Inclusive Economies

Our work explores what characterises inclusive economies and how these can be achieved, particularly in a world where new technologies, rural to urban migration, and growing youth populations are disrupting and putting new pressures on people’s lives and livelihoods.

Our research looks at the impacts of business and markets on development and inequality and explores the potential for novel market-based solutions to work for the poorest and most marginalised based on gender, ethnicity and disability.  It explores alternatives that enable workers, consumers and communities to have a real voice.

It continues to revitalise debates on agriculture as a key pathway out of poverty and towards inclusion, particularly for young people. Our work is focused on identifying what opportunities exist in a period of agricultural commercialisation and rural transformation and how far different groups are able to access them.  It also understands how new technologies such as drones or blockchains pose risks, but can also be harnessed to improve the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people.  In a rapidly urbanising world where cities have become focal points for economic growth, jobs and innovation but also for poverty, inequality, vulnerability and conflict, our work explores what this means for both urban and rural people, and the opportunities and challenges they face in living safe and fulfilling lives.

People

Jodie Thorpe

Research Fellow

Philip Mader

Research Fellow

Richard Jolly

Research Associate

Ana Pueyo

Research Fellow

Carlos Fortin

Research Associate

Rachel Sabates-Wheeler

Research Fellow

Keetie Roelen

IDS Honorary Associate

Giel Ton

Research Fellow

Programmes and centres

Projects

Recent work

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Brief

Maximizing impact: The Intersection of Social Protection and Resilience

WFP Social Protection & Resilience Policy Brief

This brief explores the relationship between social protection and resilience, aiming to clarify conceptual linkages and contribute to WFP’s effective positioning and contribution within this space. This brief explores the complementary and interconnected roles that social protection and...

13 March 2024

News

Gender progressives must step up against the ‘anti-gender juggernaut’

Philanthropists must step up their funding for gender and women’s rights activists and organisations, against a well-organised anti-gender movement rolling back rights of women and LGBTQ+ people globally, worth $1bn in the USA alone and growing across Europe, warns a new report. The new...

12 March 2024

Report

Covid Collective Learning Report

This report provides an overview on the Covid Collective research platform, how it was operationalised, and the learning which emerged from the three-year programme. The foundation of the Covid Collective’s theory of change was the network and relationships that were established and developed...

Joe Taylor
Joe Taylor & 2 others

12 March 2024

Opinion

Five ways funding is crucial for organising and defeating gender backlash

Backlash from conservative, patriarchal, religious and political forces is often seen as ‘the cost of doing business’ by feminist or LGBTQ+ activists. Yet how do philanthropic institutions who support gender justice respond to the scaled-up, well-financed and globally coordinated anti-gender...

12 March 2024

Publication

Are Trade Rules Undermining Taxation of the Digital Economy in Africa?

ICTD Research in Brief 103

Countries have the potential to tax the digital economy through a combination of at least these four measures, which can be incorporated into their industrial policy and revenue collection strategies.

11 March 2024

Past Event

How is backlash weakening institutional contexts for gender justice globally?

Gender backlash is continually gaining momentum across the globe, and social and political institutions and policies are being dismantled. Gender justice activists and women’s rights organisations are having to mobilise quickly to counter these attacks. Organised by the Countering Backlash...

11 March 2024

Working Paper

Anti-Gender Backlash: Where is Philanthropy?

This working paper explores how philanthropic institutions with a history of supporting women’s and LGBTQ+ rights and democracy are seeing and responding to anti-gender backlash, and the background dynamics shaping the struggle. It is based on a scan commissioned by the IDS-led Countering...

10 March 2024

Why learn with us.

In an extraordinary time of challenge and change, we use more than 50 years of expertise to transform development approaches that create more equitable and sustainable futures. The work you do with us will help make progressive change towards universal development; to build and connect solidarities for collective action, locally and globally. The University of Sussex has been ranked 1st in the world for Development Studies for the past five years (QS World University Rankings by Subject).