News
"Marriage or Death!"
By Marten van den Berge.The time has come: Argentina is the first country in Latin America where at national level, marriage is permitted to non-heterosexual couples. They also have the opportunity to adopt children or to use artificial insemination. On July 15, following a 15 hour debating marathon of the Argentine Senate, the law was adopted by 33 votes to 27 votes against and 3 abstentions. There was a tense mood between the conservatives in alliance with the Catholic church and the progre...
Nothing as it Seems
What is the role of external donors in local development and local governance in Ethiopia? ISS-student Ephrem Shiferaw is currently blogging from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His reflections and thoughts give us the feeling that there's so much more lurking under the surface of the muddy development-waters. We're looking forward to finding out more about his discoveries in the coming up weeks. The power of community-based organizations/CBO’s It has been three weeks since I started my research on co...
Behind the Veil of Discourse
A few weeks into their field assignments, the ISS researchers have started to unpack their questions and issues, venturing into complexity beyond the veil of discourse.
Who Cares About Sustainability?
Why is it so hard to sustain the effects of NGO interventions? Agnes Nalubiri explores this question working from the Rwenzori region with Hivos’ partner KRC. The emerging findings in a messy context suggest that a toxic mix of aid chain dynamics is at work.
Southern Perspectives on Civil Society Building
Civil Society Building continues to figure prominently in the development policy realm and so too does its northern bias, especially with regard to processes in Africa. Through the MA-research facility, the Hivos/ISS Civil Society Knowledge programme enables researchers and civil society organizations from the South to develop and share their views on key issues in the Civil Society Debate.
The art of framing
NGOs have been joining forces to increase their effectiveness, but what they really need to do is to form alliances with social movements as well to avoid working in isolation from broader social currents.
What Has the World Cup to Do With Civic Action?
Meghan Cooper, former ISS student and currently employed by UNIFEM in Sydney Australia, has recently finalized a working paper for the Knowledge Programme on citizenship and social movements in South Africa. On 13-16 June Meghan Cooper attended a conference organized by the South African Sociological Association (SASA), where she presented the outcome of her research. While the World Cup is reaching its boiling point, enjoy reading Meghan's critical take on development, sport and social deliv...
Let’s talk about…social movements
What characterises social movements? Why are they relevant? How to support a movement that is, by its very nature, fluid and changeable? Does financial support to one organisation or group within a social movement strengthen the movement as a whole, or does it lead to division? These were among the key quesitons that brought together Hivos, the Institute of Social Studies (ISS) and PSO on the 9th of June 2010 to explore the challenges Northern NGOs face in supporting social movements. Represe...
How Does Trade Policy Impacts Upon Citizens' Relationship with the State?
Together with Peter Newell and Marcelo Saguier, dr. Rosalba Icaza (ISS) explores how trade policy impacts upon citizens' relationship with the state, and the state's ability to realize particular rights.
Research Seminar on Knowledges and Social Movements
Join us for a short but lively hour of discussion on 'social movements and collective knowledge for political action and social transformation'.