Aidnography

Hi all, This final post before the traditional summer break until early August is filled with interesting stories from around the #globaldev world again! UN whistleblowers, MSF visual communication, racism in UK aid, modern slavery in Haiti, economic collapse in Lebanon & Sri Lanka, digital scams in Myanmar, SDG-bashing, border regimes & the racist roots of Japanese IR-on a lighter note, the archive section features Louise Linton & the worst aid worker biography that was ever written ;) ! Happy Midsomer from Southern Sweden, have a great July & see you back in August with more #globaldev!! New from  aidnography Writing the “perfect” application letter for our MA in Communication for Development–insights from the first 2000 letters As part of our application process for our MA in Communication for Development program we encourage applicants to submit a short application letter together with all the other application documents since 2016. (...) There is probably a big...

As part of our application process for our MA in Communication for Development program we encourage applicants to submit a short application letter together with all the other application documents since 2016. Applications are formally reviewed by Sweden’s University Admission authority and our teaching team only reads and grades the short letters for additional points in the application score. We ask applicants to answer two short questions (about 500 words each) which we call “description of experiences” and “letter of intent” so applicants can write a bit more about their background and why they decided to apply to our program. We receive between 200-300 letters each year and even though we are a team of 6-7 teachers and I have not read each and every letter a few patterns have emerged as to what makes a good, solid letter and what some of the pitfalls are that are best to avoid or address directly. There is probably a bigger lesson to learn here as I think some of the issues not j...

Hi all, I addition to #globaldev news from Ukraine, Oxfam, Japan & Colombia there are a few really great new papers on 'digital famine', the future of development studies & labor organisation in South Africa that are worth bookmarking for your summer reading list! My quote of the week Despite raising significant sums of money in the first days and weeks of the crisis, international organisations could not provide rapid infusions of resources to strengthen and expand the existing local response efforts while they ramped up their own programming. Instead, three months later, most of the money was still unused, sitting with international organisations that are constrained from funding by compliance requirements that are too heavy and time-consuming for small volunteer groups to meet.  (Enabling the local response: Emerging humanitarian priorities in Ukraine March–May 2022) Development news Enabling the local response: Emerging humanitarian priorities in Ukraine March–May 2...

Hi all, It's great to be back after wrapping up teaching for the semester & enjoying more than 20 of our MA students presenting their thesis work (some even in person :), participate in our faculty's graduation event & joining us for a dinner of authentic, fantastic Syrian food in Malmö! And than there is your weekly tour-de-force through #globaldev stuff from Ghana to PNG, from nudging to storytelling, from blockchain to the Venice Biennale! Enjoy! My quotes of the week Ultimately, having a digital wallet to manage money cannot solve the root problems of abject poverty and oppression. Responsible, just, and mindful innovation is a matter of understanding people’s concerns, subjectivities, resources, relationships, and choices. Humanitarian agencies and their corporate and government partners promote big data technologies, high-tech infrastructures, and the insights, targeting, and optimization they facilitate. But refugee women workers’ perspectives show that sometimes...

Hi all, This week's debate about MSF's use of images in their communication is a important reminder that the industry has barely started to engage with the past, present & future of visual communication-but also that blanked accusations that humanitarian organizations just do it for the fundraising brushes over so many nuances & important work on the ground. Compassion, humanitarian instinct, upstream vs downstream #globaldev, white supremacy & social capital are some of the other big words that we are tackling in this week's post from Romania to Yemen. As I already mentioned in Tuesday's newsletter , it's thesis examination time so there won't be a newsletter next Friday as we are celebrating our students in real life with a Syrian dinner in Malmö! My quotes of the week This research serves as a reminder that Yemenis are interested in more than just the satisfaction of their essential needs (such as water, food, and shelter). It highlights the diver...