The term ‘development’ has been central to global conversations for decades, but the way it is understood, practised, and questioned has shifted dramatically. In this Between the Lines podcast episode, we unpack the evolution of development and tackling the question of what it means in today’s context.
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Amidst current global challenges such as regressing aid flows, rising autocracies, impact of AI on climate and workforce, mass starvation and wars, three IDS alumni stress the importance of epistemic humility: knowing where one stands, whose knowledge counts, and what remains unseen.
In this episode of Between the Lines, Jigyasa Agarwal, External Affairs Officer at IDS, speaks with three IDS alumni whose career span across diplomacy, humanitarian action, policy design, and emerging sustainability sectors.
- Roy Trivedy, former UN Resident Coordinator and UK civil servant;
- Camille Accolas, ecosystem builder in biodiversity and nature technology; and
- Emre Yuksek, Senior Advisor at the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency.
Each guest traces their motivation for studying development back to moments of disruption, which include a desire to understand the roles of state, markets, and communities, an interest in sustainable business practices and recognising the need for a multidisciplinary approach to societal change.
With decades of experience between them, our panellists explore the evolution of development through to the challenges we are facing today. The discussion emphasises that navigating today’s development landscape requires more than technical solutions where success isn’t just about technical expertise, but also adaptability, empathy, and a deep understanding of global challenges.
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This episode is a must-listen for future professionals in the development sector, early-career individuals, students, and anyone interested in studying development. For aspiring practitioners, it expands on the importance of embracing technology, developing niche expertise while maintaining cross-sector curiosity, and understanding diverse financing models in development sector. This ever-evolving sector demands solidarity, dignity, and the courage to rethink what progress truly means.
About the interviewees
Hemansu-Roy Trivedy is the Honorary Consul of Timor-Leste in Scotland. Roy served as the United Nations Resident Coordinator in Timor-Leste from February 2018-November 2022 and as the UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in Papua New Guinea from December 2013 to December 2017. Prior to that, he worked for the Department for International Development UK for 13 years. He was a Senior Civil Servant for the UK and served in various positions including as: Head of Civil Society Department (2009-2013); Team Leader for the UK White Paper (Building our Common Future 2009); Head of DFID Tanzania (2006-2008), Programme Manager Central Asia and the Caucasus (2003-2005); and Conflict Adviser (Africa) 2000-2003.
Emre Yüksek currently serves as Advisor to the President of TİKA in Ankara, Türkiye. He began his career at the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TİKA) in 2006 and has since served in a wide range of strategic and operational roles. Over the years, he has coordinated and delivered development and humanitarian programmes in complex and politically sensitive environments, serving as Deputy Programme Coordinator in the Palestinian Territories (2007) and Programme Coordinator in Syria (2011), Lebanon (2012), and Kenya (2017–2020). From 2023 to 2025, Mr. Yüksek served as Humanitarian Operations Manager at the Islamic Organisation for Food Security (IOFS), a specialised agency of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), where he oversaw the implementation of key humanitarian portfolios, including the Afghanistan Food Security Programme (AFSP) and the Flour for Humanity initiative for Gaza.
Camille Accolas is a super connector and ecosystem builder in nature tech and biodiversity. She is the Co-Founder and CEO of Trust Exchange. Her work focuses on designing communities, programs, and partnerships that help people and organizations act on climate and nature goals.
As Senior Program Manager at Brainforest, she helped create and lead the first accelerator dedicated to biodiversity and nature tech. She supported more than 20 early-stage ventures, ran five global accelerator programs, and contributed to deploying more than 1M USD in early stage and catalytic funding. Before Brainforest, Camille worked in sustainability and strategy consulting with EuroBusiness Media and CDC Biodiversité. She advised clients such as L’Oréal, Amundi, Nestlé, Vattenfall, and ADEME on ESG strategy, biodiversity measurement, impact storytelling, and organizational development.
About the interviewer
Jigyasa Agarwal is a former journalist, researcher and currently works as an External Affairs officer at the Institute of Development Studies. She is a guest editor for the IDS podcast Between the Lines and a writer on Substack.
About the Between the Lines podcast
This podcast series explores ground-breaking ideas in development for positive social and environmental change. Each month we feature an interviews or discussions with experts in international development who will talk about their latest research and ideas.
Episodes content could feature authors of new books, IDS research or interviews with special guest stars.
The discussions give an insight on the themes covered, exploring the challenges and discoveries, and why the issues matter for progressive and sustainable development globally.
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