Opinion

Opinion

Who really controls the minerals powering the green transition?

The transition to clean energy, digital infrastructure, militarisation in defence and artificial intelligence all depend on minerals whose extraction is disproportionately concentrated in resource-rich developing economies. As innovation accelerates in these sectors, so does pressure to expand...

Anabel Marín

11 September 2026

Opinion

Twenty-five years after land reform in Zimbabwe: a short documentary on lessons learned

What have we learned from our study, 25 years after land reform in Zimbabwe? Drawing on the research that we have been doing since the early 2000s, we wanted to highlight some of the key findings. Alport Ndebele and team put together an excellent short video offering some highlights. There will...

Ian Scoones

10 September 2026

Opinion

The Nepal-Tibet floods show why the UK must step up global climate action

The glacial collapse and catastrophic floods in Nepal and Tibet are not isolated tragedies. They reflect accelerating climate disruption that disproportionately affects countries and people least responsible for global emissions. Such cascading catastrophic events are not ‘natural...

Lyla Mehta

4 September 2026

Student Opinion

Applying for Chevening? Learn how to stand out from the crowd

Wadhah Hubaishi is a Chevening Scholar and an IDS alum from the MA Development Studies programme (class of 2019-20). Today, he leads humanitarian response operations across the Middle East for World Central Kitchen, coordinating emergency food responses across Gaza, Lebanon, Jordan and beyond....

Wadhah Hubaishi

MA Development Studies (class of 2019-20)

25 August 2026

Opinion

What will happen if we forget Afghanistan?

Imagine growing up in a country where, all of a sudden, you are told that you can no longer continue to go to school, work, participate in sports, or freely access public spaces. Imagine being told that your voice should be kept quiet so that men outside do not hear you because it is considered...

Zohra Jalal

25 August 2026

Opinion

Nurturing a jungle of solidarity: Towards a politics of hope

And who will join this standing up and the ones who stood without sweet company will sing and sing back into the mountains and if necessary even under the sea: we are the ones we have been waiting for. From "Poem for South African Women" by June Jordan During a workshop in Sri...

Natalie Lovell

25 August 2026

Opinion

Pastoralists gather in Mongolia for the UN Desertification conference

Today, COP17 of the UNCCD (UN Convention to Combat Desertification) kicks off in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. Top of the agenda is how to manage rangelands that support millions of pastoralists worldwide in sustainable ways. 2026 is the International Year of Rangelands and Pastoralists (IYRP), and...

Ian Scoones

24 August 2026

Opinion

“Just go to Lidl”: the backlash against public restaurants

On 7 July 2025, our research project, DISHED, a UKRI-funded initiative to test the piloting of public restaurants in Nottingham and Dundee, was announced. The following day, the Daily Telegraph published a full-length article headlined "WWII-style restaurants to help feed poor families?" By 12...

Marsha Smith & 2 others

20 August 2026

Opinion

Apprentissage informel de longue durée dans les ateliers : exploitation ou nécessité ?

Dans la plupart des pays africains, l'apprentissage informel, est largement répandu. Il est considéré de loin, comme la source de formation professionnelle la plus importante en Afrique de l’Ouest. Il est ancré dans les traditions et la culture locale et obéit à un grand nombre de...

Ahouyao Jacob

17 August 2026

Opinion

Long-term informal learning in workshops: exploitation or necessity?

In most African countries, informal learning is widespread. In West Africa, it is widely regarded as by far the most important source of vocational training. It is rooted in local traditions and culture and is governed by a wide range of informal rules, such as customs and cultural values. Ce...

Ahouyao Jacob

17 August 2026

Opinion

Will there be a right to food in the UK?

If you live in the United Kingdom in 2026, you do not have a right to adequate food. You do if you live in India, which joined the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR – which contains the human right to food) in 1979 and has subsequently recognised the right...

Jody Harris

12 August 2026

Opinion

Savory tales: controversies from the Zimbabwean bush

Allan Savory’s memoir has recently been published – UnSavory: African Stories of Wildlife, War, and the Birth of Holistic Management. It’s a fascinating read. Full of Rhodesian derring-do but some important reflections on the value of field ecology and the dangers of bureaucratically...

Ian Scoones

11 August 2026

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Showing 1–12 of 2514 results

Who really controls the minerals powering the green transition?

Twenty-five years after land reform in Zimbabwe: a short documentary on lessons learned

The Nepal-Tibet floods show why the UK must step up global climate action

Applying for Chevening? Learn how to stand out from the crowd

Wadhah Hubaishi

What will happen if we forget Afghanistan?

Nurturing a jungle of solidarity: Towards a politics of hope

Pastoralists gather in Mongolia for the UN Desertification conference

“Just go to Lidl”: the backlash against public restaurants

Apprentissage informel de longue durée dans les ateliers : exploitation ou nécessité ?

Long-term informal learning in workshops: exploitation or necessity?

Will there be a right to food in the UK?

Savory tales: controversies from the Zimbabwean bush

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