Earlier this year I spent a fascinating week in the Philippines with the Coalitions for Change programme, one of the pioneers of ‘Thinking and Working Politically’ in the aid sector. CfC is run by The Asia Foundation and funded by the Australian Government. It ‘focuses on key policy reforms to improve lives of Filipinos and promote their economic well-being.’ I

The front row of the third annual Budapest Demographic Summit launch. The conference is focused on raising the fertility rates in central and eastern Europe. HT Valerie Hopkins Mandela on Mugabe: ‘the trouble with Mugabe is that he was the star – and then the sun came up.’ Top obit from the excellent David Smith – what are best ones

Save the Children’s José Manuel Roche has a book he wants you to read. So, it turns out that nowadays democracy seldom dies through violent coup d’état. More commonly (and insidiously), democracy slides gradually into authoritarianism. By the same token, democracy survives when democratic leaders fight for it. This is part of the main thesis behind the insightful book How

Here’s Shahin Ashraf of Islamic Relief on one reason why the climate emergency should matter to Muslims. The piece brilliantly illustrates Alex Evans’ argument that climate activists need to tap into the deep narratives provided by the world’s major religions if they are to get the drastic changes we need. Like most Muslims who’ve been privileged to perform the holy

Oxfam’s Tim Gore responds to my recent downbeat posts on the politics of the climate emergency. Duncan’s latest piece is a depressing read. He describes escalating climate-related disasters amidst a lack of political leadership and rising populism. The prospects of today’s agents of change – Extinction Rebellion and the school strikers – are “bleak”. His list of possible precedents for

Despite the lack of banks in Goma to finance old or new enterprises, market stallholders are often able to thrive under difficult circumstances. Papy Muzuri reports on the city’s savings clubs and protection committees, and their ability to support informal markets.

Why everyone should love Viv Richards (ht Brian Lara) Excellent and strikingly optimistic Briefing: Sudan comes in from the cold as it transitions to civilian rule. Hope it’s warranted Applications open Wednesday 28 August for LSE Atlantic Fellows for Social and Economic Equity, a funded programme that brings the world’s change-makers to London to share insights, knowledge and hope. Vox

Following on yesterday’s conversation with Matthew Lockwood, I was recently interviewed by a new ‘slow news’ site called Tortoise, Tortoise Tortoise (nice name). They were doing a background piece on the climate change movement, and wanted to discuss the politics. Apart from regurgitating Matthew’s ideas, (with credit natch), I looked at the 2018/19 upsurge as a potential case study in

I’ve had a couple of people asking why I haven’t been doing more on climate change on this blog. Be careful what you wish for…… I spent a lovely summer’s evening recently discussing the politics of climate change with Matthew Lockwood. Matthew is an old friend, who has just revived his must-read Political Climate blog. Over the years, Matthew has

This was the topic for the latest in a series of Brixton lunches which seem to proliferate in the summer lull. I was talking to Miriam Wells from the Bureau of Investigative Journalism, a very cool organization (@TBIJ if you’re on twitter) where she has just become the ‘Impact Editor’. Now she has to work out what that means –

In this letter, first published by Africa is a Country, the authors question the validity and fetishization of “African Studies” within British higher education. Wangũi wa Kamonji convenes the collective Afrika Hai from her base in East Africa. Orapeleng Rammala was born in South Africa and raised in England. Jesutofunmi Odugbemi applies her sense of justice, ingenuity, and leadership in areas

In this post, Stanislas Bisimwa Baganda writes about imbalanced power relations in field research, which can not only have negative impacts on the quality of work, but endanger the lives of local research assistants. He is a researcher in the Groupe d’Etude sur le Conflit et la Sécurité Humaine (GEC-SH) and a consultant in project management. This piece is part