Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
Proposed solutions to climate change are heavily reliant on technological advances.
Considering the initial causes of current warming trends that can be traced back to the
Industrial Revolution, a shift in consumerism may provide better solutions to climate
woes.
Topic:
Climate Change, Science and Technology, and Renewable Energy
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
For decades, international humanitarian assistance has been a supply-driven
enterprise of rich countries funding multilateral and international organisations to
distribute aid in poor and fragile states. To be more demand-driven, we should develop
modalities that enable crisis-affected people to access the help they need.
Topic:
Humanitarian Aid, International Organization, and Crisis Management
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
Are existing environmental campaigns making an impact? Environmental awareness
strategies should incorporate lessons from history and traditions, to bring about more
effective outcomes.
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
There has been a rapid turn towards the use of both physical and digital technologies
in the humanitarian sector. New forms of humanitarian technology (HUMTECH)
encompass both hardware – drones, modular shelters, robots and software, such as
data collection systems, biometric identification programs, block chain components.
Unfettered and uncritical interactions with technology could bring about certain risks.
Topic:
Science and Technology, NGOs, Innovation, and Digital Culture
Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:
The UN Global Assessment Report (GAR) is a comprehensive review and analysis of
worldwide progress on disaster risk management (DRM). This year’s edition
challenges us to move beyond prevailing norms in DRM to consider the complex
nature of systemic risk. What does this shift mean and how will it shape DRM policy,
research, and practice?
Topic:
Development, Migration, United Nations, Risk, Sustainability, and Disaster Management
H. Elizabeth Peters, Shirley Adelstein, and Robert Abare
Publication Date:
04-2019
Content Type:
Commentary and Analysis
Institution:
Urban Institute
Abstract:
Women around the world face barriers to participating in the labor force, especially in traditionally male-dominated sectors. Addressing these barriers in low-income countries can improve both women’s well-being and the countries’ entire economies (PDF).
Building on Urban’s prior research, we recently completed a systematic review (PDF) of qualitative studies of women’s labor force participation and upward mobility. We focused on studies of the higher-productivity, male-dominated sectors of commercial agriculture, mining, and trade and found studies from 18 low-income countries, mostly those in Sub-Saharan Africa, but also in East Asia, South Asia, and Latin America.
Barriers to economic empowerment observed by the studies were far ranging, including gender-related laws, violence and sexual harassment, and limited access to land, technology, technology skills, credit and capital, and social and business networks. But one of the strongest and most consistent findings from our review was the influence of social norms about gender.
The United Nations projects that by 2050, urban areas will swell in size by 2.5 billion people, with 90 percent of that growth occurring in Asia and Africa.
Urbanization presents significant development benefits—boosting innovation, human capital accumulation, and access to opportunities—but it also strains existing physical infrastructure, social services, and public health systems.
To manage the challenges and maximize the benefits of rapid growth, national and municipal governments, civil society, and development partners (among others) must weigh interrelated financial, political, cultural, economic, and technical considerations. For many, the big question is whether cities should build anew in urban peripheries or retrofit and reinvest in urban cores.
At a recent event hosted by the Urban Institute, in partnership with the World Bank, experts considered this question through the lens of one rapidly growing city: Dhaka, Bangladesh, examined in a new World Bank report, Toward Greater Dhaka.
Gentiola Madhi authored, within the Think Visegrad Non-V4 Fellowship programme, an analysis on the state of the affairs of regional cooperation in the Western Balkans.
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Many view the Belt and Road Initiative as the most geoeconomically significant infrastructure project since the Marshall Plan. Promising alternative trade routes, abundant capital flows, and advanced infrastructure to the developing world, the program has scaled significantly since its inception in 2013.
Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
Abstract:
Saudi Vision 2030 — Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman’s bid to diversify his nation’s oil-dependent economy — is one of the most consequential development plans in modern history. So it was no surprise to see MbS, as he is known, grinning with Chinese leaders during his Asian investment trip last month. As Chinese officials raved about the “enormous potential” of the Saudi economy, Saudi officials praised the compatibility of Chinese and Saudi cultures, and MbS even defended China’s maltreatment of Muslim Uighurs