In this article, we report progress on our consultations across the ‘development’ ecosystem in the nine months since the publication of the Jigsaw report that called for root and branch reform of int
Using AI to ‘decolonise’ language
We need to find a new language, new narratives, a new world view and the tools to create the words to overcome the “grand humanitarian narrative.” Can technology help?
Donor approaches to overheads for local and national partners
Ensuring that local and national actors can access overheads has become a key focus for humanitarian reform efforts over the past year. Locally-led humanitarian response is more effective, more effic
Metrics Matter: How USAID counts “local” will have a big impact on funding for local partners
In November 2021, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Administrator Samantha Power laid out a vision for international development with a big goal: by the end of 2025, at l
Inclusive Language Guide
Language has the power to reinforce or deconstruct systems of power that maintain poverty, inequality and suffering. As we are making commitments to decolonization in practice, it is important that w
In my view: Is the aid sector racist?
Is the aid sector racist? I had been reflecting on this question for a number of years. However, after the House of Commons’ International Development Committee, which I chair, launched an inquiry in
Great New Guide to ‘Systems Thinking and Practice’
I’m always on the lookout for good guides to the practical implications of systems thinking, so got very excited when I came across Systems Thinking and Practice: A guide to concepts, principles and
Development Co-operation Report 2023: Debating the Aid System’
solidarity and burden sharing. The Development Co-operation Report 2023: Debating the Aid System finds that debates are crystalising around the need for a fundamental rethinking of the international
On the Right Tack: Reflections on Coalition-Building Initiatives Across The Asia Foundation
Coalitionsgroups of organizations and individuals that work together to pursue a common policy goal or reformare crucial to development. Some of The Asia Foundation's longest-standing and most succ
“Co-investigators but with different power”: Local voices on the localization of humanitarian research
Humanitarian research has long been dominated by institutions from the Global North (GN), while institutions and researchers from the Global South (GS) have been largely absent or relegated to minor