Our research on governance, power relations, participation and citizen engagement, informs change processes in pursuit of social justice and social change. With power and politics central to our analysis, we support the generation of new evidence that contributes to improved processes for good governance, citizen engagement, empowerment and accountability.
We pioneer new ways of working with governments, communities, activists and academics, to understand the complex relationships and processes that exist across states, markets, and citizens, and between formal and informal institutions, to tackle issues such as digital inequalities, women’s participation and empowerment, decentralisation and local governance, rapid urbanisation, migration, taxation and domestic resource mobilisation, food security and hunger and nutrition. These draw on our extensive expertise in complex approaches to how change happens. Through our research and policy partnerships we are also bringing new insights on the role that rising powers and emerging economies such as China and Brazil have in relation to global governance and tackling development challenges such as sustainability and poverty. Our world-renown participatory research has a particular emphasis on systematic social exclusion facing women, people living in extreme poverty, people with disabilities, slaves bonded labourers, indigenous peoples and others. We advance cutting edge methodological development in action research, participatory visual methods, participatory mapping, participatory statistics, participatory Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning (MEL) amongst others.
In alignment with the ‘leave no one behind’ framing of the UN Global Goals for Sustainable Development, the PMA programme is working with groups of people living in poverty and marginalisation to strengthen processes of citizen-led accountability.
The International Centre for Tax and Development (ICTD) provides research evidence that supports developing countries in raising domestic revenues equitably and sustainably, in a manner that is conducive to pro-poor economic growth and good governance.
Whether fuelled by political and religious leaders, or the media, hate speech in Iraq taps into deeper problems of structural inequality in society and has been greatly exacerbated by conflict and Covid-19 in recent months, as uncovered by researchers from Independent Media Organization in...
If the roots of the climate crisis lie in economic and social injustices that are often racial, gendered, and class-based in origin, what are the prospects for climate justice? This column argues for a transformative approach, noting that addressing justice issues is complex, messy, contested,...
Information epidemiology or infodemiology is the study of infodemics - defined by the World Health Organization as an overabundance of information, some accurate and some not, that occurs during a pandemic or other significant event that may impact public health.
Infodemic management is the...
2020 was defined by disruption caused by Covid-19 and its global impacts as well as the departure of the UK from the European Union. Following the decision to leave in 2016 there followed many thousands of hours of negotiation between governments which ended at the very last minute with a...
How do marginalised voters living in conditions of intense socioeconomic inequality, engage in electoral politics and improve their material conditions? Grounding her research in the context of Pakistan, IDS researcher, Shandana Khan Mohmand, probes into this question by using original data...
Sir Richard Jolly has been a pioneer in understanding and addressing inequality throughout his distinguished career at the UN and Institute of Development Studies. In this inspiring review of a major new book, How to Fight Inequality (And Why that Fight Needs You) by Ben Phillips, Sir Richard...
In a context where democratic culture and civil society space are under threat, rights-based organisations face increased restrictions on their activities, and donors are finding it harder to engage with them. However, findings show that donor support is crucial for successful women’s...
The global pandemic Covid-19 is impacting the lives of people in many and varied ways. Together with partners worldwide, IDS researchers are providing critical evidence and analysis that are shaping the spread of the virus and must inform immediate responses.
We are collaborating across...
Does secessionism lead to social polarisation? Despite much research on independence movements, their relationship to polarisation, a key mechanism theorised as increasing the chances of violent conflict, remains less understood. We argue that secessionist conflicts can polarise along both...
In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).