Publications
Through Pulte Institute (formerly "NDIGD") programs and projects, our faculty and researchers produce evidence-based, strategic publications that aim to positively influence global development policy and practice nationally or internationally through engaging key thought leaders; policymakers and government agencies; the private sector; and the academy.
Applying a Dignity Lens in Migration and Displacement
This paper underscores the need for a transformative approach to humanitarian response that centers human dignity as a fundamental principle.
Greenhouse gas offsets distort the effect of clean energy tax credits in the United States
This article finds that assigning negative GHG intensities to biogenic- and fossil-origin methane feedstocks and allowing such feedstocks to be blended with natural gas could support about 35 million metric tonnes of gray hydrogen production per year.
The Right to Stay, Migrate and Return: Conceptualizing Freedom, Examining Diverse National Contexts and Exploring Policy Implications
This paper introduces a special edition of the Journal on Migration and Human Security, which examines a conceptual and interpretive framework called “the right to stay, migrate and return.”
A Research Agenda for Economic Resilience in Fossil Fuel–Dependent Communities
This article discusses the need for additional scholarship to help policymakers design, implement, and evaluate strategies for supporting the economies of fossil fuel–dependent regions. Though we focus on the US, the challenge applies worldwide
Before and after disaster: Homeowner protective actions in a changing climate
We introduce a novel research methodology to study the voluntary climate adaptation actions of homeowners in a post-hurricane landscape where damage necessitates reconstruction decisions.
Carbon markets have no future in a (net) zero-emissions world
This commentary explains why market signals are insufficient to support a zero greenhouse gas emissions outcome, why sorting is ineffective on the path to zero emissions, and an alternative proposal for a centrally coordinated transition to an end goal.
Collective PES Contracts Can Motivate Institutional Creation to Conserve Forests: Experimental Evidence
We analyze data from an incentivized lab-in-the-field experimental collective action game played with natural resource users in four developing countries that simulates management of a common forest.
Community Lending with External Capital: Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Uganda
We study an intervention relaxing the constraint of capital availability in community-based savings groups (SGs) by exogenously adding initial capital to SGs in a randomized experiment in rural Uganda.
Comparative Educational Pluralism: A Framework for Comparative Policy Analysis
We analyze prominent frameworks before proposing a Framework for Comparative Educational Pluralism to inform a more design-sensitive and evidence-rooted approach to policy analysis and design about the role of non-state actors in education systems.
Defining, Measuring, and Increasing “Rootedness” in the High Migration Context of Honduras
The paper examines and offers a new understanding of the concept of “rootedness,” which speaks to why some members of a community want to migrate and others desire to remain in their home communities.
Development and evaluation of a digital behavioral economics game towards improved understanding of groundwater conservation in southern Colorado
This work explores the development and evaluation of a digital behavioral economic game using data from the San Luis Valley in order to improve understanding of how groundwater is consumed and conserved within agricultural communities in Colorado.
Does subsidizing seed help farmers? Nepal's rice seed subsidies
We evaluate the impact of Nepal's universal seed subsidy program on farmer participants five years after its inception.
Educational Pluralism and Social Cohesion: A Themed Issue of the Peabody Journal of Education
This introduction defines educational pluralism as a structure for school systems in which the state funds and regulates, but does not exclusively deliver, education.
Effects of COVID-19 pandemic on low birth weight in a nationwide study in India
Our findings show that babies born during the COVID-19 pandemic are more likely to be LBW. The subgroup analyses indicate significant differences by religion but not by maternal education, caste, and wealth group.
Environmental governance is critical for mitigating human displacement due to weather-related disasters
Here, we investigate the relationship between environmental governance (measured by the Notre Dame Country Index) and weather-related disaster displacements.
Explaining Variation in Treatment Effects: An Impact Evaluation and Mixed-Methods Study of Variation in Early Grade Reading Program Effects
This article contributes to understanding the effectiveness of early grade reading interventions in low-income-country contexts and how and why such interventions vary in their effectiveness across schools.
Fear and the poverty entrepreneur: The paradox of failure and success
Using experiences from the Urban Poverty and Business Initiative we developed a series of focus groups with poverty entrepreneurs to learn more about their encounters with fear.
Food security effects of forest sector participation in rural Liberia
Here we estimate the effects of participation in forest-based activities like collection and processing of timber and non-timber forest products (NTFPs) on household food security in Liberia, the most forested country in West Africa.
Governing the Gilded Age City: Local Institution Building in the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s
We introduce a new dataset of of urban boards in Boston, MA, Chicago, IL, Denver, CO, and Los Angeles, CA from the late 1800s-1940s. We examine the impact of political regimes on development and how local organizational capacity translated into policy.
Intergenerational paid and unpaid labor production and consumption inequality by gender in Mexico
This paper emphasizes the critical role of education and the equitable valuation of paid and unpaid work in reducing economic disparities in Mexico across genders and throughout the economic life cycle.
Life Cycle Assessment and Life Cycle Cost Analysis of Repurposing Decommissioned Wind Turbine Blades as High-Voltage Transmission Poles
We implement a life cycle assessment and life cycle cost analysis to assess the environmental and financial implications of repurposing wind turbine blades as the primary load-carrying elements for high-voltage transmission line structures in the US.
Making low-carbon energy sustainable
Low-carbon energy capacity continues to grow, facilitating the much-needed transition away from fossil fuels. However, broader sustainability issues remain. This Voices asks: what barriers continue to obstruct a truly sustainable energy transition?
Public control of coal resources of the United States' Powder River Basin for a managed decarbonization transition
We argue that the Powder River Basin, which is the US' largest coal basin and consists primarily of federally leased coal, should be brought under public control for managed decline to meet emissions reduction targets and advance a just energy transition.
Reforming School Choice Systems to Reduce Segregation in Schools: A Comparative Political Economy Study of Education Reform in Belgium, Chile, and the Netherlands
This study offers a comparative examination of desegregation policy reforms in Belgium, Chile, and the Netherlands, addressing equity reforms to universal school choice systems.
Relationship between adolescent anemia and school attendance observed during a nationally representative survey in India
This within-household analysis finds little evidence that anemia is associated with school attendance among adolescents in India.
Religion and Demography: Papal Influences on Fertility
Do religious leaders affect fertility? Examining the visits of Pope John Paul II to 13 Latin American countries, we find significant and positive long term effects of Papal visits on fertility.
Safety, Belonging, and Forgiveness: Exploring the Role of Faith-Based Educational Organizations in Mitigating Gang Violence in Central America and the Caribbean
This paper examines findings from a multi-country study of faith-based education in Latin America and considers the role and contributions of faith-based organizations in addressing the causes and consequences of gang violence in Latin America.
The water–climate nexus: Intersections across sectors
In this Primer, we summarize key intersections between water and climate across four sectors: environment; drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene; food and agriculture; and energy.
Towards understanding capacity development as a system: perceptions from multiple conservation stakeholder groups in Bhutan
Through a case study of Bhutan, we use mixed methods to identify which capacities have been important for conservation success, which capacities are needed for future success, which capacities are foundational and how capacities interact.
Traveling for Safety: Price and Income Elasticities of Hurricane Evacuation Behavior
Using surveys from the U.S., this study estimates how much distance and time were traveled by evacuees to reach safer destinations during a hurricane event. We also estimated the price and income elasticities of hurricane evacuation trip characteristics.
Trends in forest livelihoods research – Taking stock in 2024
This introduction contextualizes current research at the forest-livelihoods nexus, identifies three key themes and two cross-cutting social sustainability concerns, and highlights implications for forest-related policy.
Understanding Evacuation Behavior During Cyclones: Evidence from Bangladesh
In this paper, we focus on understanding people's evacuation behaviors in the face of approaching cyclones using survey data collected through face-to-face interviews with residents living in the coastal areas of Bangladesh.
Understanding household evacuation preferences during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico
This paper characterized household concerns and evacuation preferences in the context of both hurricanes and pandemic risks. We conducted a survey of 504 households across 119 different zip code areas in Puerto Rico impacted by Hurricane Maria (2017).
Whither the agricultural productivity-led model? Reconsidering resilient and inclusive rural transformation in the context of agrifood systems
This paper argues that there remains an urgent need to enhance productivity in agriculture and agrifood systems, where relevant, for resilient and inclusive rural development.
Advancing parcel-level hurricane regional loss assessments using open data and the regional resilience determination tool
This study presents the first replication and extension of the Regional Resilience Determination (R2D) tool to conduct parcel-level and component-level hurricane performance assessments outside of the Simulation Center's testbed locations.
A Framework for Transitions in the Built Environment: Insights from Compound Hazards in the COVID-19 Era
This paper presents a framework for conceptualizing adaptation of the built environment as a series of state transitions in response to (or in anticipation of) compound hazards, drawing on cases regarding food production, shelter, and education.
Air quality, health and equity implications of electrifying heavy-duty vehicles
Here we use a neighborhood-scale air quality model to evaluate air pollution, public health and equity implications of a 30% transition of predominantly diesel HDVs to EHDVs over the region surrounding North America’s largest freight hub, Chicago, IL.
A Unified Multievent Windstorm Performance Testbed for Single-Family Residential Buildings
The objectives of this study are to (1) synthesize and present a unified, multievent windstorm performance data set (WiSPD) and (2) summarize common damage patterns observed in the WiSPD.
Can traders' meetings boost seed sales of new rice varieties and promote a market-driven seed system? Evidence from Nepal
Seed companies in Nepal have started to conduct traders' meetings (TMs) to promote new rice varieties. This paper aims to assess the effectiveness of this approach in promoting new rice varieties.
Combining remote sensing techniques and field surveys for post-earthquake reconnaissance missions
This paper presents a new approach for rapid post-earthquake building damage assessment and landslide mapping, based on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) data.
COVID-19 disruption in agricultural input supply and impact on food security in Nepal
This study assesses the extent of COVID-19 pandemic disruptions in Nepal on the availability and access of agricultural inputs and the impact on agricultural production and food security using data from a key informant survey conducted in 2020.
Diagnosing environmental problems and their possible policy responses: A tool for assessing initial options
We present a diagnostic framework to help guide environmental policy analysts and practitioners to think more systematically about the major types of environmental problems and their possible policy responses.
Digital Training for Micro-Entrepreneurs: Experimental Evidence from Guatemala
A research partnership with a multinational company operating in the food sector of Guatemala enables the randomized evaluation of a digital training program involving the franchise store owners of one of its retail chains.
Does private sector involvement improve the distribution efficiency of subsidized fertilizer? A natural experiment from Nepal
We assessed the impacts of involving the private sector in selling fertilizer to farmers. We examined whether the market transaction cost proxied by farmers’ search cost, travel time to visit the stores, and the opportunity cost of time spent.
Economic incentives for coastal homeowner adaptation to climate change
We analyze a survey of 662 coastal households in the hurricane-exposed state of North Carolina, suggesting that homeowners who believe adaptation measures increase the market value of their homes are more likely to have homes with these upgrades.
Energy-Material Cycles: A materials-based perspective of vehicle energy systems
In this article, we propose an Energy-Material Cycles (EM-cycles) model to facilitate communication and comparison of trade offs that exist across energy systems.
Examination reform for higher order thinking: A case study of assessment-driven reform in Uganda
We present findings from a qualitative case study of assessment-driven reform in Uganda aimed at strengthening higher order thinking on exams and strengthening teacher education curriculum and instruction to prepare teachers’ capacity to instruct...
Extreme Weather Events and the Performance of Critical Utility Infrastructures: A Case Study of Hurricane Harvey
This study seeks to understand the performance and resilience of critical infrastructure systems in Houston, Texas, using Hurricane Harvey (2017) as a case study.
Farmer–herder conflicts in sub-Saharan Africa: drivers, impacts, and resolution and peacebuilding strategies
We review empirical studies on farmer–herder conflicts in sub-Saharan Africa focusing holistically on drivers, impacts, and the opportunities and limits of the main resolution and peacebuilding strategies different actors use to manage the conflicts.
Getting citizens to conserve water: A comparison of crisis responses in Bogota and Mexico City
Looking at hazard events that produced drinking water crises in Bogota, Colombia, and Mexico City, Mexico, we compare these cities’ efforts to decrease potable water consumption.
Highly energy efficient housing can reduce peak load and increase safety under beneficial electrification
This study shows that highly efficient housing presents an opportunity to simultaneously protect people and structurally reduce peak load, reducing the need for electricity supply infrastructure while increasing people's resilience to weather extremes.
Integrating household survey with inoperability input–output model of critical infrastructure systems: A case study of Hurricane Sandy
The article develops an integrated economic input–output model that incorporates household-level survey data from Hurricane Sandy, which made its landfall in 2012.
Measuring transformative WASH: A new paradigm for evaluating water, sanitation, and hygiene interventions
We present a way forward for implementing a monitoring and evaluation paradigm shift that can help achieve transformative WASH.
Neighborhood-scale air quality, public health, and equity implications of multi-modal vehicle electrification
We use a regulatory-grade chemical transport model and a vehicle-to-electricity generation unit electricity assignment algorithm to characterize neighborhood-scale air quality and public health benefits and tradeoffs associated with an EV transition.
Place-based solutions for global social-ecological dilemmas: An analysis of locally grounded, diversified, and cross-scalar initiatives in the Amazon
This paper proposes that local initiatives that pursue three particular pathways are more likely to generate improvements in social-ecological outcomes.
Promoting Protection and Empowerment for Iraqi Women
March 2023 marks 20 years since U.S. forces invaded Iraq, and the ensuing war was another blow to women's rights. This brief outlines why an agenda for change developed by Iraqi women deserves international support.
Psychometric Properties of the CES-D, PCL-5, and DERS in a Honduran Adult Sample
This study's objective was to evaluate the psychometric properties of Latin American Spanish-language versions of the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, PTSD Checklist for the DSM-5 (PCL-5), and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale.
Reply to 'A commentary on "US power sector carbon capture and storage under the Inflation Reduction Act could be costly with limited or negative abatement potential"'
Here we reply to a comment by Dr. Robert Kennedy from the US Department of Energy (DOE) on our paper 'US power sector carbon capture and storage under the Inflation Reduction Act could be costly with limited or negative abatement potential.'
Street Code Values Among Youth in the ‘Northern Triangle’ of Central America: Do They Predict Delinquency, Substance Use, and Bullying Perpetration?
Using data collected in 2022 from separate samples of youth in Honduras (N = 950) and El Salvador (N = 821), we investigate the association between street code values and three outcomes: delinquency, substance use, and bullying perpetration.
The distortionary effects of unconstrained for-profit carbon dioxide removal and the need for early governance intervention
We argue that the emerging tendency toward market-based, unconstrained, and for-profit CDR presents fundamental and predictable risks for climate and justice goals.
The Machuca experience: A retrospective case study of school-based socio-economic integration
We focus on the experiences and perceptions of former students to explore lessons from this evocative case study of socio-economic integration.
Tokenizing Behavior Change: A Pathway for the Sustainable Development Goals
This paper begins to identify common ground and address areas to further develop research and practice of tokens being used for social impact.
Validation of an Augmented Parcel Approach for Hurricane Regional Loss Assessments
This paper presents an augmented parcel approach leveraging various sources of open data, machine learning modules, & time-evolving rule sets to support Hazus-compatible risk assessments on a wide class of buildings under hurricane wind and flood hazards.
A Framework for a Just Energy Transition in Tajikistan
This policy brief provides policymakers with critical guidance and recommendations on how Tajikistan can achieve a just energy transition, including principles to consider as well as a mechanism for successful implementation.
A People-Centered Approach to Development and Human Security in Afghanistan
This policy brief is about a people-centered approach to development and human security in Afghanistan.
A Slow Downward Road: Occupational Status Attainment in Mexico’s Development
This article examines labor cohort differences in occupational status to evaluate whether historical timing of entry into the workforce shapes occupational achievement dynamics throughout Mexico’s industrialization.
Behavior of Private Retailers in a Regulated Input Market: An Empirical Analysis of the Fertilizer Subsidy Policy in Nepal
We propose a middle ground to mitigate private sector noncompliance and suggest a policy revisit to increase the fertilizer supply and distribution efficiency.
Building Resilience to Climate Change in Sub-Saharan Africa through Irrigation Investments
In this brief we consider the factors that are associated with irrigation system performance for two different types of systems: surface water irrigation schemes with many irrigators and groundwater pumping systems adopted by individual farmers.
Building Resilience to Climate Change in Sub-Saharan Africa through Irrigation Investments - Report
In this paper, we review literature on the performance of different types of irrigation schemes, mainly restricting our attention to schemes found in SSA.
Drivers of fragility in the ventures of poverty entrepreneurs
This study examines whether and how the experience of poverty shapes the entrepreneurial journey.
Equitable Food Initiative: Innovation to Address the Plight of Farmworkers
In this case study, Oxfam staff envisioned a new approach to address the poverty wages and harsh conditions of farmworkers, one of the most mistreated workforces in the United States
Fertilizer demand-supply gap and avenues for policy revisits in Nepal
In this study, the fertilizer demands, both at the national and sub-national levels, were estimated through a survey of cooperatives that distribute subsidized fertilizers in the country.
From Crisis Management to Feminist Leadership at Oxfam America
Oxfam, the international nongovernmental organization, was rocked by press revelations in 2018 of sexual misconduct in its 2011 Haiti humanitarian operations following the devastating earthquake there.
Gender-Responsive Approach to Integrated Soil Fertility Management in Nepal
This discussion paper sheds light on how women and socially marginalized populations can benefit from ISFM, using case studies from Nepal, and suggests a gender-responsive ISFM framework for broader applicability.
Getting the message out: Information and communication technologies and agricultural extension
Researchers conducted a randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of three ICTs—radio, voice response messages, and a smartphone app—with traditional extension training in communicating fertilizer management practices in rural Nepal.
Ghana Transition-to-English Plus (T2E+) Impact Evaluation
The SHARE project, funded by USAID and led by UND’s Pulte Institute for Global Development and the Institute for Educational Initiatives, performed a program evaluation of T2E+. This brief discusses its findings.
Measuring Transformative WASH: A New Paradigm for Designing, Monitoring, and Evaluating Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Interventions
This policy brief summarizes factors that perpetuate the status quo in WASH program assessment and outlines a new paradigm for designing, monitoring, and evaluating WASH interventions.
Measuring Transformative WASH: A New Paradigm for Designing, Monitoring, and Evaluating Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Interventions - Report
This report presents factors that perpetuate the status quo in WASH program assessment and outlines a new paradigm for designing, monitoring, and evaluating WASH interventions.
Research to Policy: A Long-Term Impact Evaluation of the Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research Program
Investment in scientific research in low- and middle-income countries has the potential to increase evidence generation, improve researcher capacity, and motivate policy change.
South Sudan Multi-Year Emergency (MYE) Activity Impact Evaluation: Baseline Report
This article examines the effectiveness of Multi-Year Emergency (MYE) Activity installed in South Sudan on mitigating the impact of shocks, preventing the erosion of household assets and livelihoods, and accelerating recovery.
Toward Understanding the Global Landscape of Educational Pluralism
This paper explores the global and cross-national landscape of educational pluralism, its grounding in human rights law and contemporary debates, and conceptualizes how it might be measured cross-nationally.
Unravelling the Relationship between Dark Triad Traits and Effectuation and Causation within Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises
This study aims to broaden the understanding of individual-level antecedents by examining the role of the so-called dark side of the CEO personality on decision-making processes within small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
Voices from the Frontline: Eradicating Labor Trafficking in Guatemala
Human trafficking in Guatemala occurs in various forms and places, many of which are hidden or hard to discern.
What’s in Your Cup? Oxfam America Takes on Starbucks
But how can smallholder coffee farmers ensure they receive a fair price for their product in an era of globalization dominated by powerful multinational corporations?
Assessment-Driven Education Reform as a Path to Instructional Quality: Lessons from Uganda
This report draws upon research and an illustrative case study from Uganda to offer a framework for effective examination-driven reform.
Effective Civil Society–Government Partnerships: Lessons From Education Reform in Uganda
This report examines partnerships between an institute of higher education in Uganda and its Ministry of Education and proposes a model for effective government and civil society partnerships for state capacity building in low-income country contexts.
The entrepreneurial mindset and poverty
We investigate the role of the entrepreneurial mindset in facilitating entrepreneurship by those in poverty.
Addressing the Sex and Gender-Based Violence in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador Fueling the U.S. Border Crisis
This policy brief evaluates the violence against women and girls in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador perpetrated by gangs, narco-traffickers, human traffickers and a machismo culture fueled by corruption and impunity
Addressing the Sex and Gender-Based Violence in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador Fueling the U.S. Border Crisis: Corruption, Impunity, and Violence Against Women and Girls
This report evaluates pervasive sex and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador which is perpetrated by gangs, narco-traffickers, human traffickers and a machismo culture fueled by corruption and impunity
Entrepreneurship Education in the Transformation of Incarcerated Individuals: A Review of the Literature and Future Research Directions
This article studies the theories of entrepreneurial cognition, planned behavior, and criminal desistance to understand the role of entrepreneurship education in the behavioral and cognitive transformation of incarcerated individuals
Gender and Politics: Maintaining Women’s Meaningful Participation in Afghanistan
This policy brief examines the clear correlation between U.S. support and correspondent development outcomes to institutionalize women's rights in Afghanistan
Overcoming Barriers to Technology Adoption When Fostering Entrepreneurship Among the Poor: The Role of Technology and Digital Literacy
This article explores critical areas of typical ventures launched by the poor that are affected by technology.
Poverty and Entrepreneurship in Developed Economies: Re-Assessing the Roles of Policy and Community Action
This article explores how developed economies can better realize the entrepreneurial potential of the poor by emphasizing the nexus of public policy and community action.
Preparing for Climate Change in the Midwest and Great Lakes Region: A Primer for Citizens and Community Leaders
This policy brief analyzes the future impact of climate change in the Midwest and Great Lakes region and recommendations of action that communities can take to mitigate them.
Strategy for the Future: Energy Transition, Competitiveness and the Future Midwest
This report evaluates how the Midwest can shape its future by embracing this energy transition and exploiting the opportunities that clean energy presents for strengthening the region’s industrial position.
The Futures of Work in South Bend in 2035: A Participatory Foresight Study
This report examines a study that uses a participatory foresight approach, formulating potential scenario narratives of the futures of work by actively engaging the local community in South Bend
The Liability of Poorness: Why the Playing Field is Not Level for Poverty Entrepreneurs
This article explores the important implications poverty presents entrepreneurs in their ability to launch and sustain viable businesses.
A Bioeconomic Model for Estimating Potential Economic Damages from a Hypothetical Asian Beetle Introduced via Future Trade with Cuba
This paper studies a bioeconomic model that estimates potential economic damages to southern pine forests caused by the hypothetical introduction of an unknown Asian bark or ambrosia beetle via future trade with Cuba for the study period 2018–2050.
Entrepreneurship as a Solution to Poverty in Developed Nations
This publication explores entrepreneurship as an important mechanism for breaking the poverty cycle in developed economies.
Evaluating Social Protective Factors for Violence Involvement in Honduras
This article evaluates social protective factors in violence prevention policies and programs in Honduras.
Improved cookstoves as pathway between food preparation and reduced domestic violence
This paper examines the pathway between improved cookstoves and prevalence of domestic violence in Uganda.
Sweeping it under the rug: Household chores and misreporting of child labor
We collect data on child labor in almost 3,000 Nepali households, and our analysis shows that estimates of child labor prevalence vary from 11.6% to 29% with the definition of child labor used.
The Great Divides in Social Entrepreneurship and Where They Lead Us
We present an inclusive approach to social entrepreneurship that provides a common platform for advancing the field while allowing for diverse streams of research.
Transferencias intergeneracionales por género y efectos económicos del envejecimiento demográfico en México
Los propósitos de este artículo son visualizar el potencial efecto del cambio demográfico en la dependencia económica de mujeres y hombres ante el inminente proceso de envejecimiento demográfico.
Typologies of Childhood Exposure to Violence in Peru
This study examined typologies of childhood polyvictimization and the associations of profiles with demographic characteristics at the levels of child, household, and primary caregiver.
What Do Entrepreneurs Create
This book addresses the different kinds of businesses launched by entrepreneurs and explains why their differences are so critical for our understanding of entrepreneurship.
An Evolving Choice in a Diverse Water Market: A Quality Comparison of Sachet Water with Community and Household Water Sources in Ghana
This article explores the results of a study on the quality of bagged sachet water in rural communities in Ghana.
Identifying High-Risk Young Adults for Violence Prevention: A Validation of Psychometric and Social Scales in Honduras
This article details the creation of the new Violence-Involved Persons Risk Assessment (VIP-RA) tool; an aggregate of seven psychometric and social risk assessment tools previously validated in various American and European contexts.
Identifying Mental Health Problems and Idioms of Distress Among Older Adult Internally Displaced Persons in Georgia
Researchers ask three groups of older adult internally displaced persons (IDPs), originally from Abkhazia and South Ossetia, questions related to psychosocial health in an effort to identify the effects of displacement on mental health.
Implementing a Post-Project Sustainability Study (PSS) of a Development Project: Lessons Learned from Indonesia
This paper focuses on questions development organizations should consider to determine whether a PSS would be an appropriate methodology to use for their own projects.
Policy Transfer in International Development: Whose Security in Central America?
This paper identifies questions development organizations should consider before implementing policy transfers, which are the processes by which knowledge about policies or programs in one location are used in another location.
Reimagining Development Practice (in "Practicing Development: Upending Assumptions for Positive Change")
The authors draw from their on-the-ground experiences as they discuss what "development" is, how to attain it, and what their findings mean for the funding and practice of development efforts.
Sustainability of a Community-Based CHOICE Program to Improve the Health and Nutrition Status of Mothers and Infants in Indonesia
This paper examines the results of a post-project sustainability study (PSS) of a USAID-funded program in Indonesia that aimed to improve the health and nutrition status of children under the age of five, among other things.
Zonas Peligrosas: The Challenge of Creating Safe Neighborhoods in Central America
Zonas Peligrosas "examines indicators of orderliness and security in El Salvador, shows how policies and programs based on disorganization theory have been used, and why they might not make Salvadoran urban dwellers safer."
Clean Cookstoves for Improving Women’s Health: Initial Findings from Rural Uganda
This paper, which won the Rural Sociological Society’s (RSS) second annual Ralph B. Brown Scholar Paper Competition in 2017, examines the impact of clean cookstoves—that replaced traditional biomass-burning cookstoves—in rural Uganda.
Increasing Rural Health Clinic Utilization with SMS Updates: Evidence from a Randomized Evaluation in Uganda
This paper explores the results of a program where researchers used short message service (SMS) to reduce uncertainty regarding the availability of clinic services in Uganda’s rural Nnindye Parish.
Measuring couple relationship quality in a rural African population: Validation of a Couple Functionality Assessment Tool in Malawi.”
We carried out a validation study of the Couple Functionality Assessment Tool (CFAT) to capture valid and reliable data on various domains of relationship quality.
Social Norms Regarding Bribing in India: An Experimental Analysis,
We conduct incentive-compatible economic experiments to measure norms regarding social appropriateness of bribes in India.
Pooling Public-Private Partnership Best Practices
This article explores NDIGD's efforts to convene a variety of actors to discuss shared values in public-private partnerships and examine multifaceted solutions that work for all stakeholders.
Social Accountability and City Life in Modernizing Countries. In F.W. Wagner & R.G. Mahayni (Eds.), Transforming Distressed Global Communities: Making Inclusive, Safe, Resilient, and Sustainable Cities. Franham, UK:
This volume argues for the need to redesign and re-plan our cities in holistic ways that reflect our new understanding and relate to their diversity and multi-dimensionality.
A Spatial Approach in Locating and Explaining Conflict Hot Spots in Nepal
This paper uses a spatial analytical approach in locating and explaining conflict in Nepal.
Transforming Conservation into Cash? Nature Tourism in Southern Africa
This study investigates the factors shaping local perceptions of conservation, and its findings can enhance the effectiveness of nature tourism as a sustainable development strategy.
The Economic Benefits of Passing the DREAM Act
We present an analysis to understand what would happen if the United States were to grant a pathway to legal status to an estimated 2.1 million eligible youth in our country by passing the DREAM Act.