Keyword: development
Innovation in Development Cooperation
The financial crisis clearly shows the need for innovations. On 14 November the Social TRade Organisation, STRO, organized a conference Innovation in Development Cooperation.At the conference representatives from the financial sector (bank representatives from ING, Rabobank and Oikocredit) together with development experts from PSO, Flying Doctors and Hivos discussed the need for, possibilities of and problems with innovations. It was concluded that the development sector could learn from inn...
Knowledge & Change Spotlight: Launch Development Journal 53.3
Despite the global economic crisis can we sustain local economies? Development keeps trying to understand that critical question in the sequel to Development vol 53 no 3 ‘Beyond economics’ Development on ‘Sustaining Local Economies’ Development (vol. 53 no 3). In partnership with the Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries (Hivos), the journal takes a dual approach: one to continue the debate on beyond economics bringing in new voices and building on the dynamic discussio...
Knowledge & Change Spotlight: Launch Development Journal 53.3
The 'spotlight' session series provides a daily preview of key events of our upcoming Knowledge Dialogue. Today, we highlight the launch of Development issue no 53.3 on ‘Sustaining Local Economies’ with a lively critical debate on new economics in response to the crisis and solidarity economies. Authors will join Josine Stremmelaar (Hivos) and Wendy Harcourt (Editor of Development) in an open debate on how to use the momentum of the crisis to rethink the interaction of market, the state and...
Climate Smart Development in the South
The next few years will be crucial for determining the policy response to climate change. Whereas mitigation of climate change and adaptation to its consequences have become important issues in the international policy arena, they have yet to become major policy issues within most developing countries, especially amongst the LDCs – countries that are actually amongst the most vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change. Until now, just a few countries have formulated adaptation progra...
Climate Smart Development in the South
The next few years will be crucial for determining the policy response to climate change. Whereas mitigation of climate change and adaptation to its consequences have become important issues in the international policy arena, they have yet to become major policy issues within most developing countries, especially amongst the LDCs – countries that are actually amongst the most vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change. Until now, just a few countries have formulated adaptation progra...THE GLOBAL LAND RUSH
Introduction Reports about land acquisitions in developing countries – often labeled as land grabbing – are on the rise. The number of land-related conflicts seems to be growing, leading to concerns about increasing land inequality in societies were many people depend on access to land for their livelihoods. On 24 March, 2011, International Development Studies (IDS) of Utrecht University, in collaboration with LANDac1 and the Society for International Development (SID), organised a seminar a...Summary of the presentations and discussions of DPRN
After nine years of enhancing cooperation and synergy between scientists, policymakers, NGO staff and business people, the Development Policy Review Network (DPRN) fomally ended in March 2011. DPRN was established in 2002 to stimulate informed debate. To reflect on the network’s experiences during its eight years of existence, more than a hundred people gathered in Utrecht on 18 February 2011. Attachedis a summary of the presentations and discussions that took place including Hivos' p...Food for Thought // Knowledge Lunchbox #1
This box will provide you find Food for Thought via links we have gathered for you in our first "Knowledge Lunchbox". The aim of the Lunchbox is to quickly inform you about the latest online discussions and publications related to the fields of civil society, theories of change and development effectiveness. Topics range from people to politics, and from power to.. poop. It is up to you what you would like to digest, dislike, or disc...
The End or the And?
Can civil society organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa succesfully advocate, lobby and mobilize to fight poverty and corruption, and to bring development and democracy? Have citizens’ organizations in the new roles of policy making and participation in service delivery been able to realize the high hopes and aspirations surrounding their explosive growth. And how has international assistance promoted or hindered their struggle to catalyze social change and pro-poor development?...
The End or the And?
Can civil society organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa succesfully advocate, lobby and mobilize to fight poverty and corruption, and to bring development and democracy? Have citizens’ organizations in the new roles of policy making and participation in service delivery been able to realize the high hopes and aspirations surrounding their explosive growth. And how has international assistance promoted or hindered their struggle to catalyze social change and pro-poor development?...
Corporate responsibility: what's in a name?
Over the past two decades, corporate social responsibility (CSR) — where businesses adopt a range of voluntary initiatives to improve social, environmental and human rights performance — has become a popular tool for marrying business with development. At the latest provocation from IIED and Hivos, held in Brussels last week (22 June), a group of around 60 policymakers, academics and development practitioners gathered to discuss, among other things, the role of CSR in achieving development go...
Rethinking Development in an age of Scarcity and Uncertainty
04/10/2011 The session, facilitated by Wendy Hartcourt of SID, was conducted as an open discussion on the new publishing arrangements with the coming of the digital age among development journals looking at both the opportunities and the current squeeze for resources.The discussion looked at the new possibilities offered by on-line and digital publishing. The discussed focused on how to ensure scholarship and rigour while using the new open forms of communication through social networking and new...
It's the Future Calling
What do you do when the phone rings? You pick up, or let people leave a message on your voicemail and check it soon after. The phone has been ringing for a long time now in the development sector.What do you do when a caller starts conversing? You talk back - if only to say you're going to hang up. We talk a lot in the sector.What do you do when the caller starts shouting? You hang up, even if the other person has a valid reason to shout. In the development sector, we don’t like shouters. We...
The Best Mistake Ever in Development
In a sector where sharing of experiences and learning is increasingly propagated, you hardly hear about failures. Eventhough they may have proven to be some of the biggest opportunities for learning. The way development is discussed in public debates doesn't help either. But mistakes can be oke if they lead to learning, aren’t repeated, don’t violate or conflict with your values. Does that make it easier to talk about it? Not really, but it's worth to try! Especially, in a community with lot...› read more...
Date: 11 May : Location: Cafe Schlemmer, Lange Houtstraat 17, The Hague
Date: 11 May : Location: Cafe Schlemmer, Lange Houtstraat 17, The Hague
Sustainable business in developing countries
Young Professionals Make The Difference (YPMTD) aims to bring together young professionals interested in contributing to a more sustainable world. It aims to create space for young professionals to collaborate and empower them to find opportunities to bring business and sustainability together. This event brings together young professionals from companies across the Netherlands, with large not for profit organizations. The conference will include cross company brainstorm sessions run by indiv...› read more...
Date: 20 May : Location: Philips BreitnerTower Amsterdam,
Date: 20 May : Location: Philips BreitnerTower Amsterdam,
Climate Smart Development in the South
The next few years will be crucial for determining the policy response to climate change. Whereas mitigation of climate change and adaptation to its consequences have become important issues in the international policy arena, they have yet to become major policy issues within most developing countries, especially amongst the LDCs – countries that are actually amongst the most vulnerable to the adverse impacts of climate change. Until now, just a few countries have formulated adaptation progra...› read more...
Date: 5 November :
Date: 5 November :
Book Launch The economic crisis and the developing countries
CRISIS RAAKT ARMSTEN IN ONTWIKKELINGSLANDEN STEEDS HARDER De échte slachtoffers van de crisis bevinden zich in de Derde Wereld. Omdat de geïndustrialiseerde landen hun verantwoordelijkheid niet nemen, dreigen de ‘global poor’ het kind van de rekening te worden. Dit blijkt uit een onderzoeksproject van het Institute of Social Studies in Den Haag waarbij toonaangevende onderzoekers uit Azië, Afrika en Latijns Amerika zijn betrokken.----------------------------------------------------...› read more...
Date: 13 October : Location: Kortenaerkade 12, Aula A, TheHague
Date: 13 October : Location: Kortenaerkade 12, Aula A, TheHague
Reflections on new and old actors
Some of the so called new or emerging groups that come up during the discussion are the diaspora, CSR, new media and the sad and lonely people who use the new media. We heard from the speakers at the Dialogue how new media like FB and twitter helped activist in Iran and Syria which in some sense is redefining new forms of activism. We also heard the downside of how companies like Google or Nokia can make one very traceable and hence vulnerable as well.
Less Pretension, More ambition
In February 2010, the Dutch Scientific Council for Government Policy (WRR) published a landmark report on the Dutch development sector. The report, titled 'Less pretention, More ambition' sparked widespread debate in the Netherlands about the future of aid. Now there is an english version of the report too.