Inclusive Economies

Our work explores what characterises inclusive economies and how these can be achieved, particularly in a world where new technologies, rural to urban migration, and growing youth populations are disrupting and putting new pressures on people’s lives and livelihoods.

Our research looks at the impacts of business and markets on development and inequality and explores the potential for novel market-based solutions to work for the poorest and most marginalised based on gender, ethnicity and disability.  It explores alternatives that enable workers, consumers and communities to have a real voice.

It continues to revitalise debates on agriculture as a key pathway out of poverty and towards inclusion, particularly for young people. Our work is focused on identifying what opportunities exist in a period of agricultural commercialisation and rural transformation and how far different groups are able to access them.  It also understands how new technologies such as drones or blockchains pose risks, but can also be harnessed to improve the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people.  In a rapidly urbanising world where cities have become focal points for economic growth, jobs and innovation but also for poverty, inequality, vulnerability and conflict, our work explores what this means for both urban and rural people, and the opportunities and challenges they face in living safe and fulfilling lives.

People

Jodie Thorpe

Research Fellow

Philip Mader

Research Fellow

Richard Jolly

Emeritus Fellow and Research Associate

Ana Pueyo

Research Fellow

Carlos Fortin

Emeritus Fellow and Research Associate

Rachel Sabates-Wheeler

Research Fellow

Keetie Roelen

IDS Honorary Associate

Giel Ton

Research Fellow

Programmes and centres

Projects

Recent work

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Opinion

How aid cuts will shatter global water and sanitation progress

The principle of leaving no one behind is central to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The progress toward achieving SDG 6, which aims to ensure universal access to water, sanitation, and hygiene by 2030 is increasingly under threat with recent development funding cuts posing a...

24 March 2025

Brief

Local Self-Governance on the Somalia–Kenya Border

IDS Policy Briefing 219

Thirty years of civil war, insurgency, and counterinsurgency in Somalia and neighbouring northeastern Kenya have hollowed out state services and left borderland communities beleaguered. Yet in this apparently ‘ungoverned’ space, local self-governance persists. Citizen-led reflection shows...

24 March 2025

News

Community initiatives vital for addressing Brighton & Hove food poverty

Initiatives led by grassroots organisations and community projects in Brighton & Hove are filling in the gaps left by failing welfare and food systems, according to new research released today.  The new research, from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS), found that initiatives...

19 March 2025

Opinion

What is the future of funding for international development?

International development and global humanitarian assistance has been uprooted at the beginning of 2025 due to a series of budget cuts announced to Official Development Assistance (ODA). Most notably, the USAID funding freeze caused shockwaves around the world, removing life-saving assistance...

19 March 2025

Brief

Is Poverty Underestimated Because Males and Females Report Food Security and Food Expenses Differently?

BASIC Research Research Briefing 4

Does the gender of household survey respondents affect the accuracy of reported food consumption? Findings from a randomisation-based survey of beneficiary households in the Productive Safety Net Programme in Ethiopia suggest that it might – with implications for the targeting of such programmes.

19 March 2025

Why learn with us.

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).

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