Fragile Truths

There is a growing resentment toward Western aid in recipient countries. There are many possible reasons why: a history of double agendas from donors, creating dependencies; a strong desire for self-determination; an increasingly multipolar world – the list goes on. It’s about time to discuss the unexpected outcomes of aid that can lead to the backlash or undermining of the

A string of coups and regime changes in 2021 and 2022 triggered the question: How should the international community respond to such situations? Do you disengage your support and thereby leave people to their threatening fate, or stay engaged with the risk of legitimizing abusive governments? Our guest, Betty Wainaina (NYU-CIC), worked on a report that highlights responsible opt

In 2022, the Colombian Truth Commission published its 10.000-page thick report ‘Hay Futuro Si Hay Verdad’. It describes the immense impact the conflict had – and still has – on the victims of the civil war and society as a whole. Together with María Prada (former advisor to the Truth Commission’s President), we discuss the different roles a Truth Commission has, such as

When we think of security, we usually think of weapons, patrols, war and crime. For many indigenous people in Colombia however, security is more linked to well-being of the collective community and its natural environment. Our guest, Cristina Hoyos (DCAF), represents a recent research on indigenous strategies to adapt to climate change and their broader interpretation of security.

Violence and poverty have a large impact on one’s “mental landscape”, as our guest Mareike Schomerus, Vice President of Busara, refers to it. A ‘mental landscape’ encompasses the many experiences, memories and emotions that influence your decisions such as biases and expectations; your willingness to take risks, and what you think is fair or just. Western peacebuilders of

Peacebuilding initiatives regularly only produce small scale, short-lived results. Our guest Dr. Sukanya Podder (researcher at King’s College London) says it’s time to think in terms of the Peacebuilding Legacy. That means: not-too-tightly planned interventions that fit local norms and behavior, and - with the help of youth leadership - take different interpretations

Climate change discussions are often about emissions, finance and sustainable alternatives. However, today’s guests bring in women’s stories; a perspective seldomly included in climate action. Climate change especially affects those who are dependent from natural resources, have little capacity to adapt and are excluded from power. Due to everyday gender dynamics, these charact

In our work, we talk about ‘trust’ a lot. Trust between groups, trust within partnerships, trust between people and their governments. However, especially in security contexts, trust can play various roles - in addition, what is considered trustworthy differs across contexts and regions. That’s why Viktoria Budde from the Institute for

‘Inclusive governance’ is the rising star of development lingo in a time of rising authoritarianism and shrinking civic space. But do the Global North and Global South share a common understanding of what it is, and are development actors aware of what it takes to support this? In this episode, thinktank ECDPM’s Head of Democratic Governance, Jean Bossuyt, wrote a position pa

There is not enough evidence to show that evidence leads to better development policies and programming. This ironic conclusion comes from the paper ‘What Have We Learned About Learning?’, by International Development Consultant, Dr. Pablo Yanguas. Dr. Yanguas is our guest this episode, discussing how the development sector’s many investments in M&E, research and knowledg