"This book critically examines how the media assistance and broader "development" sectors have appropriated the catch-all concept of sustainability, originally rooted in economic and environmental fields, to suit their agendas. Analysing 289 project evaluations conducted globally between 1999 and 20
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19, it scrutinizes the tacit discourses underpinning what Pierre Bourdieu termed "the imperialism of the universal" in fostering media systems in the Global South. The book reveals how processes of self-legitimation operate within an increasingly competitive aid market, highlighting a shift from "post-missionary" approaches to business-driven models. Focusing on the often-overlooked African context, it explores nuanced coping capacity in Uganda and the Eastern DRC. Amid questioning of the populist wave as well as power-motivated new entrants, it challenges the recurring aid pattern, emphasizing the urgency of centering social impact and values in media assistance. It offers essential insights for scholars and practitioners navigating the evolving geopolitics of development and public diplomacy. Michel Leroy has been active in media action for over 25 years, both as an implementer and as a consultant. A member of an international research programme on media action, he holds a doctorate from the University of Dortmund. He is now a researcher focusing on the social impact." (Publisher description)
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"Social Sustainability in Development: Meeting the Challenges of the 21st Century seeks to advance the concept of social sustainability and sharpen its analytical foundations. The book emphasizes social sustainability’s four key components: social cohesion, inclusion, resilience, and process legit
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imacy. It posits that Social sustainability increases when more people feel part of the development process and believe that they and their descendants will benefit from it. Communities and societies that are more socially sustainable are more willing and able to work together to overcome challenges, deliver public goods, and allocate scarce resources in ways perceived to be legitimate and fair so that all people may thrive over time. By identifying interventions that work to promote the components of social sustainability and highlighting the evidence of their links to key development outcomes, this book provides a foundation for using social sustainability to help address the many challenges of our time." (Back cover)
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"This paper aims to trace the social construct of sustainability in the context of media development and define what is to be sustained, at the level of the intervention (the process of change) or its outcome (the impact on the medium itself). It is intended for all those who are concerned, closely
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or remotely, with ‘media action’ – and this expression is used here to mean any intervention (inside or outside a given media system) that promotes either communication for social change (the use of media for development purposes) or media development (the targeted development of independent outlets). This literature review focuses on the evolution of the concept of sustainability and the way it has been endorsed by the media, media action implementers and donors over time, as funds dedicated to media assistance have increased and the digital revolution has questioned most of the foundations of the media industry, with regard to production, distribution and information usage." (Abstract)
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"The Palgrave Handbook of International Communication and Sustainable Development is a major resource for stakeholders interested in understanding the role of communication in achieving the UN'S Sustainable Development Goals. Bringing together theoretical and applied contributions from scholars in E
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urope, Africa, the Middle East, Asia and North America, the handbook argues that communication is a key factor in achieving the global goals and suggests a review of the SDGs to consider its importance. Reflecting on the impact of COVID-19, it highlights the need for effective communication infrastructure and critically assesses the 2030 agenda and timeline. Including individual SDG and country case studies as well as integrated analysis, the chapters seek to enrich understanding of communication for development and propose crucial policy interventions." (Publisher description)
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"[...] Integrity Action has been exploring this question through conversations with civil society representatives, government, researchers, and citizens. During 2020 we interviewed 25 figures from sectors including social accountability, open government, and civic tech, and combined this with feedba
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ck from CSOs, government officials and citizens taking part in some of our projects. The majority of the contributors were from the Global South. We combined this with a literature review covering around 200 shortlisted research, policy and evaluation reports from a variety of fields. We were not only asking how citizen-centred accountability (CCA) mechanisms can be made to last, but also asking more broadly whether and when sustainability should be pursued, and what sustainability looks like in social accountability. In addition, we explored particular issues of relevance to sustained impact, including incentives for key stakeholders, the importance (or otherwise) of independence from the service provider, the use of technology, and inclusion. The purpose of this note is to begin to break down and make sense of some of the different perspectives on sustainability we have encountered though these discussions, as the first of a number of contributions on the topic over the coming months. Together, these contributions aim to offer a range of insights for different stakeholders: for donors thinking about long term funding horizons and different models they might want to support; for practitioners thinking about the kinds of questions to consider when designing CCA programmes and mechanisms; and for academics and experts, as a modest contribution to our collective understanding of the value of CCA more generally." (Page 1)
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"There are growing numbers of grass-root communication and information service providers in the developing countries today. They are operating community radio stations, multipurpose telecentres, information centres, community learning centres and – in a few cases – community multimedia centres (
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CMCs) that already combine both radio and telecentre facilities. This book is intended to be of use to all those wanting to become involved or already involved in such initiatives – staff and managers, community groups, NGOs working for community empowerment, communication planners supporting development activities, trainers and project partners. It will obviously be of particular interest to those operating or considering starting a CMC as it covers the full range of topics linked to community broadcasting and to telecentre operations." (UNESCO website, 31.10.2007)
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"Volume 2 examines the setting, operations, and effects of community telecentres. It describes the telecentre experiences of a variety of local and often rural communities, exploring the management structures and mechanisms that have been established to support these telecentres. The book provides p
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rofiles of telecentre usage and discusses the potential and challenges of setting up and maintaining community telecentres in the context of poor information infrastructure and limited human capacity. It will be useful for researchers, policy- and decision-makers, and development practitioners and professionals with interests or active programs in the area of "ICT for development," particularly those with a focus on universal access and universal-service or public-access centres. It will also be a very useful reference tool for scholars, students, and academics." (Publisher description)
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"Development is not a question of project-based interventions, or of quantifiable inputs and outputs, but a complex process of negotiation over meetings, values, and social goals within the sphere of public action. This collection of papers, from the journal 'Development in Practice', draws on The O
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pen University's ground-breaking work in the field of development management. It includes in-depth accounts by academics and development managers that range from civil society organizations in Brazil to NGO workers in Egypt, government departments in Tanzania and Poland, donor agencies in Bangladesh, and black feminist activities in the UK." (Catalogue Intermediate Technology Publications 2000)
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"For Fowler, sustainability is 'agility with insight', as simple as that. The book oozes with case studies, mainly of experienced NGOs, explaining how they overcame multifarious problems and settled down into the path of success. With some excellent discussion of questions like 'should we commercial
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ise?' and 'should we have private sector as partners?', it is less of a guide than a collection of insights." (Spore 91, February 2001)
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"Revolutionary information and communication technologies are contributing to dramatic changes in the competitiveness of global and local markets and in the way people conduct their business and everyday lives. The potential benefits and risks these changes present for developing countries and trans
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itional economies are enormous. This comprehensive, authoritative reference book examines the ways in which these powerful technologies are being harnessed to development goals, thus helping to reduce the risk of exclusion and create new opportunities for developing countries. The report emphasizes the urgency of developing new social and technological infrastructures so as to ensure that new technologies are used effectively. It also offers outlines and practical steps intended to guide stake-holders interested in shaping their future innovative knowledge societies." (Publisher description)
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"The report and papers of a two-week seminar organized by the Daughters of St. Paul which brought together representatives of 17 Catholic publishing houses from 13 African countries. The proceedings of the meeting focused on the role of the Catholic Church in publishing in Africa, but there are also
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chapters on the oral and reading traditions in Africa, the book industry in Africa, book marketing, NGO publishing, professionalism in publishing, and some perspectives on religious publishing. The seminar also led to the establishment of the Association of Catholic Publishers in Africa." (Hans M. Zell, Publishing, Books & Reading in Sub-Saharan Africa, 3d ed. 2008, nr. 1723)
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