Dear Colleagues,

Welcome to June’s edition of the DSA Bulletin.

The deadline for the submission of papers to panels is almost upon us. We have had a number of abstracts sent through but if you are thinking of submitting an abstract the deadline is Friday 20^th June, apart from ‘Cities in an Insecure World, where the deadline is 15^th July. Please see below for the separate call for papers.

Registration for the Conference is now open – unfortunately our online system is temporarily unavailable but should be sorted in a week or so. Please visit the Conference page on Registration and Fees for more details http://www.devstud.org.uk/conference-08/registration-fees-08.htm.

The Conference Bursary award information is also available. This is the New Look Poster Bursary award. As we are not able to display the posters in Church House, we have opted for a more comprehensive process that we feel will better build the capacity of research students seeking to publish in peer reviewed journals.

Best wishes,

Frances

Frances Hill, Executive Director

NEWS FROM THE DSA

DSA Conference 2008

o panels now selected and call for papers out

o Research Student Bursaries available

Important information for Institutional Members

Study Group News

o Media and Development Group – last call for papers meeting 16^th July

o Alternative Economic Development Policies – new group

o Corporate Social Responsibility Group

o Ageing and Development Group

o DSA/EADI Multi Dimensional Poverty Groups – outputs available

Journal of International Development

NEWS FROM DSA MEMBERS

o Conferences, Lectures and Events

o Publications & Resources

o Courses

o Research

o Opportunities

OTHER NEWS

NEWS FROM THE DSA

DEVELOPMENT’S INVISIBLE HANDS

Development Studies Association Annual Conference

Saturday 8^th November 2008

Church House, Westminster, London

www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm

The Call for Papers has been issued under a separate mailing. Please see details on www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm. Papers are being invited under the 12 open themes for the parallel panel sessions. These are:

· How Change Happens

· China as a new shaper of development

· Development Futures in a Changing Climate

· Cities in an Insecure World - forthcoming

· Invisible agendas? Return migration and the migration-development nexus

· Technology and social innovations

· Business and its influence on development

· Anti-democratic development

· Unfree Labour in the Global Economy

· After 2015: What’s Next for Development Research and Policy?

· Frontiers of Global Justice: Health and the Environment

· Wellbeing and Development Policy

The deadline for submitting under the Open Call for Papers is 20^th June 2008 (Apart from Cities in an Insecure World – 15^th July)

Call for papers – Cities in an Insecure World

Some of the most intractable and enduring challenges of development are concerned with reducing insecurity. Early and very current development debates have been concerned with issues of food security. Ensuring sustainable economic development and livelihoods in the context of volatile global markets is another enduring preoccupation of development, as are efforts to guarantee social security or protection. Concern about the relationship between national and human security has been at the centre of recent development debates. All these aspects of security have particular implications for and manifestations in cities. Urban economies and livelihoods are inextricably tied into or bypassed by global economic forces. The food riots sparking off in cities around the world are testimony to the fact that urban food security is a critical issue for developing countries. And increasingly modern warfare is impacting on cities directly through contemporary combat or indirectly through displacement of people from conflict zones in the countryside.

These insecurities now accompany more familiar dimensions of urban vulnerability such as irregular or inadequate access to urban services such as water and sanitation and poor environmental conditions, resulting in health insecurities; vulnerability to violence and fear of violence as cities become increasingly subject to violent crime and rule by gangs and mafias; and other forms of physical insecurity related to natural and man made disasters, including climate change and extreme weather conditions to which cities and their vast populations are particularly vulnerable, especially in the absence of strong and effective urban governance.

The aim of this panel is to discuss the relationship between cities and development in an insecure world. Theoretical, empirical and policy papers are equally invited. A major conceptual issue to be addressed is whether global, national and city level insecurities might influence the way in which cities are conceptualised and addressed in development research and policy to date. For example, does the urban bias thesis still have resonance and what does over urbanisation mean in a world where the vast majority of urban workers do not enjoy formal conditions of labour?

Empirical and policy questions might include the following. Do cities need to be factored into economic analysis as spatial entities? What are the implications of the security-development nexus for cities? What do we know about cities and climate change and what should we know? What are the challenges of an insecure world for urban health and urban environments? Are city governments up to the task of addressing multiple and intersecting insecurities and have decentralisation policies helped or hindered them in this? Are citizenship rights and an inclusive urban politics possible in insecure cities in an insecure world?

Abstracts of 750-1000 words should be submitted to the convenors with a copy to Frances Hill (conference@devstud.org.uk). The deadline for submitting an abstract is 15th July 2008. Further details on the conference and other panel sessions can be found at http://www.devstud.org.uk/conference.htm

Research Student Bursaries

Participation

In order to encourage the participation of postgraduate students at the special 30^th anniversary conference of the DSA, we are organising a competition for all postgraduate research and dissertation student members. Eligible students include those currently registered (for PhD, DPhil, MPhil, MRes, MA, MSc etc.) in UK or Irish universities who are involved in development studies research or other research which has a development focus. New members are very welcome to register.[1] Institutions and organisations are strongly urged to emphatically encourage their postgraduate students to participate in this competition.

Application Procedure (Abstract)

All postgraduate student participants are invited to submit a 400 (or 1 A4 side double spaced) word abstract by 30^th June 2008. The abstracts need to fit within one of the 16 themes of the parallel panel sessions and should be based on the thesis or dissertation topics of the students. Third and fourth year PhD/DPhil students are particularly invited to participate. Participants will be notified about whether they have qualified for one of the 10 Conference Bursaries by 14^th July 2008. The Conference Organisers will select the best 10 abstracts and their respective authors will be required to submit full papers (5,000-8,000 words length) by 15^th September 2008. The winners of the best two papers will then be notified in advance of the Conference and presented with their cheques at the Conference itself.

The 16 themes of the Conference are shown below and further details for each of the conference panels can be found at www.devstud.org.uk/conference-08/abstracts.htm

Content of Abstract: Abstracts should contain a clear indication of the theoretical conceptualisation and geographical context of the research. They should also have a clear methodological focus and should contain a synthesis of the basis for the conclusions of the study as well as an indication of future research implications and or direction.

Award Package:

A three-tier award package has been put in place:

1. Authors of the best 10 abstracts will be selected to participate at the conference with their conference registration fee, accommodation and travel cost (standard air, train or bus fare of up to £145) covered in full. They may have the opportunity to act as discussants on panels – but this will be at the discretion of the individual Panel Convenors.

2. Authors of the top two papers out the 10 selected papers would be presented with cash awards of £300 (for the best paper) and £200 (for the second best paper).

3. The best paper (winner of the £300 award) will be put forward for publication, subject to review, in the special conference issue of the Journal of International Development..

All enquiries should be sent to Dr. Joseph Assan (joeassan@liv.ac.uk) or

Frances Hill (admin@devstud.org.uk)

PANEL THEMES

Of the 16 panels, the first twelve are open to proposals for papers. Further details, together with contact details for their convenor(s), are on the conference website at http://www.devstud.org.uk/conference-08/abstracts.htm or click on the links below. Their themes are: