Spring 2011 NGOs & Development Study Group

The NGOs & Development Study Group meets to discuss and debate issues related to emerging paradigms in development, evolving roles of NGOs, and specific management, leadership and governance challenges in the NGO world.  The study group brings interested students from across Harvard together with practitioners dealing with these questions in real time or with academics investigating similar questions.  This is a space for open discussion and lively exchange, where all participants come with a commitment to share, listen and reflect.  It is a place for building relationships, exchanging ideas and connecting scholarship with practice.

Each session is led by a guest who will launch the discussion on the topics listed below and serve as a resource person. This study group is convened by the Humanitarian & Development NGOs domain of practice at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations.



Join the first NGOs & Development study group session of the spring semester!
Tracking the Performance of African States: Lessons from a Civil Society Advocacy Coalition
Irungu Houghton
Pan Africa Director, Oxfam International
 
In 2010, thirteen African and international civil society organizations undertook ten national studies and one continental study into the performance of African states against four continental policy standards and ten legal human rights instruments. The compliance reports were presented  to national delegations and the African Union in the African Union Summits of July 2010 and January 2011. Come and hear what research methodology and advocacy strategy they used, the challenges they faced and the impact the State of the Union Coalition has had in just six months. The compliance reports are a critical pan-Africanist tool in contributing to a prosperous, just and democratic Africa driven by its peoples.
This study group will be convened by
Ramesh Singh
Visiting Fellow, Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
Former Chief Executive, ActionAid International
 
Monday, February 74.00 pm – 5.00 pm Belfer L-4 (ground floor, Belfer Building)Harvard Kennedy SchoolIrungu Houghton is the Kenyan Pan Africa Director for Oxfam, based in Nairobi, Kenya. Irungu has over a decade of policy research, advocacy and lobbying international and African continental multi-lateral institutions including the World Bank, United Nations and the African Union. He is a regular source of pan Africanist analysis for policymakers and the media. He supports a number of Pan African coalitions to hold African states accountable for continental policy standards and to challenge unfair global policies. In 2007, Irungu was nominated by Ghanaian President John Kuffuor to join an independent High Level Panel to Audit the Performance of the African Union (2004-2008). His presentation is based on the ongoing work of the State of the Union Coalition www.stateoftheunionafrica.net.
The Humanitarian & Development NGOs Domain of Practice at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
 
The Role of NGOs in Affordable Housing: The Habitat for Humanity Perspective
When:             Tuesday, February 8th, 3-5pm
Where:            Hawes 201 (Harvard Business School)
Who:               Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity International
What:              Come and meet Jonathan Reckford, CEO of Habitat for Humanity since 2005, as he discusses the role of NGOs in meeting the worldwide need for affordable housing.  Reckford is a graduate of the Stanford University Graduate School of Business. His prior work experience includes a stint as president of stores for Musicland, senior vice president for corporate planning and communication at Circuit City, and various roles at Walt Disney Corp., Marriott Co., and Goldman Sachs & Co. This event is sponsored by the Social Enterprise Club and the Humanitarian & Development NGOs domain of practice at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations.


Join the second NGOs & Development study group session of the spring semester!
Humanitarian Action: Notes from the Frontline
Dr. Unni Krishnan
Disaster Response Policy Coordinator, Plan International
 
Disasters and conflicts devastate and leave lasting footprints. They reconfigure lives and reverse development gains. They often widen  social and political fault lines and compromise rights. Numerous factors amplify the vulnerability to disasters and their impact.  This session will provide an eyewitness and activist account of the social reality on the ground in humanitarian disasters, from the tsunami in Asia to the floods in Pakistan to the earthquake in Haiti, and will discuss national and international responses to those disasters.
This study group will be convened by
Ramesh Singh
Visiting Fellow, Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations
Former Chief Executive, ActionAid International
 
Tuesday, February 154.00 pm – 5.00 pm Belfer L-4 (ground floor, Belfer Building)Harvard Kennedy SchoolDr. Unni Krishnan is a health and humanitarian worker and has twenty years of experience in humanitarian organizations such as ActionAid, Oxfam and Plan. Currently, he leads the emergency response efforts of Plan International and is based at their international headquarters in the UK.  Dr. Krishnan serves on the board of the Sphere Project and worked as a Task Force member of the Inter Agency Standing Committee that developed the international guidelines on mental health and psychosocial support in emergency settings.
This study group is organized by the Humanitarian & Development NGOs Domain of Practice at the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations