How the development sector can foster true allyship with social movements

For many communities at the centre of social movements, their needs are rapidly changing with multiple global crises. What they need from global development and advocates is an open dialogue to address their concerns.

‘Things can turn on a dime’: Six global development leaders on lessons learned in 2021

2022 will bring more intense climate catastrophes and a spike in global COVID-19 cases, among other disasters. In order to effectively manage both disasters and their effect on existing humanitarian emergencies, INGOs need to reflect on their performance this year.

In-depth conversation: Are the SDGs relevant anymore? Devex editor Raj Kumar weighs in

Global inequality is at a high — vaccine inequity is a salient example. As the Global North begins to recover, much of the Global South is still grappling with the pandemic’s social, health, and economic devastation. How NGOs, agencies, and governments engage in global development will be crucial for global recovery.

Ten concrete ways INGOs can decolonize their aid work

The colonial legacy of global aid is difficult to uproot from the sector’s current practices, operations, and hiring. Without serious reflection by Global North operations, these colonial practices will only continue to manifest themselves during humanitarian crises.

When the "other" becomes a mirror: Reflecting on why sensitivity training assumes international development workers are white

Humanitarian aid and international development organizations are beginning to have important conversations about race, class, and other markers of privilege. But while international development used to be a predominantly white field, the tides are changing, and the historic realities of white development workers are no longer the norm. Racialized development workers deserve support and training that understand their experiences.

Here are the world’s 10 most overlooked humanitarian crises of 2020

Global development and humanitarian aid are major priorities for the Canadian government, with $400 million in new funding aimed at improving COVID-19 vaccination in poor countries. However, the virus comes amid other major problems in the Global South. Hunger, climate change, and violence are still major issues in countries Canada routinely supports with aid.

Humanitarian organizations rely on fossil fuels. Here’s how Médecins Sans Frontières is cutting its carbon footprint down

Humanitarian work has climate impacts. Nearly all of the transportation, logistical, and power generation required to keep a field hospital operational depends on fossil fuel use. Not addressing these issues — especially as more people suffer from the effects of climate change — is antithetical to the principles of international aid.

Canadian leads new global Center for Sustainable Development

With less than a decade before the deadline to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals, COVID-19 has set back progress. Poverty is increasing for the first time in decades. Gender inequity is at a high. Overcoming these crises will take extraordinary global and whole-of-society cooperation, which this new Center aims to catalyze.

Trudeau’s $400 million international COVID-19 plan is feminist — but is it enough?

Women and girls are leading the charge on COVID-19 response efforts around the world. Yet many women around the world are seeing an alarming rise in domestic violence. Canada has earmarked $400 million towards humanitarian aid with a focus on women — a move INGO sector advocates say is hugely important.

Canada needs a complete foreign policy overhaul. Here’s why — and how.

There’s been much talk in recent weeks about Canada’s Security Council seat loss, but humanitarian and international affairs expert Rahul Chandran says there’s a set of deeper questions to explore. How can Canada uproot the racist foundations its foreign policy is built on? Is its foreign policy truly compassionate? Is it future-proof for a post-pandemic world?

Four social impact leaders on how COVID-19 has shifted their perspectives on the SDGs

Ten years out from the deadline for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the entire world was turned upside down by the Coronavirus pandemic. While the crisis may have taken some spotlight away from the SDGs, these social impact leaders say it’s also deepened their understanding of what needs to change in order to meet the Goals in an inclusive, meaningful way.