By Tara van Dijk
Why should we “think SDGs” in Development Studies? This model of development (getting countries, corporations and other institutions to champion a list of non-binding goals and arbitrary targets) should be an object of analysis and critique. Yet this and similar messages adorn Development Studies departments’ websites, events, and curriculum. And what do these messages preclude and promote? They promote consent for this brand of development by precluding dissent and abstention. Here I delve into why and how Development Studies, in effect and since its inception, manufactures consent for mainstream development thinking and projects. Continue reading “Development Studies and the Manufacturing of Consent”