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The privilege of giving career advice in international development

After Duncan Green mentioned George Monbiot’s career advice and added some reflections from his aid industry policy angle , I am yet another (white) man with a stable career – this time in academia – who is supposed to tell you how to get ‘there’… I am probably the most careful one when it comes to the ‘follow your passion’ discourse. George Monbiot is not writing about the aid industry In fact, two of his three routes he outlines are potentially quite terrible in connection with international development: Just going to the field and ‘doing it’ sounds like a voluntourism disaster to happen and ‘if you are fed up with mainstream employers just create your own brand’ (Monbiot uses slightly more radical and less creative industry language) will also lead to a challenging ‘career’-even with some professional experience under your belt. To be honest, I find Monbiot’s reflections really not that helpful as there is little room for balance with other aspects of your existence: Working for a

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Hi all, Did I mention that 'summer' has so far passed by the South of Sweden and I am finishing this review on a November-like gloomy afternoon...anyway, there is lots to discover this week-regardless of whether you are going to read on a beach, in the office or in front of a cozy fireplace ;)! Development news: Orphanages and exploitation in Haiti ; Somali piracy reloaded; African academics and their wish list for the WHO director; The G20 and the limitations of its Compact With Africa; inside the dysfunctional UN in Myanmar ; remittances, rice & real estate in Nepal ; Kathmandu’s wood carvers; reviewing emergency shelters; lunch meetings are a terrible idea; Americans want to help homeless people, but…; social justice orthodoxies; South African poets on writing & changing minds. Our digital lives: Reclaiming social entrepreneurship; the trouble with Bridge academies; a 4,000 USD Renault for India ; why study journalism these days?  Publications: M

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Hi all, Despite the lack of sun in Sweden, this post still counts as a ‘summer post’…  Development news: The war in South Sudan ; failing to learn from Biafra in Nigeria ; Aga Khan’s 60 year of slow development; Rwanda really wants to ban second-hand clothing; a closer look at peacekeeping cuts in DRC ; Liberia after Ebola; Cash transfers in Kenya ; Madonna in Malawi ; Beyonce and Burundi , Ashton Kutcher and US gender quality-the special celebrity section! World Bank & ILO whitewash in Uzbekistan ; Philip Morris lobbies in India to undermine global governance; coming to a Bollywood theatre near you: Toilet: A Love Story. Disaster of the week: Brookings Think Tanker runs aground off Crimea …  Our digital lives: Use facebook groups ! Check out an archive of 700 Oxfam campaign posters ! Start a revolution ! Publications: Women of color and gendered harassment in science; are women paying a higher price for UN careers ? Your advisor’s gender can determine academic success ;

Can we transform the repetition of virtual development debates into something bigger? And do we have to?

Maybe it was purely coincidental. Or maybe it was because I have more time to engage with digital content during my summer teaching break, but there seems to be an increased number of well-known discussions popping up that leave me a bit puzzled. The Fifty Shades of Aid facebook group discussed expat salaries and various expat-local gaps again, Duncan Green revived the discussion on whether and how academics should influence policy-making , the Guardian wrote on volunteer stress and burn-out and on Africa is a Country there was a reminder that overseas volunteering needs a reflective framework . Add to these debates the fact that a Western journalist apparently wrote a terrible book on his time in ‘Africa’ and mainstream celebrities got excited about clean water in Burundi (Beyonce) and hospital wings in Malawi named after their children (Madonna) this pretty much sounds like any other week. Some policy debates, e.g. how much spending on refugees at home should count as ODA ?

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Hi all, It's Friday-and you know what that means: New #globaldev stuff and more from Aidnography ! Development news : Immersing with a family in Kenya ; aid reforms; refugees & DAC-spending; the inflexible humanitarian architecture in Syria ; Australia wants to outlaw orphanage tourism; towards a more equitable study abroad experience; donors & their urge to professionalize grassroots movements in Nepal ; are there enough decent jobs in Kenya ? Humanosphere 's hibernation & the future of humanitarian reporting; aid worker mid-life crisis; what's the big deal about evidence? Our digital lives: The difficulties of female journalists in the Middle East; over-hyped Fintech; Twitter's glass ceiling for women and minorities; a CEO sleep-over; Tumblr is difficult to monetize. Publications: The People in the Pictures; public attitudes towards migrants; women know stuff. Academia: Better networking; morality & open access. Enjoy! New from aidnography Rad