Development Studies

21st Century Economics

Today’s students, the citizens of 2050, are being taught economics rooted in the 1950s, which are based on the theories of 1850. Kate Raworth argues we need a new, 21st century economics, and proposed its seven key features in “Doughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think like a 21st Century Economist” (2017). In many ways the […]

Tags: #21st Century Economics #21st Century Economist #Development Studies #Doughnut Economics #Economics

Thought Provokers Aug 24

New publication: Designing Knowledge Co-production for Climate and Development

Harvey, B., Cochrane, L., Van Epp, M., Cranston, P., and Pirani, P.A. (2017) Designing Knowledge Co-production for Climate and Development. CARIAA Working Paper #21. International Development Research Centre: Ottawa. Abstract: Climate change poses significant global challenges. Solutions require new ways of working, thinking and acting. Knowledge co-production is often cited as one of the innovations needed […]

Tags: #Climate change #Development Studies #International development #Knowledge coproduction

Research Jul 25

Political Economy of Tanzania

Edwards wrote about Tanzania in 2014, providing an external perspective, largely from purview of the World Bank. For an alternative perspective, readers can pick up Andrew Coulson’s “Tanzania: A Political Economy” (1982), which he wrote from within, as a civil servant and academic in Tanzania. Coulson provides an introduction to Tanzania from the colonial period until […]

Tags: #Africa Socialism #Development Studies #Nyerere #Political Economy #Tanzania

Uncategorized Jul 24

New Publication: The Geography of Development Studies: Leaving No One Behind

Cochrane, L. and Thornton, A. (2017) The Geography of Development Studies. Forum for Development Studies. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/08039410.2017.1345786 Abstract: Whereas the Millennium Development Goals sought reductions, the Sustainable Development Goals have set forth bold new objectives of leaving no one behind. This Commentary explores the continued geographic prioritization and exclusions within development studies research and some of the […]

Tags: #Development Studies #Geography of Development Studies #International development #Leaving No One Behind #Research for Development

Research Jul 6

Interesting Books (300+)

In addition to the “essential” development studies books, some other interesting books include (organized chronologically): Pre1950s On the Genealogy of Morality (1887) Nietzsche Growing up in New Guinea (1930) Mead 1950s Black Skin, While Masks (1952) Fanon 1960s The Fire Next Time (1962) Baldwin The Structure of Scientific Revolution (1962) Kuhn Arabia Felix (1964) […]

Tags: #Book Reviews #Books #Development Studies #Interesting books #International development

Whose Reality Counts?

Twenty years ago Robert Chambers published “Whose Reality Counts? Putting the First Last” (1997). He challenges the academics and professionals to turn how they work upside down. His earlier book, Rural Development (1983) did similarly. In doing so, however, Chambers is not the angry dissident disowning ‘development’, rather he offers an optimistic vision: “That the […]

Tags: #Development Studies #International development #Professionalism #Robert Chambers #Whose Reality Counts

Thought Provokers Feb 25

How Change Happens

Governments, activists, NGOs, politicians and development programs all want change. It is why donor dollars are raised and people protest in the streets. But, how much do we actually know, or reflect upon, how change actually happens – and to what extent is that embedded within how development works? “How Change Happens” (2016) by Duncan Green, […]

Tags: #Civil society #Development Studies #Duncan Green #How change happens #International development

Thought Provokers Dec 15

New Publication: Debt & Rural Development (Ethiopia)

Cochrane, L. and Thornton, A. (2017) A Socio-Cultural Analysis of Smallholder Borrowing and Debt in Southern Ethiopia. Journal of Rural Studies 49: 69-77. Abstract This paper combines qualitative and quantitative research methods in an exploratory study of borrowing and debt in rural southern Ethiopia in order to understand the complexities of the rural finance system […]

Tags: #Debt #Development Studies #Ethiopia #Indebtedness #Rural Development

Research Nov 25

Visiting Fellowships 2017/18 Shanghai University

The Center for the History of Global Development, Shanghai University, invites applications for fellowships for visiting scholars working on projects related to the history of policies, concepts, practices or debates related to socio-economic development on local, national, regional or global levels. The Center for the History of Global Development is a new research focus established at […]

Tags: #Development Studies #Fellowship #History #International development #international development studies

Jobs Nov 23

Adventures in Aidland

Before picking up David Mosse’s “Adventures in Aidland: The Anthropology of Professionals in International Development” (2011), I had read one chapter and had high expectations that it would be an interesting read. I felt the book was torn between two topics that made it less cohesive, and some chapters felt revised to suit a new […]

Tags: #Aidland #Anthropology #Development Studies #Ethnography #International development

Thought Provokers Nov 19

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About me

Logan Cochrane

Associate Professor at HBKU in the College of Public Policy. He is an Associate Fellow of the Ethiopian Academy of Sciences and an Adjunct Professor at Hawassa University (Institute for Policy and Development Research). Over the last fifteen years, he has worked in Afghanistan, Benin, Burundi, Canada, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. Logan acts as a consultant for governmental agencies and non-governmental organizations, seeking to create bridges between research and practice.

Logan Cochrane