Reading Development

Random readings on society, politics and change – Jorge Carrillo

Public space and public rituals: Engagement and protest in the digital age

In our technology-based society, individuals have more tools that they can use to manage and ‘show’ themselves in public space. In public space, they are monitored by agencies using surveillance … Continue reading

Saturday, 28 January 2023 · Leave a comment

Migrant waste collectors in Thailand’s informal economy: Mapping class relations

Recent scholarship on primitive accumulation and deagrarianisation in the global South has addressed a decline in formal employment prospects, leaving most ex-peasants (and their heirs) struggling to earn a livelihood … Continue reading

Thursday, 3 November 2022 · Leave a comment

From the smart city to urban justice in a digital age

The smart city is the most emblematic contemporary expression of the fusion of urbanism and digital technologies. Critical urban scholars are now increasingly likely to highlight the injustices that are … Continue reading

Tuesday, 19 July 2022 · Leave a comment

Job creation or Informality reduction – The effects of subsidizing social security contributions

This paper evaluates the impact of an employment subsidy scheme covering employers’ social contribution costs on registered employment in small firms in Turkey. It utilizes a rich, firm-level administrative data … Continue reading

Friday, 21 January 2022 · Leave a comment

A political economy of overoptimism – Measuring global poverty before and during the pandemic

The contribution of this paper is to question the ‘official’ estimates of global monetary poverty up to and during the COVID-19 pandemic. We argue there is a political economy of … Continue reading

Wednesday, 5 January 2022 · Leave a comment

The gender productivity gap – Evidence from the Indian informal sector

We examine the patterns and correlates of the productivity gap between male-owned and female-owned firms for informal enterprises in India. Female-owned firms are on average 45 per cent less productive … Continue reading

Tuesday, 28 December 2021 · Leave a comment

Neoliberalism and the state in the African city: informality, accumulation and the rebirth of a Ugandan Market

This article stresses the value of viewing urban development through a critical lens that focuses on questions surrounding neoliberalism and the state, highlighting how such an approach can provide important … Continue reading

Thursday, 9 December 2021 · Leave a comment

Homeworking in the Philippines: Bad job? Good job?

This report focuses on two categories of homeworkers in the Philippines: industrial homeworkers, who assemble or fabricate goods for factories, retailers or their agents under subcontracting arrangements; and online workers, … Continue reading

Friday, 26 November 2021 · Leave a comment

From Visible Informality to Splintered Informalities

Increasingly, scholarly works challenge the formal/informal dichotomy, stressing the multiple political practices of producing informality which go beyond state incapacity. In contrast, this article addresses a lack of research concerning … Continue reading

Saturday, 6 November 2021 · Leave a comment