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Ben O’Donovan-Iland

Ben O’Donovan-Iland

Senior Communications and Impact Officer

Email

b.odonovan-iland@ids.ac.uk

Ben is a Senior Communications and Impact Officer in the Knowledge, Impact and Policy Cluster.

Previously, he has worked for Bond, Seva Mandir, 50by40 and as a freelance editorial designer. He has a Masters’ in Media Practice for Development and Social Change from the University of Sussex, and a Bachelors’ in Film and Media from the University of Sunderland.

Ben is working on a portfolio of projects, and previously led communications for the FCDO-funded Knowledge, Evidence and Learning for Development Programme (K4D). He is currently leading on the strategic communications for: Knowledge for Development and Diplomacy (K4DD), Solidarity Network, Towards Brown Gold, Countering Backlash and more.

Academic links

LinkedIn
Ben O'Donovan-Iland's LinkedIn

Projects

Programme & Centres

Research

Project

Solidarity Network

As backlash against gender rights grows across the world, so does the resistance against it. Feminist and queer movements, organisations and activists are engaged in intense and difficult processes of developing and implementing strategies to counter this backlash. The Solidarity Network is a...

Project

Reimagining Preparedness under Climate Extremes (RELIABLE)

Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events, such as floods, droughts, and heat waves. These events, along with limited historical precedent, are creating significant uncertainties for local communities as well as private and public agencies across the...

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Opinions

Opinion

Brown gold rush – unleashing sanitation’s rich potential

More than half the world’s population live in urban areas. Many growing towns and cities, especially in the Global South, are marked by inadequate sanitation, sewage and drainage facilities. With 3.5 billion people still lacking access to safe sanitation, most national and global sanitation...

Lyla Mehta
Lyla Mehta & 3 others

5 August 2025

Opinion

Is the world prepared for a brown gold rush?

Human waste is rich in water, nutrients and organic compounds, most of which nowadays are just going down the drain. The concept of “brown gold” highlights the sheer scale of the economic benefits if we were able to recover all these hidden resources by reusing the treated...

Andrés Hueso González & 2 others

17 September 2024

Opinion

Five ways funding is crucial for organising and defeating gender backlash

Backlash from conservative, patriarchal, religious and political forces is often seen as ‘the cost of doing business’ by feminist or LGBTQ+ activists. Yet how do philanthropic institutions who support gender justice respond to the scaled-up, well-financed and globally coordinated anti-gender...

Lisa VeneKlasen
Ben O’Donovan-Iland
Ben O’Donovan-Iland

12 March 2024

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Publications

Publication

Cards Against Backlash: Forwards to a Feminist Future

This toolkit is produced by the IDS-hosted Countering Backlash programme. The programme carries out engaged research, generate new debates, and build capacity across networks and strategic partnerships with women’s, LGBTQ+ and other human rights organisations, activists, academics and...

Becky Faith
Becky Faith & 3 others

29 November 2024

Brief

Promoting Sustainable Waste Management in Mekelle, Ethiopia

IDS Policy Briefing 216

Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region in Ethiopia, is plagued by water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) challenges. Rapid population growth, unplanned urbanisation, limitations in WASH services, climate change, and the impacts of war and conflicts are affecting the sanitation conditions of the...

Kifle Woldearegay & 2 others

12 September 2024

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Ben O’Donovan-Iland’s recent work

Upcoming Event

Aid priorities in fragile and conflict-affected contexts

By 2030, the vast majority of the world’s extreme poor are projected to live in fragile and conflict-affected contexts. This event from IDS-led Knowledge for Development and Diplomacy programme (K4DD) will explore the growing importance of these contexts, particularly for global development...

16 June 2026

Past Event

AI for global health: From product development to policy

Artificial intelligence is moving rapidly from research labs into the hands of community health workers, clinics, and public health programmes that shape outcomes for billions of people. But, how do we know a product is ready for deployment – and who gets to decide? This event,...

2 June 2026

Past Event

Under pressure: How climate risks shape peace and security 

We are witnessing more global conflicts than at any time since 1946. The intersection of state fragility, climate change, and security has become a central concern for development and humanitarian actors in the face of this. This event, brought to you by the IDS-led Knowledge for...

9 March 2026

Past Event

Countering Backlash: Towards a feminist future

The very ideas – let alone the possibilities – of gender and social justice are under attack the world over. These attacks are becoming increasingly acute, multi-layered, and globally resonant, seeking to erase language, movements, legal frameworks, and even entire communities. Watch...

10 March 2025

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