In the beginning, the Donors said, “Let us make development in our image, and in our likeness, so that we may bring about changes in developing countries”. And other Government Departments replied, “Yes, but not too much change, and not all at once, who knows What might Happen.” And the Donors did reflect upon this, [...]
Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
The Genesis of Aid (A Parody)
Posted in Uncategorized on February 28, 2012 | 14 Comments »
Reaching the MDGs…
Posted in Uncategorized on October 10, 2011 | 1 Comment »
By political cartoonist Gado Mwampembwa
Simpsons Quotes for Aid Agencies
Posted in Uncategorized on June 6, 2011 | 6 Comments »
On fundraising: Saleswoman: “…this is the first toy made for children, by children, with all profits going to children.” Lisa: “Really?” Saleswoman: ”Well we’re all somebody’s children” On donor decisions: The Superintendent: “But I’m a public servant. I can’t use my judgment.” On UN effectiveness: Principal Skinner: “Do you kids want to be like the real UN? [...]
Management Lessons from the War in Iraq
Posted in Uncategorized on March 23, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
A great talk by Tim Harford drawing from one of the chapters of his forthcoming book Adapt. Much of interest here, especially on emergent, bottom-up strategies and how to make the most of them.
There You Go! A Satirical Cartoon on Sustainable Development
Posted in Uncategorized on March 23, 2011 | 8 Comments »
These images by Oren Ginzberg appear on this blog as a guest post by Katrin Volkov of Survival International. To download the full publication, click here. For more about the work of Survival International, click here. Our original aim was the same as usual: to bring them sustainable development. However, in this specific case we encountered [...]
Aid Proverbs…
Posted in Uncategorized on March 18, 2011 | 7 Comments »
Just a bit of Friday fun, making ten old proverbs relevant to the 21st century aid system… Always make sure you have a problem for every solution. An eye for an eye and soon we will all be in gainful employment. Even a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single logframe. Give a [...]
The Secret Life of Chaos – A Must Watch
Posted in Uncategorized on February 17, 2011 | 2 Comments »
Everyone with an interest in complexity sciences should take some time to watch The Secret Life of Chaos, a fantastic hour long BBC documentary now on Youtube. The documentary explains some key concepts in the complexity sciences including self-organisation, chaos, feedback loops, fractals, flocks and evolution. It also provides insights into the work of pioneers like Alan Turing, [...]
New Campaign For Jargon-Free Aid gets off to slow start
Posted in Uncategorized on February 1, 2011 | 1 Comment »
Following a recent Economist article on jargon in aid… (click on image for full size version) Grateful thanks to Fran Orford for permission to use this piece.
Decisions at Davos
Posted in Uncategorized on January 28, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
H/t Dear Kitty
How do you solve a problem like Malaria?
Posted in Biology, Campaigns, Evaluation, Evolution, Healthcare, Innovation, Institutions, Knowledge and learning, Malaria, Public Policy, Strategy, Uncategorized on January 27, 2011 | 9 Comments »
Big thanks to Alanna Shaikh and Bill Brieger for feedback and comments. Debates about malaria eradication in the aid blogosphere, along with recent scientific evidence, highlight the urgent need to improve our understanding of the complex dynamics of this terrible affliction and to use it to adapt ongoing eradication programmes. A nearly hopeless case? According [...]
