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Meceburi Forest, near Nampula, Mozambique (Photo: Mike Goldwater)
The Musketeers of development
… process? Let's look at the whole set and see if it all works for our sector and if our sector is working for all.  The ' Zero Draft (PDF) ' of the SDGs … Camilla Toulmin made very clear in her blog last month . None of us work in silos. The success of one sector depends very much on the …
Insight, 16 July 2014
Hundreds of power-tillers from China lie unused in Ethiopia. They can be used to plow, power a water-pump, and generate electricity, but low sales were thought to be caused by a lack of technical information, showing how China's role in African agriculture must be researched (Photo: IFPRI-IMAGES, Creative Commons, via Flickr)
Chinese engagement in African agriculture is not what it seems
… on the ground. Working with African, Chinese and European colleagues, our team investigated Chinese engagements in agriculture in four … featured prominently as priorities for Chinese investment and aid. Our just-completed project is reported in a new open access special … and stayed, encouraging others to join them from China. Through our work, we were able to gain a snapshot of the early stages of Chinese …
Insight, 06 April 2016
With over half the world's refugees, such as these in Thailand, now living in large towns and cities where they are confronted by a unique set of challenges, the traditional image of life in tented, sprawling camps no longer tells the full refugee story (Photo: Andrew McConnell/Panos Pictures/IRC)
Towards a humanitarian's handbook for cities in crisis
… humanitarian ways of working, which are traditionally geared towards work in rural areas or maintaining camps. There are two critical … a needs assessment to ascertain the type and scale of response. But our review of these tools found that not one of the many needs … considered and the task can seem impossible. So what can be done? In our review , we argue that an urban needs assessment must cover multiple …
Insight, 16 November 2016
Our successful animation was devised to popularise the Sustainable Development Goals. But that doesn't mean we didn't make mistakes (Image: IIED/Hands Up)
Global goals, global audience – how well did we score?
… These are the first words in an animation – available above and on our  YouTube channel  – that we created three months ago to raise … approach for IIED. Rather than highlighting specific areas of our own expertise or speaking to an identified audience of policymakers, … We quickly realised that a list of all the goals was not going to work and that starting from the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) was …
Insight, 18 September 2015
IIED director Camilla Toulmin speaking at the 2014 Barbara Ward Lecture at the British Library (Photo: Julius Honnor/IIED)
Handing over the reins at a strong institution
… are IIED's best asset – those within the organisation and across our diverse network of long-standing partners. People are at the heart … organisation pulling together. Like many other organisations of our kind, there remains a fundamental tension, which can be creative and … patient processes – such as embedding climate change across all our work, and successfully moving to new premises three years ago, a project …
Insight, 01 December 2014
Cover for 16521IIED.pdf
Small producer agency in the globalised market: making choices in a changing world
… the right questions. Instead of thinking about how to ‘make markets work for the poor’, we must look at how small-scale farmers make markets … with vibrant informal and local economies. This book challenges our institutions and the development community, both in terms of our assumptions on the roles of smallholders and agribusiness and how we …
Publication, 01 November 2012
World Oceans Day logo
Protecting the world's oceans: three key tasks
… of the world's poorest people, and for the preservation of our planet. Norton says ;a key priority is to understand the value of … The second priority that Norton identifies is getting poor people who work in coastal environments to engage in protecting oceans and coastal … a new thing, but it's a very important thing. At the moment half of our planet does not have a governance farmework. "At IIED we want to see …
News, 08 June 2016
Picture of the Rainforest Alliance logo on a bunch of flowers.
Shaping Sustainable markets
… tested in the real world – providing new ideas for 'shaping' markets. Our ultimate objective is to improve how market governance mechanisms … Whether you are a business professional, policymaker or researcher, our results will help you in your work.  How we do it We analyse existing literature and carry out primary …
Project, 19 April 2013
A Congolese vendor sells handkerchiefs on the pavement in central Kampala. Congolese refugees dispersed throughout the city often lack the social and economic support networks necessary to find work or to start a business (Photo: William Monteith/IIED)
Refugee livelihoods in Ugandan cities: mind the gap between policy and practice
… country's 2006 Refugee Act, establishing refugees' rights to live, work, and start businesses in towns and cities has been hailed as … Action Lab at Makerere University in Uganda. Mixed opportunities Our early results suggest that while policies are in place to give … sell from but I cannot reach because of fear And nearly two thirds of our Congolese participants reported experiences of discrimination on the …
Insight, 22 March 2017
A woman in Malawi carries a solar panel above her head through a forest path
Climate adaptation: its time is now
… mitigation – on how to curb further climate risk and avoid pushing our planet towards climate crisis. But recent years – and months – have … The system for delivering climate finance where it is needed does not work. Not only is there not enough funding, but the systems for …
Insight, 29 May 2019