Our latest podcast episode features GDI's Elisa Gambino, interviewed by colleague Rory Horner about her latest paper: 'Flexible embeddedness: how Chinese lead firms internationalise in Africa'. This is a fantastic episode which you can now listen to right here: www.buzzsprout.com/2017560/epis...

An article written by Abiola Olatunji and GDI colleagues Lawrence Ado-Kofie and Osman Ouattara investigates whether infrastructure development helps poor economies escape low-income traps or transition to higher-income levels. Read the open-access paper here onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/...

The IOB funding cut threatens students, global collaboration, and Flanders’ international role. Help us defend it! #saveIOB 💙 Sign our alumni's petition: https://chng.it/8DhtrFSBpm#saveIOB

We at GDI are immensely disheartened to hear that @iobua.bsky.social has been informed by the Flemish government that their core funding will not be renewed. If you would like to show your support and take action, you can sign this petition: bit.ly/46uCzYj

A press release from @manchester.ac.uk announces new funding for a 4-year programme that will transform how irrigation is monitored across Sub-Saharan Africa. GDI's Rose Pritchard will be involved with this project alongside UoM's Timothy Foster and Polyanna Bispo. Learn more: bit.ly/481FM2y

📰 Our newsletter ist out, read it here or in your inbox! Featuring @idos-research.bsky.social's Justice in Global Economic Governance, @isdcberlin.bsky.social and their fragile lives conference and much more mailchi.mp/eadi/nl2sept...

With Ethiopia’s Grand Renaissance Dam operational, debates over the future of the Nile are entering a new phase In his open-access book, @tomlavers.bsky.social reveals how dam building has shaped Ethiopia’s international standing and unpacks the promises and perils of megaprojects - bit.ly/3Vk2yeB

A hybrid lecture on Mon 15 Sep will focus on understanding the links between urban and infrastructural transformation and destruction in the face of the ongoing genocide in Palestine. The session will feature presentations from Prof Haim Yacobi (UCL) and Chloé Chbat (UoM) Register: bit.ly/46fwX2M

There are just ten days left to enter our photo competition exploring the migrant body in south-south migration. Selected photos will be featured at a conference on the Migrant Body hosted later this year, and there are cash prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. More info: bit.ly/429obls

Don't forget to register for our next Community of Practice on Tues 16 September! This session will ask 'what does it take to turn toxic organisations into thriving organisations?' You can register for either the 8am or 2pm session here: events.manchester.ac.uk/event/event:...

The Emperor’s New Clothes? Why localisation still leaves power in northern hands writes @globaldevinst.bsky.social’s Nicola Banks and Gijs van Selm blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/the-emperors...

The Second Cold War Observatory has released a new podcast episode with Jack Taggart, Senior Lecturer at @qubelfastofficial.bsky.social. The episode dives into USAID cuts and what they mean for the contested terrain of development and aid in today’s world. Listen here: bit.ly/4p0OlR8

GDI's Pritish Behuria has appeared in the media several times over the past week to discuss his upcoming paper on luxury tourism in Africa. In an interview with @sabcnews.bsky.social, Pritish outlines his findings that this tourism often fails to benefit local communities: bit.ly/3HSENao

A new paper by GDI's Tom Gillespie (@t-a-gillespie.bsky.social) and co-author Claire Mercer provides a critical overview of the frontier as a "conceptual lens that can generate new insights into the twenty-first century urban." Read the open-access paper here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

What challenges do development practitioners face when building their personal resilience? New on the blog, Louisa Hann and Natalie Cunningham reflect on the first Community of Practice of the semester, which took place earlier this month. Read here: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/what-challen...

New on the blog, GDI Honorary Research Fellow Gemma Sou and co-author Clare Steele write about the relationship between austerity in the UK and our ability to cope with climate change. Read here: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/15-years-of-...

For decades, African nations were encouraged to chase wealthy, 'high-value' tourists as a path to economic growth and sustainability. But a new study from @globaldevinst.bsky.social reveals that this strategy often does more harm than good. 🔗 Read more: www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/l...

Dr Pritish Behuria of @globaldevinst.bsky.social says it is time to remember why aid was created in the first place – and why it is still desperately needed. Paper: @idos-research.bsky.social.

✍️ In our latest blog, @globaldevinst.bsky.social's Saumik Paul and @andypsumner.bsky.social argue that, with regard to inequality globally, something new has emerged over the last decade akin to a flatlining or plateauing. www.developmentresearch.eu?p=2334

GDI's Nicola Banks and @lseid.bsky.social's Gijs van Selm have published a new paper on Northern NGO-centrism in localisation processes. On the GDI blog, they tell us why this matters: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/the-emperors...

A new article in @theconversation.com by Gerald Arhin and Pritish Behuria considers the organisation of mineral wealth in both Ghana and Rwanda. Read here: theconversation.com/are-african-...

GDI's Elisa Gambino (@drelisagambino.bsky.social) and colleague Costanza Franceschini have published a new open-access paper examining the internationalisation of Chinese lead firms in Africa. Learn more about the paper in the video below, and read in full here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

🌱 Fostering resilience in development work means building teams with psychological safety, emotional intelligence & space for vulnerability. These are key to well-being & high-pressure response. 📖 This and all other @globaldevinst.bsky.social news here: www.devstud.org.uk/2025/07/16/g...

We are so excited to welcome all of our new and returning students to GDI this September 🎉 Our Welcome Week will kick off on the 22 September, an important week to meet everyone and learn about the semester ahead. Here you will find all of the timetable information you will need: bit.ly/3HycQEu

We invite researchers and practitioners to submit extended abstracts or full papers linked to the conference theme 'The Future of Development Economics'. The conference will take place December 11-12 at @manchester.ac.uk. Learn more and submit: bit.ly/41Iihrb

An article in @uk.theconversation.com by GDI's Rory Horner and colleague Fidele Ebia explores how the manufacturing of African print textiles has shifted to China in the 21st Century. Read here: theconversation.com/togos-nana-b...

"These insights carry both epistemic and ethical implications, drawing attention to the problematic relationship between datafication and humanitarian principles" Read this paper by Gianluca Iazzolino, on prediction and data curation in digital humanitarianism: journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...

“I’m a ‘privileged’ researcher from a Global North university”: When reflexivity becomes performative (and why that matters) by @anuradhaganapathy.bsky.social, @globaldevinst.bsky.social, University of Manchester blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/im-a-privile...

Aid isn't Charity, it's about Justice. That's what Dr Pritish Behuria, from @globaldevinst.bsky.social, says in today's debates about foreign aid. He calls for global solidarity in the face of aid budget cuts. 🔗 www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/e... @manchester.ac.uk @uomseed.bsky.social

"In the Atacama Desert, extraction is grounded in accumulated experience, in pre-existing infrastructures, and in long-lasting symbolic legacies." Read our latest blog post by postgrad researcher Esteban Valle Riestra: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/silence-dust...

In a new pod ep, PhD researcher Anuradha Ganapathy dives into her recent think piece, discussing alternative approaches to analysing disinformation - moving away from platform centricity and toward an understanding of gendered commodity chains and unpaid labour. Listen here: bit.ly/45TQXYD

One of our joint working groups with @devcomms.bsky.social has an interesting call for workshops out! Apply by 20 September! www.eadi.org/news-2/re-es...

🌍 Development practitioners: facing burnout or seeking support? @globaldevinst.bsky.social's Natalie Cunningham is launching Communities of Practice to help build resilience in these turbulent times. 🧠 Open to current & aspiring professionals. 🔗 bit.ly/3QbXsc1 #DevPractitioners

GDI's PhD Political Economy Working Group invite submissions of short position papers for a workshop: “(Re-) establishing Political Economy in Development Studies”, to be held on Fri 5 December 2025 in Manchester. Submissions welcome from early career researchers. More info: bit.ly/4lZdUjG

In a new article for TGHAT, Teklehaymanot G. Weldemichel (@tekgw.bsky.social) writes about the war in Tigray in the context of enduring internal colonialism in Ethiopia, drawing on insights from Frantz Fanon. Read here: tghat.com/2025/08/03/t...

Our first Community of Practice of semester 1 will take place on Tues 19 August 🎉 Join us at either 8am or 2pm BST to discuss the challenges development practitioners face when developing their personal resilience. 8am: zoom.us/meeting/regi... 2pm: zoom.us/meeting/regi... All welcome!

GDI's Pritish Behuria has published a new chapter in an @idos-research.bsky.social discussion paper exploring development policy in the Trump Era. Pritish's chapter considers a pivotal moment for the future of development assistance. Read here: www.idos-research.de/fileadmin/us...

Many thanks to Cornell AAP for inviting me to discuss my research on affordable housing production as a site of urban statecraft

We’re delighted to welcome Prof Khalid Nadvi on his first day as the new Head of the School of Environment, Education and Development. Khalid has held previous positions as Managing Director of @globaldevinst.bsky.social and Director of Research in the School. Learn more: bit.ly/3UGydX6

🌱 Fostering resilience in development work means building teams with psychological safety, emotional intelligence & space for vulnerability. These are key to well-being & high-pressure response. 📖 Read more on the @globaldevinst.bsky.social blog: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/reflections-...

GDI's Saumik Paul has co-written a new discussion paper for the World Bank exploring vertical skills mismatch in Türkiye. Learn more and read in full here: documents.worldbank.org/en/publicati...

A new blog by Anuradha Ganapathy interrogates the question of who researches and who is being researched. Read here: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/im-a-privile...

A new chapter by Tanja Bastia and colleagues in The Routledge Handbook of Field Research considers the experiences – challenges, opportunities, considerations, consequences – of conducting field research as a parent. Read here: www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edi...

Mark your diaries for our 2025/26 Communities of Practice, facilitated by Dr Natalie Cunningham 📅 Our first CoP will take place on Tues 19 August, considering what challenges development practitioners face when developing their personal resilience. 8AM BST: bit.ly/4o2bGl0 2PM BST: bit.ly/4m9vDFr

GDI researcher Arash Beidollahkhani has published a new open-access paper exploring the political and social dynamics surrounding the U.S. and allied forces' withdrawal from Afghanistan. Read here: digitalcommons.usf.edu/jss/vol18/is...

Bina Agarwal has written a new chapter for the book Filmonomics, in which economists discuss the silver screen. Bina's chapter draws on two films, Mirch Masala and Manthan, to discuss the ways in which women might cooperate in resisting economic and social inequalities. Read here: bit.ly/44STaEl

A new article written by Bina Agarwal for The Wire considers a case in the Supreme Court of India, which ruled in favour of tribal women’s rights in ancestral property. "This judgement can have momentous ramifications, much beyond its specific context." Read here: thewire.in/law/a-moment...

In a new paper, Mushtaq Khan, Sumaiya Kabir and GDI's Sophie van Huellen (@sophievanhuellen.bsky.social) explore skills training, corruption and organisational capabilities in Bangladesh's garment industry. Read here: www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

New on our pod, Sophie van Huellen and Fuad Mohammed Abubakar talk to Caroline Cornier about their work on the political economy of the Ghanaian cocoa sector. Sophie and Fuad discuss poor harvests, changes to financing models, impacts on farmers, and more. www.buzzsprout.com/2017560/epis...

Earlier this month, GDI's Tom Gillespie delivered a lecture at @cornellaap.bsky.social exploring the scale of the 21st-century urban housing challenge. Learn more and watch the lecture here: blog.gdi.manchester.ac.uk/affordable-h...