APG5628 Development, power and practice

This unit provides a critical, historically grounded examination of development as both a body of theory and a set of global practices. It traces key shifts in development discourse, from modernisation in the post WWII period to the contemporary focus on sustainable development. The unit explores how development is defined, measured, and shaped by institutional priorities across diverse cultural contexts. You will interrogate core ideas such as economic growth, modernisation, progress, and conditionality, alongside critical perspectives from political economy and postcolonial theories. These frameworks are used to position development as highly contested and mutable. You will analyse how current institutionalised practices perpetuate inequality, and where opportunities lie for greater justice. Drawing on contemporary challenges including climate change, conflict, gender, global health, and governance, you will critically analyse development practice and how it can evolve to meet ongoing social, political, and environmental changes.