Alternativas de desarrollo: viejos desafíos y nuevas hibridaciones en China y América Latina

In the current, dominant conceptualisation of International Development Studies, «development» is based on the emancipation from poverty for the more than one-billion people who are unable to satisfy their basic human needs, in a world that has never been richer in material terms. Critical development studies attempts to understand why the many projects of development that have been implemented have not led to the stated emancipatory goal after five decades of multiple initiatives and resources, and propose alternatives to the conventional model. To that end, this article examines and theorizes the dynamic of capitalist system's development project; offers tools for the analysis of States, societies and communities which have attempted to create better living conditions and defy orthodox models; outline the resistance to capitalism and the search for alternatives in the peripheries; conceptualize peripheral capitalist subdevelopment or development and post-capitalism or post-development from a perspective of unequal development; reveal the failure of dominant economic development theory and policy that is unable to understand or ignores the underlying dynamic of capitalist development. Consequently, the article proposes going beyond capitalism with the forces of progressive change, oriented toward an alternative development. It analyzes case studies in China and Latin America, where a series of hybridizations are identified that could offer lessons for how to create alternatives to capitalism.

Sustaining a Culture of Excellence: Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) on Land Management

Increasing globalization and the emergence of disruptive learning technologies have derived a pedagogical paradigm shift from the conventional on-campus higher education to the digital and online higher education. Massive open online courses (MOOCs), especially, are the most notable manifestation of educational transformation. We developed a MOOC entitled Introduction to Land Management (ILMx MOOC) for potential entrants to the land management domain, or for those who simply want to become aware of land-related challenges and brought together with thousands of participants worldwide with freely accessible course content and rooms for open discussion. Our experience with ILMx MOOC has accumulated new knowledge and insight across a broad range of questioning on how to design and develop alternative courseware and teach using digital learning technologies in land management. This paper examines an account of emerging patterns of demographics, geography, and course engagement throughout the ILMx MOOC. We found that the subject of land management in digital higher education affects gender gaps in enrolments. We also assume that the topic of land management has been globally recognized as an important nexus to guide professionals in international development studies and practices as well as sustainability research. However, new behavioral patterns of learners were also observed. They participated in the learning process very enthusiastically only during the first month of the course and this seems to be due to lack of motivation and interest to induce learners efficiently into the learning content. We believe that the culture of excellence in land management needs to be accompanied by engaged excellence and new forms of educational culture and work processes. This means that the high-quality and rigorous knowledge we produce and accumulate is coupled closely with new styles of educational development and delivery, new types of resources and hardware, and extensive engagement with countries, localities, people, and practices of those who handle land matters.

The Relationship Between Experiential Learning and Career Outcomes for Alumni of International Development Studies Programs in Canada

In this paper, we explore the relationship between experiential learning and career outcomes for international development studies (IDS) graduates from the perspective of program alumni, by presenting the results of a national survey completed by 1,901 IDS alumni across Canada. Employing study data, we answer the following research questions: (1) What do IDS alumni consider important experiential learning opportunities? and (2) What is the perceived relationship between experiential learning and career outcomes? We argue that documenting IDS graduate perspectives on the relationship between experiential learning and career paths can inform current program opportunities and highlight the relationship between work-integrated learning and career success in this field.

The Relationship Between Experiential Learning and Career Outcomes for Alumni of International Development Studies Programs in Canada

In this paper, we explore the relationship between experiential learning and career outcomes for international development studies (IDS) graduates from the perspective of program alumni, by presenting the results of a national survey completed by 1,901 IDS alumni across Canada. Employing study data, we answer the following research questions: (1) What do IDS alumni consider important experiential learning opportunities? and (2) What is the perceived relationship between experiential learning and career outcomes? We argue that documenting IDS graduate perspectives on the relationship between experiential learning and career paths can inform current program opportunities and highlight the relationship between work-integrated learning and career success in this field.

Globalization and Rethinking of Environmental Consumption From a Sustainability Perspective

Sustainable environmental consumption has been a marginalized concept in international development studies and cooperation. In recent decades, there has been growing interest in identifying robust indicators that demonstrate the evidence of globalization and unsustainable environmental consumption. Globalization is premised on integrating the world into a global village. Various dimensions of globalization have different effects on the ecosystem. Plausible evidence linking globalization trajectories into practical interactions suggesting sustainable environmental consumption has been less lucid as the effects of globalization on the ecological environment does not provide clear patterns. This hugely significant problem has reopened critical debates on novel thinking on dynamics of environmental consumption patterns of the affluent societies in the era of globalization and its implications on environmental sustainability. This chapter deployed content analysis methodology and political ecology framework to review and analyze seminal studies on sustainable consumption and globalization, including relevant globalization indexes. The aim is to provide evidence of the impact of globalization on environmental consumption. The chapter suggests that globalization results in asymmetrical and deleterious natural resource extraction between the affluent North and poor South. It offered alternative thinking in which sustained policy framings and international development collaboration could be institutionalized to strengthen sustainable environmental consumption one which is premised on ecological justice and natural resource equality.

Educating the Heart: Fostering Hope Through Theatre in the AIDS Crisis in South Africa

With approximately 5.3 million people living with HIV/AIDS, South Africa has the highest HIV­ prevalence rate in the world. HIV tends to strike the most vulnerable people in society, and is often associated with high risk behaviours, which inevitably leads to stigmatization. Through an integration of theatre and development theory, I propose to investigate the potential of using theatre as a community event that raises awareness of collective issues and that offers new hope to people living with HIV. I suggest that theatre can educate the heart and put a human face on HIV/AIDS, thus catalyzing a healing process at the community level. By targeting township youth, those who are currently driving the virus, an interactive theatre style, such as participatory methodology, can effectively move beyond didactic education. In participatory theatre, the target group is incorporated into the theatrical representation of their circumstances through the performance of personal testimonies associated with HIV. Here, the power of theatre lies in its ability to produce individual reactions in the audience, which ultimately result in a collective experience and elevated consciousness through the discussion that ensues. The community is thus empowered to engage in a new ap proach to HIV/AIDS. Can such a performance prevent further infections by exposing the consequences and realities of living with AIDS? While a test­case would be ideal in the affirmation of these ideas, I hope to bring a new approach to community theatre through a combination of theories from both theatre and international development studies.