The STEPS Centre’s theme for 2020 is Natures. In this introductory blog post by Amber Huff and Nathan Oxley, we look at four lines of enquiry that can help us…
How to respond to Nature in crisis: look beyond the big stories
Community, belonging, identity
Yesterday, Andrea Nightingale visited IDS and we had a discussion about ‘boundary-making’. Her research in Nepal looks critically at what boundaries mean, how they are made, and how they are…
Rural resistance and the far right: news from ERPI Europe
The Emancipatory Rural Politics Initiative (ERPI) is continuing to explore changes and conflicts in rural politics, with a couple of forthcoming events and some publications from the Europe group of…
Embracing uncertainty: lessons from journeys and struggles
Michele Nori, Rose Cairns and Nathan Oxley Embracing uncertainty, by choice or by necessity, is something migrants, victims of political violence, and people holding a religious belief have in common….
Net zero and low-carbon transformation: why targets are not enough
This week, the UN Global Climate Summit meets in New York, calling global leaders to describe how they will meet the challenge of disruptive climate change. The long term target…
Strikes to science fiction: 4 ways to transform climate and development
by Nathan Oxley and Sophie Marsden The UN Climate Summit next week in New York will once again convene governments to discuss the intimidating challenge of how to coordinate action…
Measles, MMR and vaccines: where do vaccine anxieties come from?
Measles and vaccines are back in the news. The UK has lost its measles-free status, according to Public Health England. The Guardian reports that about 30,000 children are starting primary…
HLPF 2019: Why inclusion and power matter for sustainability
On 9-18 July the UN’s High-Level Political Forum meets to discuss progress on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). This meeting takes the theme of “Empowering people and ensuring inclusiveness and…
Catastrophes of biblical proportions: why the apocalypse is back
In a parliamentary debate in London about climate change and ecology on 1 May, the debate turned to scripture to describe the scale of the problem. “We face catastrophes of…
EU Elections: what does populism mean for rural people?
As countries across Europe await the results of the European Union elections, the campaigns of authoritarian and populist political movements are once again in the news. A new collection of…