The context Stepping back from time to time is very useful for gaining perspective. Studying the humanitarian sector can draw you into any number of topics, and just keeping up with the latest controversies, Tweet threads, ‘Fifty Shades of Aid‘ Facebook posts, informational web sites, academic journals, and blogs like Aidnography is more than enough to keep this researcher occupied. But being ‘drawn in’ means making it harder -and thus more necessary- to step back occasionally. And so I have, enjoying a short but intense conversation with a respected silverback in the sector, my colleague J (aka Evil Genius). One comment he made struck me, and I decided to explore further. We were discussing many topics including my research on national humanitarian workers, critiques of the sector, and the trope ‘moving the needle.” J and I agreed that there is both a great deal wrong…and a great deal amazingly ‘right’ with … Continue reading “In the big picture, the sector is but a pawn in terms of international politics.”