Text by Carlo Manalansan Photos by Tom Weerachat “When people participate, they know what they want and take charge of the development process.” — Chrisphine Owalla, Community Initiative and Action Group (CIAG) Kenya For years, the Luo tribe, the 4th largest tribe in Kenya, has been practicing subsistence living in…

Text by John Mwebe Photos by Carlo Manalansan, Grace Murindi, and Naume Bhiza “Lizodingani? (What do you want here?)” one of the miners asked in local Ndebele to the research team “Why are you taking pictures? Are you journalists?” asked another. Disembarking from the car, Kundai Chikonzo and the research…

Text by Julia Amiraghian & Shoira Olimova Photos by Centre for Community Mobilization and Support NGO (CCMS) Read the article in English. Մարցը գյուղ է Հայաստանի Լոռու մարզի Թումանյան համայնքում։ Այն գտնվում է Ձորագետ գետի ձախ ափին՝ ծովի մակարդակից 1500 մետր բարձրության վրա։ Մոտ 1000 բնակիչ ունեցող գյուղը հայտնի է…

Text by Julia Amiraghian & Shoira Olimova Photos by Centre for Community Mobilization and Support NGO (CCMS) Read the article in Armenian. Marts is a village in Tumanyan community of Lori region, Armenia. It is situated on the left bank of the Dzoraget River at an altitude of 1,500 meters…

Text by Carlo Manalansan and Tom Weerachat Photos by Carlo Manalansan After a year of virtual meetings and learning, the International Accountability Project (IAP) organized a week-long meeting with the Global Advocacy Team (GAT) on Community-led Development Planning in Chiang Mai, Thailand. We witnessed the power when GAT members and…

by Anggita Indari Cet article est également disponible en anglais. “Le changement climatique a de graves répercussions sur notre résilience alimentaire et notre droit à un environnement sain”, a déclaré Paul Edex au début de son récit. Paul Edex est l’un des membres de la Global Advocacy Team (GAT) d’Haïti…

by Anggita Indari Read the article in French. “Climate change brings serious impacts to our food security and rights to a healthy environment,” said Paul Edex, beginning his story. Paul Edex is one of the Global Advocacy Team (GAT) members from Haiti who has been conducting community-led research with Centre…

Read the article in English.

Text and Photos by Vaishnavi Varadarajan Read the article in Lepcha. “When I look at the Teesta River, I see it dancing as it flows. This beautiful river is sacred to us, no one should be allowed to restrict its flow,” says Mayalmit Lepcha standing next to the gushing, glacial…

This article is also available in English. “Madamo sang mga ginatawag nga programa kag proyekto pangkauswagan apang wala sini ginpasanyog ang kabuhi sang mga pumuluyo ilabi na ang komunidad sang mga mangingisda.” — Roque Cris Chavez, Secretary-General, PAMANGGAS Humalin sa pagtakop tubtob sa pagbutlak sang adlaw, ginapuno sang mga mangingisda…

Photos and texts by Carlo Manalansan “There are a number of so-called development programs and projects but they have never uplifted the lives of the people especially fisherfolk communities,” — Roque Cris Chavez, Secretary-general, PAMANGGAS This article is also available in Hiligaynon. Fisherfolk spend their daily grind in the middle…

by Anggita Indari Baca artikel ini dalam Bahasa Inggris. Terletak 30 menit hingga satu jam perjalanan laut dari Ambon, Ibukota Provinsi Maluku, Indonesia, Pulau Haruku bisa dibilang jauh dari hiruk-pikuk perkotaan. Tidak ada gedung mentereng dan lautan manusia memenuhi pusat perbelanjaan. Di pulau ini, siapapun dapat dengan mudah menjumpai masyarakat…

by Anggita Indari *This article is also available in Bahasa Indonesia. It takes a 30-minute boat ride from Ambon, the capital of Maluku Province, Indonesia, to reach Haruku Island. Upon arriving at the dock of Haruku, local people can easily be discovered selling sea catches and vegetables or fruits at…

by Tom Weerachat Starting in March through May 2022, around breakfast time in Haiti and Paraguay, the second cup of afternoon tea in Zimbabwe and Kenya, when people are wrapping up their work in Armenia, and right after dinner time in Indonesia and the Philippines, the new cohort of the…

By Moon Nay Li — Moon Nay Li is a member of the Kachin ethnic group and a women’s rights activist. She is a member of the Global Advocacy Team, an 8-person group convened by the International Accountability Project, to conduct local research on development and make recommendations to improve World Bank policy on development…

Build a People’s Plan By Jessica Amon Jessica Amon is an organiser at the Community Organizers Multiversity (COM) in Manila, Philippines. She is a member of the Global Advocacy Team, an 8-person group convened by the International Accountability Project, to conduct local research on development and make recommendations to improve World Bank policy on development finance. …

An update from the Global Advocacy Team Initiative “We are all from different continents, with different cultures, contexts and languages, however we have a common struggle around social injustice, therefore coming together is important for us. …

An update on IAP’s Global Advocacy Team — our plans for 2021–2023 — For every development initiative, people should be at the center as active participants and beneficiaries of the right to development. …

By Tom Hurst — Contemporary development paradigms are broken. They do not facilitate the fulfillment of human rights, environmental wellbeing is sacrificed in the name of economic growth, and the concerns of affected communities are rarely prioritized. Projects that are funded without the consent, or even consultation, of affected stakeholders, cannot be considered ‘development’. …

The next steps for the Global Advocacy Team — “People were not necessarily against the relocation…they were against any action that took place without their consent or consultation,” says Rowena ‘Jessica’ Amon, an organizer for Community Organizers Multiversity , a coalition of riverside communities in Manila, Philippines. Communities along the Pasig River in Metro Manila experience frequent flooding. To…