Developmentia

a tool to understand and negotiate the conditions created upon the invocation of Development, by its subjects and prosecuters, as well as those caught in the crossfire It describes an institutional psychology that inhibits human uplift. One which suppresses the superscession of today's status quo in a bewildering variety of ways.  These include; cooption, science, technocracy, wastage and strategic misdirection. Whilst camouflaged as virtue.

Exhibit A

“The role of civil society in the democratisation of global governance institutions: from 'soft power' to collective decision-making”  The Title of Saif Al Islam Gaddafi's PhD Thesis

Context: British academic psychological warfare

Exhibit B

Context: A field trip to Gaibandha, Bangladesh during an international workshop on adaptation to climate change in Bangladesh, 2006. An NGO emblazons local rickshaws with stickers to promote fuel efficient stoves amongst the poorest most endangered people in Bangladesh. Why? You might ask, but to “to mitigate for green house gases”. This rather than plugging the health and economy benefits of said stoves.

Developmentia is a growing problem.  It affects countries that are supposed to be going decolonial, young people wishing to'make a difference', academies, NGOs, nation states and supranational organisations. It reproduces decontextualising ideas and social configurations that imprint the dominant stupidities of the wests and easts with wanton abandon.

Take for example the Universal Human Rights Doctrine, which sets a standard for being human. Or developmentia produced civil society, which provides a depoliticised platform for the cooption of middle classes, or epistemicidal Technology Transfer. These Climate Change Times have produced more than a few gems, the Clean Development Mechanism, Carbon Trading, Futures and Offsetting.

Our initiative is to strip naked these virtuous myths and encourage the configurations and knowledges silenced by them to flourish and blossom. For the futures of Asia, Africa and Latin America it is a vital project.

We do not apologise for making people feel uncomfortable,  neither do we appreciate any accusation of armchairhood. As more and more individuals and groups reclaim their decision-making space, our intervention aims to establish

Activities

Microsite - Maintenance of microsite featuring, a) an archive of historical and contemporary developmentia exhibits, b) a timeline, c) an FAQ, d) keywords and e) a reading list..

Developmentia Conference Pack -  The material culture of Development-shire is a fascinating access point to their self image and mental world, to it we dedicate the Mother of All Conference Packs.

Concept Album - A post colonial rock opera send up of fun-raising and representations of the Majority world in popular culture. (e.g. Concert for Bangladesh, LiveAid, BandAid, Live8).

Short Courses - Establishment of documentary, face-to-face and virtual educational and training resources.

Developmentshire  - Investigation of the Development Industry itself, its un-represented impacts and non-visible infrastructure.