I am one of those terrible people who never have enough time, always busy, with too many urgent things to do or meetings to attend. I am constantly zapping and scanning and sniffing around, to get an idea of what is going on in the many fields of science, policy and politics. I am probably like many readers of The Broker who need not only to keep up to date in their specific area of expertise, but also to be aware of issues emerging in a broad range of fields related to global development. Yet there is never enough time to read the hundreds of journals, magazines, websites and other media that are now available.   Read more>>

Extreme weather events, partly caused by climate change, are already wreaking havoc, especially in the South. Both floods and droughts are expected to become more frequent and more severe and more people will be forced to live in vulnerable areas. But who will pay for the measures needed to respond to the impacts of climate change?   Read more>>

In the complex field of development cooperation, where there are no silver bullets, knowledge is essential. Although NGOs are taking more interest in knowledge management, they have so far failed to recognize that they are part of a knowledge industry, of which the delivery of goods and services is only a part.   Read more>>

Malaria is a ‘disease of poverty’, and is spreading as the parasite’s resistance to cheap medicines grows. There are hopes that public–private partnerships will help in the development and testing of new drugs. But the most vulnerable groups, including pregnant women and children, must be involved in clinical trials.   Read more>>

Are shared democratic values and norms within political systems the most important factors in promoting peace between countries, or common economic interests? New econometric research shows that, in the case of India and Pakistan, trade with other countries increases the chance of peace.   Read more>>

It is a well known anecdote that NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, was inaugurated back in 1949 with a small ceremony in the Department of State, during which the house orchestra played George Gershwin’s I Got Plenty of Nothing. Champagne glasses were raised and diplomats congratulated each other with promises, not guarantees.   Read more>>

Does development aid support technological learning and innovation? Or are market linkages a better boost for the development of technological capabilities in, say, Togo or Cambodia? These are some of the questions addressed in the 2007 UNCTAD Least Developed Countries report, Knowledge, Technological Learning and Innovation for Development.   Read more>>

One of the hot books in international development circles at the moment is Paul Collier’s The Bottom Billion: Why the Poorest Countries are Failing and What Can Be Done About It, by Paul Collier, formerly of the World Bank and currently director of the Centre for the Study of African Economies at the University of Oxford.   Read more>>

This autumn the Development Policy Review Network (DPRN) held several meetings aimed at encouraging debate between academics, policy makers and practitioners in the field of development in the Netherlands and Flanders. To overcome the ‘difficult-to-bridge gap’ between these groups, every year the Network organizes meetings about 13 selected regions in the developing world. Each regional meeting focuses on a specific issue, and the DPRN publishes reports with policy recommendations online.   Read more>>

Broker readers interested in cross-disciplinary research at the edge of science and technology and social sciences may want to browse these two websites: www.4sonline.org and www.historyoftechnology.org. Both look at science and technology in their historical contexts: how does – and did – technology interact with society, culture and political, economic, social, and psychological developments.   Read more>>

How do the urban poor make ends meet? They sell home-made snacks, repair cars in their back yard, and wash and mend clothes while babysitting. A recent study by Hebe Verrest in the Caribbean cities of Paramaribo (Suriname) and Port of Spain (Trinidad and Tobago) shows the importance of these so-called ‘home-based economic activities’ (HBEAs). They bring in indispensable money for 40% of households in the neighbourhoods studied. Most of these home-based entrepreneurs are women.   Read more>>