Power to the People: Development as Empowerment?

Where does the power lie in international and global development? How is power produced and practised? How should we engage with development’s image as an emancipatory and empowering force? 

As development continues to engage with debates around decolonisation, the Sheffield Institute for International Development (SIID) and York’s Interdisciplinary Global Development Centre (IGDC), in conjunction with the White Rose Doctoral Training Partnership’s Civil Society, Development & Democracy (CDD) Pathway, invite current postgraduate students and scholars recently awarded PhDs to present their research and engage with debates on topics including, but not limited to:

• Political Economy
• Governance & Politics
• Climate Change
• Environment & Conservation
• Conflict & Security
• International Relations
• Smart Cities
• Urban & Rural Development
• Race, Gender, Sexuality
• Migration
• Health, Wellbeing and Disability
• Water and Sanitation
• Poverty, Inequality & Injustice
• Development Economics
• Food Security & Agriculture

Our Aim

This one and a half-day event in Sheffield will aim to provide a supportive academic atmosphere that will facilitate the sharing of current research across the multiplicity of disciplines that comprise development studies. The conference aims to provide space specifically for postgraduate students to present their research and engage in debates shaping understandings of development in 2020. We are keen to hear from a broad and diverse range of academic and practitioner-based research perspectives.

This year the conference will coincide with the SIID Annual Lecture. Throughout the conference, open forums, networking and social events will be held. Refreshments, including lunch, will also be provided.

Prizes and Publication

Prizes of £100 each will be awarded to stand-out participants, while exceptional papers will have an opportunity to be guided and supported by SIID staff and journal editors with a view to publication in international journals.

Applications

We warmly welcome the submission of abstracts of 250 words by those wishing to present at the conference, by 14 February 2020. Email enquiries to siidigdcpgconference2020@gmail.com. 

Successful applicants will be notified by the end of that month.

Registration will cost £40 per person, which includes lunch on both days. A number of travel and accommodation bursaries are also available on a limited basis. Please email us if you wish to apply for either, or both, bursaries.