What we’re reading on governance & conflict – COVID-19 edition, 3 April

Week 2 of our special ‘What we’re reading’ email focused on emerging thinking on Covid-19 and the potential implications and insights from a governance and conflict perspective. DFID Research & Evidence Division -funded research teams designated with a 🌟. The list is compiled with my DFID colleague Alisha Patel and includes contributions sent in by …

What I’m reading this month: September 2019 edition

Delayed trains or heavy traffic (papers/journal articles/longer thought pieces) Patrick Porter, Why Britain doesn’t do grand strategy This paper from 2010 came up in my Twitter feed recently, and it’s well worth a (re)read. Porter argues that Britain’s lack of ‘grand strategy’ is due in part to not having clear enemies, to ‘delegating’ strategy to …

What I’m reading this month: July 2019 edition

Quick reads for short journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Ali Breland, The bizarre and terrifying ‘deepfake’ video that helped bring an African nation to the brink I read a lot of stuff about corruption, crime and conflict (the 3Cs troika), but I have to admit that little I’ve read recently has freaked me out as much as …

What we’re missing by not getting our TWP (Thinking & Working Politically) alphabet straight

  This blog is republished under a Creative Commons license. The original was published on Oxfam's From Poverty to Power. See the original post for lots of great comments! I am struck by how often people say ‘TWP/PDIA/adaptive management/PEA…whatever’. Kind of like when my great-aunt calls me by various relatives’ names first before getting mine right …

Bringing serious & organised crime into development research

In keeping with our new tradition, I did a 'Friday Thread' on some of the work I've been doing for DFID, beginning to think through what a research offer on SOC might look like. It's early days, with a lot more work to be done, and this thread shares some of this thinking. LOOK BOTH …

What I’m reading this month: June 2019 edition

Tube journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Rim Turkmani, Devolution of power or decentralisation of power in Syria? This blog from the DFID-funded Conflict Research Programme looks at how fragmentation of the previously highly-centralised state in Syria has led to the rise of regional and local elites drawing legitimacy from ethno-sectarian narratives, the use of violence and control …

What I’m reading this month: May 2019 version

Tube journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Explain ZA, State capture: three reasons why no one is in jail yet This short video from South Africa looks to explain to the general public why they’ve not seen any ‘big names’ convicted of corruption since President Ramaphosa came to power, but why we shouldn’t lose hope just yet. For …

What I’m reading this month: November 2018 edition

Tube journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Guardian, Teenagers around the world share their fears and dreams This is an uplifting, fascinating way to spend a few minutes, even if some of the kids featured face real challenges in their lives (including the ones from the UK and other ‘rich’ countries). I have a 14 year old and …

What I’m reading this month: March 2019 edition

 Tube journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Kanisha D Bond et al, The West needs to take the politics of women in ISIS seriously On the back of controversy here in the UK surrounding the decision to strip 19-year old Shamima Begum of her citizenship, this article argues that narratives about women and conflict can strip women of …

What I’m reading this month: January 2019 edition

Tube journeys (blogs/policy briefs/podcasts) Rema Hanna & Vestal McIntyre, New possibilities for cutting corruption in the public sector This short article deftly pulls together some recent experimental research on public service values and ‘corruptibility’ (including this research on Zambia, funded by DFID). While more research in a variety of contexts is clearly needed, the article …