attention to, and engagement with, governance at the sub-national and local levels. Yet, our understanding of the conditions that enable local governments to deliver services to citizens, reduce poverty, be inclusive and responsive, bridge cleavages in divided post-conflict societies or represent citizen interests to higher levels of authority remains limited. Drawing on different perspectives, this IDS Bulletin takes a fresh look at how local governance 'really' works and how it could become more accountable, effective and legitimate to support development that favours poor and marginalised people. Extending the boundaries of prevailing debates on methodological and conceptual issues, civil society, political and power relationships, and the challenges of decentralisation in (post)- conflict settings, the authors offer an outlook on taking forward the work on localising governance and designing policies that help improve its performance. Rather than a set of contributions that speak to one overarching question, this IDS Bulletin represents a panoply of different perspectives on 'the local'. Articles chart out several promising avenues for taking forward the work on localising governance and designing policies that help improve its performance. While these are not the only avenues that deserve attention, they do point to several issues that require deeper thought on the part of both scholars and policymakers. There is certainly a need for more multi- and inter-disciplinary research on the complexities involved in making local governance in poor and/or conflict-affected countries more responsive, inclusive and effective.
Volume 45 Number 4 July 2014
Edited by: Jing Gu, Xiulan Zhang, Xiaoyun Li and Gerry Bloom
In parallel to its domestic economic boom, China has also been growing as an international actor and as a ‘Rising Power' in global development.
This IDS Bulletin focuses on China’s development strategy and its own development experience, its increasing involvement in development activities in low- and middle-income countries, as well as its collaboration with OECD-DAC members in international development, and its growing engagement in global governance structures.
Articles contribute valuable expertise and insight from both Chinese and non-Chinese perspectives, to map the shifting landscape of China’s engagement in global development, and contribute to mutual understanding between traditional donors and rising powers in development cooperation. The aim of this issue is to contribute to dialogue between decision-makers, policy analysts and researchers in China, the UK and other countries, about strategies for supporting development.
Volume 45 Number 2-3 March 2014
Edited by: Marika Djolai, Eric Kasper, Ricardo Santos and Shilpi Srivastava
This IDS Bulletin offers a platform for IDS PhD researchers to reflect on their fieldwork experiences, including research-related challenges, as well as cultural and personal encounters along the way.
The authors also develop theoretically-informed arguments about their research findings and the editors offer further reflections on the importance of fieldwork as part of the transformative experience of ‘doing a PhD’ in Development Studies.
The collection of articles in this IDS Bulletin represent a vision for the future of Development Studies research in which the human, relational and public work elements of research are emphasised throughout the contested process of working for change. The authors are not just researchers but agents of development, taking part in the contested process of working for change by doing research with people rather than on people.
This IDS Bulletin, produced and edited by PhD researchers and IDS Fellows with all the contributions written by IDS PhD candidates who have recently been awarded doctorates, is part of a wider IDS initiative to invest in the professional development of PhD researchers. It comprises seven articles covering locations from Ecuador to Bolivia, Mexico, Kenya, Swaziland, Germany, Nepal, China and India. The topics cover issues such as power of wellbeing discourses to water management, migrant children and education, and peace-building. The authors show, through their own experiences, the importance of connecting to the world outside the university – to the places where development is actually happening. Their new perspectives offer insights into a variety of research topics, innovations for fieldwork practices, and important reflections on the human experience of PhD research.
Volume 45 Number 1 January 2014
Edited by: Jerker Edström, Abhijit Das and Chris Dolan
Much has happened in debates, practice and policy on gender in development since the ‘Men, Masculinities and Development’ IDS Bulletin was published in April 2000. The present issue follows up by drawing contributions from participants at the international symposium ‘Undressing Patriarchy’, which took place in September 2013.
It explores the shifting field of men and masculinities and how often conflicted engagements with the feminist project of redressing gender inequalities might be radicalised through a deeper analysis of patriarchy and our relationship to it, as well as by linking it to other struggles for sexual and human rights, or social justice. The methodology of ‘undressing patriarchy’ focuses on the underlying drivers of gender equality, rather than getting stuck in a generalised fallacy casting all men as patriarchs.
The findings and conclusions of this IDS Bulletin include recommendations for practice, politics and policy, with clear directions flagged for deepening research and debates. There seems to be a growing interest and demand for developing new research on patriarchy and ‘men in power’ across different sectors and settings. More enabling theories of change and conceptual frameworks along with practical methodologies for consciousness-raising and facilitating dialogues all need further development. We hope this IDS Bulletin will trigger new thoughts and contribute significantly to an ongoing conversation.
2013: Volume 44
Volume 44 Number 5-6 September 2013
Edited by: Richard Manning, Charlotte Harland Scott and Lawrence Haddad
As world leaders prepare for the special event on the Millennium Development Goals at the United Nations on 25 September 2013, and as momentum builds in the debate about the case for Sustainable Development Goals beyond 2015, this IDS Bulletin compiles reflections from various actors on the core elements of the MDGs and also on topics not explicitly covered in them, such as governance, participation and infrastructure.
Contributors include a serving President, a serving Minister, two Board members of IDS, and a wide range of academic and civil society representatives, plus a foreword from Sir Richard Jolly. Articles demonstrate the diversity of country and thematic responses to the MDGs, yet some common themes noticeably come through.
There is clear support for the UN High-level Panel’s emphasis on leaving no one behind, on sustainable development, and on transforming economies for jobs and inclusive growth; and its call to merge the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainability. The Panel's proposal that governments could choose an appropriate level of ambition for each target partly addresses contributors' concerns about local ownership, while leaving potential for other actors to set objectives. The inclusion of clearer goals for employment, governance and energy also resonates with contributors.
The open discussion of the value and contents of a new paradigm after 2015 represents a real advance from the situation in 2000–01, when the MDG framework was put in place behind closed doors. We hope that this IDS Bulletin will be a further contribution from IDS to an outcome that really will change people’s lives sustainably for the better.
