"Today, DIY- do-it-yourself - describes more than self-taught carpentry. Social media enables DIY citizens to organize and protest in new ways (as in Egypt's "Twitter revolution" of 2011) and to repurpose corporate content (or create new user-generated content) in order to offer political counternar ... ratives. This book examines the usefulness and limits of DIY citizenship, exploring the diverse forms of political participation and "critical making" that have emerged in recent years. The authors and artists in this collection describe DIY citizens whose activities range from activist fan blogging and video production to knitting and the creation of community gardens. Contributors examine DIY activism, describing new modes of civic engagement that include Harry Potter fan activism and the activities of the Yes Men. They consider DIY making in learning, culture, hacking, and the arts, including do-it-yourself media production and collaborative documentary making." (Back cover) more

"In this article we reflect on three themes that highlight current trends in research communication for development and, in turn, shape this issue of the IDS Bulletin. We argue that shifts in the sociopolitical and theoretical context within which development research communication is being put into ... practice; the range and configurations of actors and roles being deployed; and technological advances or innovations available for research communication are affecting important and often contested changes. In introducing this collection of articles relevant to these themes, we conclude that further work is needed in mapping out this evolving landscape and better understanding the interlinkages, antecedents, and tensions between perspectives. Doing so, we argue, could contribute to a stronger praxis of development research communication." (Abstract) more