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.
The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated vulnerabilities and inequalities worldwide. An estimated 246 million children are missing out on the school meals they rely on and 49 million people are expected to fall into poverty globally during the course of this year. While the crisis has exposed the...
The severity of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has starkly exposed the fragility of both national and global health, social and economic systems. Emerging evidence is showing that people with disabilities are being disproportionately affected, with it becoming clear that those who were...
On Tuesday 15 December, the 2020 Human Development report will be published by the UNDP on ‘Widening horizons for people and planet: human development and the Anthropocene’. It considers the current era as the next frontier for human development where instead of the planet shaping humans,...
This article reviews longstanding debates about the relationship between power over and power to - often posed as the tension between domination and emancipation. It then turns to several frameworks which integrate these approaches to inform strategies for social action.
In particular, it...
Cultural heritage is fundamental to human dignity and identity. As part of the IDS-led CREID programme the rights of religious communities to practice and preserve their heritage is being recognised through an initiative to collect and document oral heritage in Iraq and Syria. On Human Rights...
Covid-19 and the national response has resulted in significant hardship for people with disabilities in South Africa. To date, research focused on how people with disabilities have experienced this period have yet to be deeply investigated.
To begin to address this evidence gap an exciting new...
A statement from global academics
On Human Rights Day 2020, we the undersigned express our deep concern over the deterioration of the human rights situation in India, in particular the treatment of minority groups (especially Muslims) students, activists and journalists who are denied their...
This learning brief provides illustrative examples of three major adaptations the Coalition for Religious Equality and Inclusive Development (CREID) programme has undertaken while working within fragile contexts to promote freedom of religion or belief (FoRB).
These examples highlight how the...
Global leaders need to ensure that commitments to reduce emissions are achieved in a way that is fair and inclusive for the communities already suffering the worst impacts of climate change.
This weekend (12 December) the UN, UK and France convene a Climate Ambition Summit to coincide with the...
Kenya ranks 109 out of 153 countries in the Global Gender Gap Report 2020, with a score of 0.671. There are significant inequalities between males and females in education attainment, health outcomes, representation in parliament, and labour force participation.
This Factsheet outlines some of...
From sharing crucial knowledge on resilience in humanitarian crises, to re-imagining solutions for sanitation and food security for ‘off grid’ communities, IDS researchers are collaborating with global partners to deliver evidence and inform responses to the world’s most pressing...
As the global community celebrates the first person in the world receiving the Pfizer vaccine, we must not lose sight of the task ahead. While this news rightly represents the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel, those of us who have studied the political dynamics of the pandemic would...
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).