Institute of Development Policy - Development Studies

🎥 Did you miss the Dudley Seers Lecture?
🌍 What would a Global Constitution for our planet look like?
With the world on track to cross the 1.5°C warming threshold in the coming years, our current political and economic systems are struggling to respond. In this thought-provoking lecture, Joyeeta Gupta (University of Amsterdam, Spinoza Prize winner) presents a bold vision of Earth System Justice—arguing for a bottom-up, multilateral approach where citizens around the world can help co-create a Global Constitution to protect both people and the planet.

🎙️ Moderated by renowned author and thinker David Van Reybrouck, the session offers fresh perspectives on the future of climate governance and collective action.

👉 Good news: you can now watch the full lecture online: https://loom.ly/YO9n5Fg

💬 Essential viewing for anyone interested in climate justice, global governance, and systemic solutions to today’s crises.

A full day of rich discussions at !
From green finance and structural transformation to gender justice, digitalisation, and food systems, today’s sessions reflected the depth and diversity of debates shaping global development.

Highlights included:
✅Green transitions & finance — critical reflections on instruments, fossil fuel persistence, and the global implications of the EU Green Deal
✅Food systems & agriculture — from territorial governance and smallholder livelihoods to new theories of agrarian change and digital farming
✅Justice & inclusion — powerful conversations on gender justice, youth climate activism, reparations, and epistemic justice
✅Shifting global dynamics — discussions on structural transformation, multinational companies, global finance, and changing geopolitical orders
✅Knowledge & practice — participatory research, indigenous knowledge systems, and innovative pedagogies for sustainable futures

And to wrap up the day:
🎓 Dudley Seers Lecture – livestream tonight at 19:30
🖥️ Join Joyeeta Gupta (University of Amsterdam) via live stream:
https://lnkd.in/eCD-avyH
Don’t miss this key moment of the conference!

EADI/IOB Conference 2026 officially started!

​What an incredible kickoff to "Shaping Sustainable Futures: Global Challenges, Glocal Solutions". Day 1 was packed from morning until night with deep insights, critical discussions, and powerful networking.

​Here is a quick recap of how we started on Monday, June 29:

​🎬 Morning Screenings & Welcomes: We kicked off the day with screenings of "Cobalt Rush", winner of the Premier Award at the Learning on Screen Awards 2023, and "Refugee Stories". The Refugee Stories project provides data-driven, scientific insights into camp life, following five refugees across different income levels to challenge stereotypes and build a truly representative portrait.

​🎓 Empowering Early Career Researchers: Two crucial sessions focused on the future of academia, delving into the secrets of publishing with The European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes Journal of Development Research (EJDR) and mastering the art of successful research proposals to get funded.

💡 Deep-Dive Parallel Sessions: The afternoon saw vibrant debates across a massive range of critical global development topics, including citizen data, gender justice, rethinking poverty, water governance, and the paradox of 'sustainable mining'.

🥂 Opening Plenary & Celebration: We wrapped up day one with the official Welcome Words, a thought-provoking Opening Plenary on Security and Development, and celebrated outstanding achievements at the conference reception with the IOB Alumni Impact Award and EJDR Best Paper Award!

​Thank you to everyone who brought their energy, ideas, and passion to the table today. We are just getting started! 🚀

​👇 Check out photos from our first day. What was your favorite session or takeaway from Day 1? Let us know in the comments!

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European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI)

⏰ Last days to register for !
The countdown is on. Registration for the EADI-IOB General Conference 2026 closes on 22 June.
Join researchers, practitioners and policymakers from around the world for four days of inspiring discussions on:
🌍 Sustainable futures and global challenges
💡 Keynotes, panels and roundtables
🤝 Networking and collaboration opportunities
💻 On-site and online participation

📅 29 June – 2 July 2026
📍 Antwerp + Online
Don't miss your chance to be part of the conversation.

👉 Register before 22 June: https://bit.ly/eadi-2026

New publication | Understanding the roots of mining conflicts in the DRC
What drives the violence around cobalt mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo?
In their latest ROAPE blog, Espérant Mwishamali Lukobo and Sara Geenen challenge dominant narratives that portray artisanal miners as “illegal” or inherently violent. Instead, they show how deeper structural issues—economic and political marginalisation, unequal power relations, and top-down policies—are at the heart of these tensions.
Drawing on the analysis of 200 security incidents, the authors reveal how the criminalisation of artisanal mining not only misrepresents reality, but can actually fuel further insecurity and conflict.
👉 Read the full article: https://roape.net/2026/05/27/the-miners-anger/

The miners' anger | ROAPE Shops looted, police stations ransacked, roads barricaded, buses damaged, lorries burnt. The artisanal miners of Lualaba and Haut-Katanga provinces – the cobalt and copper heartland of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) – are angry. In January 2026, Congolese media outlet Kilalopress rep...

🌱 Transformation and grounds for hope
How can we rethink development in times of climate crisis and global uncertainty?
The closing plenary of invites us to explore new ways of living, producing, and imagining sustainable futures — grounded in diverse knowledge systems and alternative perspectives.
💡 A thought-provoking session that sets the tone for four days of critical debate, exchange, and inspiration.

👉 Join us from the start: https://bit.ly/eadi-2026

European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI)

🎓 A glimpse into the programme
What’s next in the fight against poverty?
How is digitalisation transforming social protection?
Can green transitions truly be just?
At , panels take a deep dive into today’s most urgent development challenges — bringing together global perspectives and grounded local insights.
With a rich and diverse programme, expect critical debates, fresh ideas, and meaningful exchanges shaping the future of development.
👉 Don’t miss out: https://bit.ly/eadi-2026

European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI)

🌍 Roundtables @ EADI2026
Some of the most engaging conversations at will take place around the conference roundtables.
Across 11 roundtables, researchers, practitioners, policymakers and community voices will come together to discuss pressing questions shaping development studies today:
🔹 Research sovereignty and knowledge equity in Africa
🔹 Indigenous philosophies and sustainable futures
🔹 Data, digital technologies and development
🔹 Decolonising knowledge for development
🔹 Global governance in the Anthropocene
🔹 Innovative and transdisciplinary research methods
🔹 Development cooperation in a changing world
🔹 Decent work, inclusion and social transformation
From local realities to global challenges, these sessions embody the conference theme:
Shaping Sustainable Futures: Global Challenges, (G)local Solutions?
Join the debate, exchange ideas, and help shape new pathways for research, policy and practice.
📅 29 June – 2 July 2026
📍 Antwerp & Online
👉 Explore all roundtables: https://bit.ly/eadi-2026

European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI)