Uncategorized

by

Digital Divides

The digital divide problem strongly relates to last week’s topic regarding rapid communication technologies.  It is a problem we see mainly in poor rural areas and economically depressed inner cities.  The digital divide refers to the gap in access to communication technologies and the internet, and this is a problem many development practitioners and multinational organizations have had to deal with.  This is because it’s been widely accepted that, for development to occur, this gap needs to close.

Many argue that the world got along just fine before the digital age.  This may be true, but we have now reached an era where these modern technologies have become seamlessly integrated into every aspect of our lives, and that fact simply cannot be ignored.  People can now finish tasks and achieve goals so much more rapidly, and the exchange of knowledge taking place over these systems is beneficial to many.  That being said, much of the world is being left out of these processes that enhance quality of life since they don’t have access.

It is important to look at the digital divide as a whole, but also through the lens of the different demographics being excluded.  As discussed in other weeks of the class, recognizing the intersectionality of different demographics in development speeds up the process.  We see gaps in the digital divide between different minorities, and also based on gender and economic status, for example.  A lot of people overlook the fact or simply don’t know about how large the digital divide actually is, but we have entered an era where these types of technologies are almost needed to survive.

One of the biggest challenges to getting access for everyone, especially in rural areas, is devising ways to put in the needed infrastructure for such technologies to be usable in the first place.  Many of these areas don’t have electricity, fiberoptic cables, computers, or even roads for deliveries.  There are many things we take for granted and don’t even think about that make access nearly impossible in many excluded areas, so work on this needs to be done from the ground up.

by

ICTs and Sustainable Development

Communication technology is a crucial part, especially in this day and age, of successful development.  This has been demonstrated by documents like the Maitland Commission Report called the “Missing Link” that we read in class, as well as the WSIS+10 outcome document.  We’ve reached a point in society where communication technology is needed to function and participate in almost every aspect of life.  It has the ability to speed up and make more efficient every task we do from day to day, and contributes to quicker development.

The report called “The Missing Link” highlights the gap we see between certain demographics to rapid communication technology.  We commonly see disparities in access to this technology between the rich and the poor, urban and rural residents, and young or old people.  To give a sense of how big the gap really is, it is estimated that 75% of the world’s telephones are concentrated in only nine countries.

The poor and disadvantaged are excluding from contributing to development when they don’t have access to these technologies since they stimulate many social and economic activities in life.  The exchange of knowledge is a powerful tool.  An example we discussed in class was that a farmer without access to communication technology may fall behind on the latest farming methods or technologies.  They could also fall behind by being unaware of what the market prices for certain crops are, and that could result in earning less than they deserve.

Computer access specifically can help people by bringing to them information about job postings, or community resources they may have been previously unaware of.

The idea of knowledge sharing through this technology can specifically relate to my capstone on sustainable and reliable urban transportation.  As we know, adequate public transportation is required to live a sustainable and healthy lifestyle, and allows more people to contribute their talents to the development of society.  In developed cities, residents can use smartphone applications to get live updates on public transit arrivals and plan their commutes to work and school.  Those in underdeveloped cities or countries without access to these services may be left out of the equation, and will cause difficulties in securing a job or doing well in school, for example.

The WSIS+10 document explains that institutional changes will have to be made to fix this problem, like providing cheaper technology or installing infrastructure to allow the technology to be used.

by

Development Theory

Development theory is a difficult subject, because it is oftentimes purely subjective.  It is a concept that’s difficult to define, in terms of what it is and where we draw the line of whether a country is developed or underdeveloped.  Furthermore, the question of who gets the authority to make these decisions arises.

There are a lot of academic voices in this field, one being Amartya Sen.  His piece called “Development as Freedom,” is one of the most well-known development theories.  He explains that human rights and freedoms go hand in hand in the process of developing a country, and that freedoms are needed before any development will occur.  His theories were considered controversial, because before Sen most development practitioners pushed the idea that economic stimulation was the right way to go about development.  According to Sen, creating personal and human freedoms paves the way for development to thrive.  More specifically, he says for development to happen we need to provide social and economic freedoms, and political and civil rights.  In underdeveloped countries, missing freedoms that we see affecting the development process may include lack of representation in government for multiple voices to be heard, or lack of access to health care and education, for example.  Furthermore, since all freedoms are generally interconnected, people must have the rights to basic freedoms if they also hope to gain civil and political rights like the aforementioned examples of health and education.  A strong interconnected web of such freedoms can build each other up.

Sen argues that democratic governments speed up development because more voices are heard, so decisions are better informed and serve society in a more efficient and positive way.  I believe Sen’s definition would be appreciated by the UN, especially in the current context of pushing for multistakeholderism and focusing on the intersectionality of development. Traditionally, development levels were measured by per capita income.  The reason to look at many intersecting factors is because, while a family may earn more than the poverty line, the infrastructure someone is surrounded by that they use to access society may be lacking, which is half the battle of development.

by

Grand Challenges

The UN Grand Challenges are defined as “technically complex problems that have stubbornly defied solution.”  These challenges are large, complicated issues that have been plaguing society for years, and take an enormous amount of effort to begin to solve.  The needed solutions are often interdisciplinary in nature, and require not only strong effort, but collaboration from many different stakeholder groups.

While different organizations have different definitions, the general consensus is that problems like providing clean water, increasing literacy rates, finding cures to cancer, solving hunger, and solving AIDS comprise some of the world’s “Grand Challenges.”  Many agree that these goals are ambitious, but are achievable after a lot of collaboration.

Development practitioners have come to the consensus solving these problems will require non-traditional actors to step in, including people from the fields of science and technology, since the problems are so complex in nature.  In my opinion, this approach has fostered communication between many different stakeholders and fostered innovation, leading to discoveries that may not have been previously made.

Branscomb explains this idea using cancer research as an example.  He says this disease is a long-term and pervasive issue, and through slowly chipping away at the problem from different angles they have made discoveries and improvements in multiple sectors, such as genetics, surgeries, and more.  He says if the research done were narrower and focused in scope, and did not look at the problem from a holistic standpoint, progress may have been slower.

The UN is one of the most important stakeholders that has contributed to work on the Grand Challenges.  They drafted the Millennial Development Goals in 2000, which include: eradicating extreme hunger and poverty, achieving universal primary education, promoting gender equality and empowering women, reducing child mortality, improving maternal health, combatting HIV/aids, Malaria and other diseases, ensuring environmental sustainability, and developing a global partnership for development.

A huge improvement made since then in working on such Grand Challenges was learning to include persons with disabilities.  Around 15% of the world’s population lives with a disability, and the MDGs hardly addressed that problem.  The 2015 SGDs are much more inclusive, and have worked to give everybody a seat at the table of development in the hopes of speeding up the process.

by

Grand Challenges

Grand challenges are usually defined as “technically complex societal problems that have stubbornly defied solutions” (Branscomb, 2009). The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) focus on those grand challenges faced by individuals around the world. Many grand challenge scholars consider technology to be the answer to many of these complex problems. My project focuses on Goal 16: “Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions”, and while it may not initially seem to be a problem with a technological solution, my project will argue otherwise. When I first heard of the idea of “Grand Challenges” I immediately connected it to the idea of “wicked problems”. I thought when we first covered them in class and I still think now that noting similarities between grand challenges and wicked problems equip an individual better to solve either.

An overly simple definition of a wicked problem is some issue that resists a definitive solution because any policy applied to the problem does harm as well as good. Instead, wicked problems must be addressed through incremental policies that improve the status quo by doing more harm than good. Horst Rittel was one of the first scholars to formalize a general theory of wicked problems and his definition focuses on several characteristics of these social issues. First, wicked problems have no one cause. For example, the problem of poverty in an Iranian city is simultaneously similar and fundamentally different from poverty in the Chinese countryside. Second, wicked problems can be only comparatively good or bad, not objectively successful. There is no ideal end to reach, and so approaches to wicked problems should be clear ways to improve a situation rather than solve it. We can make the world more just, but we cannot solve injustice. Countries around the world have different perspectives on the death penalty and for some, its continued us is unjust. For others, its use is necessary for true justice.

Rittel lists inequality and political instability explicitly as examples of wicked problems. International and domestic policy makers can play a central role in mitigating the negative consequences of wicked problems and the SDGs have promise for positioning the broad trajectory of culture in new and more desirable directions. We all have to keep in mind however that no solution in any of these projects are easy, quick, or individually sufficient.

by

ICT’s and Sustainable Development

Information and Communicative Technologies (ICT’s) play a crucial role in sustainable development. ICT’s allow the quick and efficient spread of information across wide distances. They let people participate and collaborate on projects that would otherwise be inaccessible to them. Part of developing sustainably is finding new ideas and insights that no one has yet considered to be a solution. If not everyone can participate in the creation of solutions, there are thousands of human resources with knowledge, insights, and ideas that are being lost. From a very realist perspective, it is a loss of human capital that could theoretically be used to improve civilization. In additions, ICT’s ensure that information about governments and policies is available to all people and can be accessed easily. This bolsters transparency and breaks down walls that divide people from their governments. Part of sustainable development is political freedom. If the people are disconnected from the people and institutions that govern them, how will society develop at all? If one applies this to disability inclusive development, participation can be a major problem for those with disabilities. For example, a family friend of mine is a quadriplegic who has no motor control below the neck. One would think that accessing systems of governance would be nearly impossible for him. However due to his expertise in computers and privilege to access technologies he has been a member of my town council for over 10 years. ICT investment leads to online translators, screenreaders, training seminars, and much more.  ICT’s also keep the outside world updated on developments in sustainability for a particular country. ICT’s allow everyday citizens to judge the progress of a state and keep them motivated towards progress.

 

ICT’s work very well when applied to the Sustainable Development Goals. There is a strong connection between goal #4 quality education and information technology. Schools are starting to integrate online learning and technological innovations into education at all levels. While the integration of ICT’s is evident at a secondary level, given the nature of this class, I believe integration of ICT’s at a primary level deserves more attention. Primary education, particularly in the Western world, is very standardized in order to measure the progress of all children at an even level. However, this standardization excludes young students who aren’t able to fit this model and very brilliant students are left behind. In less developed states students may not have the access to the resources and knowledge to educate themselves as much as they’d like. ICT’s can aid in giving all students the same access to educational resources, no matter where they reside or if they have a disability. ICT’s also aid in Goal #9, developing industry, innovation, and infrastructure. ICT’s increase the flow of information across borders and distances. This allows industries to reach new areas and economic opportunities they may not have had access to previously.  Meanwhile, ICT’s challenge people to make new technologies and innovations that will benefit the world in the future. Lastly, ICT’s aid in reducing inequalities, Goal #10. Disparities in technological access prevent many developing communities from using the same resources to build socially and economically. The Maitland Commission Report and the World Summit on the Information Society both advocate for integrating technology into developing communities at affordable rates. Technology is expensive but it would be unjust to prevent whole groups of people from accessing these technologies simply because they do not have the wealth to do so. A global effort to create strategies and policies that place infrastructure for technological development is integral to sustainable development.

by

Inclusive Education

Inclusive Education by Ines Renique

As the “ Let Girls Learn” initiative led by the First Lady Michelle Obama and USAID has disseminated, there at currently 62 million girls across the world who are not in school. Without educating such a vast percentage of the population, how can any village, community, or nation ever develop further? Education is the key to success, and without knowing any better, or without knowing about what other women are doing and are capable of doing, how can young girls ever even think of doing something themselves? For many regions in the world, educating women is seen as a waste of time. If a woman is illiterate and told to keep quiet, how will she ever be able to have a positive influence on development? Malala Yousafzai is a perfect example of the need for sustainable education, as she continues to make positive change on her country, or at least to raise awareness as a role model. Development cannot progress without women coming up with solutions and ideas for future betterment right alongside men.

At the MEDD conference, I met Andrew Lange, (Fulbright- Clinton Fellow) who presented on  Inclusive Education and Employment Policies for Persons with Disabilities in Peru and APEC Member Economies.

He shared the unfortunately reality in Peru is a “segregated special education” model for children with disabilities. Forcing children to adapt to the classroom, rather than a classroom adapting to students.Some forms of integrated education, but the public school system classroom is far from inclusive.

But there are some organizations in the world of guaranteeing disability inclusive education. CEBE (Centros de Educacion Basica Especial) for example, which attends to youth with severe intellectual disabilities or those with multiple disabilities from 2-20 years old.

Moreover, Lange is making strides as he continues to develop a demand-driven employment model using the latest national household survey on disability to identify a town or community in Peru with a high prevalence of people with disabilities. With this data he can then target the community for his sustainable education projects.

CRPD’s Article 24 is entirely centered on education and the right to education that those with disabilities have. As outlined in Section 2. B: “Persons with disabilities can access an inclusive, quality and free primary education and secondary education on an equal basis with others in the communities in which they live”.  And this basic right needs to be guaranteed. 

by

ICTs and Sustainable Development

Information and communication technologies (ICTs) are of growing importance for countries and their sustainable development, largely for their efficient and extensive capabilities in spreading information. Moreover, development, as Amartya Sen describes it, encompasses the differences in what people can and can’t do and the freedoms they have and those they lack. Initially ICTs included mostly telecommunications, but as technologies progressed the term grew to include computers, e-mail, and internet. ICTs continue to widen as even newer technologies are created and shared among the masses. The overall goal of US telecommunications policy was to provide “universal service” so that all American have affordable access to telecommunications. The ITU (International Telecommunication Union) is a specialized agency of the United Nations, focused on information and communication technologies (ICTs). The Maitland Commission, chaired by Donald Maitland and sponsored by the ITU, was assigned the task of determining and overcoming obstacles impeding the expansion of global telecommunications. In 1985, the Maitland Commission’s Report illustrated a direct correlation between a country’s economic growth and its access to telecommunication infrastructure. The report revealed there were huge imbalances between developed and developing countries’ access to telephones and communication infrastructure. This gap in access to telecommunications became known as the “missing link.”

Access to ICTs naturally expands freedoms and possibilities for others and thus also the potential for development. Consequently, ICTs are a crucial aspect for the fulfillment of international development initiatives. One example of a framework extremely reliant on and devoted to the efficient use of ICTs, is the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS). WSIS was endorsed by the UN General Assembly in 2001, as a two phase conference devoted to support further development of information society through the efficient use of ICTs. The first phase of WSIS took place in Geneva in 2003, and established the foundations for an “Information Society for all.” The second phase was held in Tunis in 2005, to implement Geneva’s Plan of Action and to determine solutions and arrangements in the fields of internet governance and financing mechanisms (WSIS Declaration). The ITU acted as the major leader  throughout the process. Then in 2014, WSIS+10 was hosted in Geneva as an extended version of the WSIS Forums. The purpose of this high-level meeting was to review the progress of WSIS mandates, address subsequent gaps and challenges, and plan for how to proceed beyond 2015 (when the MDGs expired). ICTs are also a key factor in achieving each of the SDGs as they are necessary in recording, monitoring, and sharing the progress and challenges of each indicator, target, and goal. For example, with rapidly advancing technologies and endless digital networks and resources, ICTs have great potential in producing quality education (SDG #4). Industrialization and innovation (SDG #9) are also highly dependent on ICTs as they enable enhanced collaboration, productivity, and infrastructure systems.

by

Development Theories

 

After reading the work of my peers, it seems we all agree that “development” is a vague term mired in nuances. I face the complexity of this term each time I mention to someone that I study international development – to which the reply goes something like, “What does that mean?” This experience is one that I know many of my classmates encounter. Development is nothing short of complex. It is approached from a wide range of perspectives, and covers a myriad of topics in a plethora of countries. I will cease to emphasize its ambiguity here. Nevertheless, a topic of this breadth has naturally crossed the minds of many intellectuals who have all asked themselves that crucial question: what is development?

The most comprehendible theory to begin to answer this question is suggested in the book Why Nations Fail. Acemoglu and Robinson, the authors of this work, suggest that development is defined by economic prosperity, or lack thereof. Furthermore, they propose that economic prosperity depends on how inclusive a country’s institutions are (91), and that inclusive institutions are necessary for economic prosperity because they provide incentives and reward talents and creativity (76). These authors link economic growth and technological improvement to development. What is more, they claim that political inclusion and the enabling of the public to innovate is a crucial element of development.

This leads to the next key author in the development field – which many of my classmates have already addressed: Amartya Sen. In his book Development as Freedom, Sen articulates the unique perspective that freedom is defined as access to choices and expanded capabilities and that development is an expansion of freedom. Looking at the field of development through Sen’s capabilities approach dramatically affects related policies and outcomes. His definition of development and emphasis on increasing access to choices related to the point that Acemoglu and Robinson make about inclusive political institutions leading to more development. While these authors define development in a different way, they seem to agree with Sen regarding the means to develop through empowering more people to participate by giving them more options and more avenues for participation.

It is also interesting to mention a couple development theories that we didn’t discuss in class, such as dependency theory and modernization theory. While not widely referenced in modern literature, these two theories contextualize modern concepts of development by providing incite to how the topic was viewed in the late 1900s. First, dependency theory was developed by Raul Prebisch and asserts that economic growth occurs at a faster pace in industrialized, advanced countries than in poorer countries. According to Prebisch, this creates a disproportionate relationship that puts industrialized countries economically so far ahead of non-industrialized countries that they can rarely ever close the gap in development. The disproportionate relationship, Prebisch would argue, makes non-industrialized countries dependent on industrialized ones. Modernization theory is the next model to discuss. The main point of this theory is that the Western world has influenced ad to some extent guided the direction of development when we started searching for colonies.