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.
At the beginning of each year, I try and catch up on the ever-growing literature on land, agriculture and rural change in Zimbabwe. Each year there seems to be more and more, as the body of work grows based on many research studies, often linked to Masters’ and PhD projects by Zimbabwean...
This month sees the end of the PASTRES programme. It has been an amazing journey since 2018. We are grateful for the support of the European Research Council through an Advanced Grant, and to our co-hosting institutions, the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex and the...
His Excellency Antonio de Aguiar Patriota, Brazil’s Ambassador to the UK, will discuss Brazil’s vision for tackling pressing global development, climate and environmental challenges, in the year that Brazil is the Presidency holder of the G20.
Watch...
This paper provides insights into urban residents’ experiences of poverty and the support they received since the Covid-19 pandemic, and derives implications for social protection programming in urban Bangladesh.
Are we making a difference? If so, how, and for who? These are questions we often ask about our policies, programmes and projects. Yet, they are often extremely challenging to answer. Understanding the ‘black box’ from ‘what we do’ to ‘what impact happens’ has puzzled evaluators for...
As the PASTRES programme draws to a close, we reflect on our work between 2018-2023 on the varieties and challenges of pastoralism across different world regions.
The core work of the PASTRES programme has been in six countries across three continents (see map). However, the work of affiliates,...
Pakistan's 2024 general elections are going ahead today amidst economic turmoil, terrorism, and regional tensions. Shunned political figures like Imran Khan (the recently jailed former Prime Minister) have raised concerns about the electoral process's integrity. Similarly, the international...
The Child Labour: Action-Research-Innovation in South and South-Eastern Asia (CLARISSA) programme aims to understand the dynamics that are central to running a business in the informal economy of Nepal’s adult entertainment sector, and explore how and why the worst forms of child labour (WFCL)...
Peasant and indigenous households in Mexico have undergone recursive crises for decades caused by economic, socio-environmental, climatic, political and/or social events, which exacerbated vulnerabilities.
The overlapping of these vulnerabilities influences control and rights of inhabitants...
This is the second in a new series of IDS seminars spotlighting Brazil’s development challenges and global role in the context of the country’s Presidency of the G20 in 2024 and its hosting of COP30 in 2025. Tackling the intersections of climate justice, crime and freedom of expression,...
Evidence from Pakistan demonstrates that, in contexts where men act as gatekeepers, efforts to improve political outcomes for women need to engage men.
Women vote at much lower rates than men in many developing countries. In Pakistan, this gap is particularly stark: women’s turnout...
The Pakistan general elections come at a pivotal time, with the country facing one of its worst-ever economic crises, record-high inflation, tensions with three out of four of its neighbours (Iran, Afghanistan and India) and another ousted ex-prime minister behind bars.
In its 76-year...
7 February 2024
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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).