Introduction: Knowledge for civil society in the rapidly changing ecosystem for international development

Luc J.A. Mougeot

Abstract

Dramatic changes in the ecosystem for international development are pressing civil society organizations (CSOs) to invest more in knowledge to remain significant players within the system. While the need for creative thinking and experimentation is greater than ever, there is still very little research published on the challenges experienced and solutions found by CSOs. This book explores the knowledge relevance of working relationships, among and between development actors, with a focus on how CSOs in the Global North navigate these relationships to access and apply knowledge for them to remain effective in research and cooperation for development.

This introductory chapter reviews changes underway within this ecosystem, looking at how these affect Global North CSOs. It schematizes the chain of knowledge-relevant relationships between different categories of actors in this ecosystem, from donors to beneficiary communities. Specific chain links are covered in the following four chapters of this book: Chapter 2 examines the funding relationship between donors and recipients, and its impact on agenda-setting in North–South partnerships; Chapter 3 profiles the collaboration between different types of CSOs and its impact on the mutual building of capacity and information for practice; the use of knowledge in and by Global North and Global South partner CSOs to influence practices and policies of local stakeholders is studied in Chapter 4; finally, Chapter 5 outlines the role of knowledge in processes for CSOs' self and collective learning from the aforementioned relationships to improve themselves as organizations.

Keywords: international development, civil society organizations, knowledge, agenda-setting, collaboration, influence, learning

Introduction

Never before have civil society organizations (CSOs) engaged in international cooperation for development been so hard-pressed to put knowledge to work, compliments of dramatic changes over the last decade in the ecosystem in which they operate (King et al., 2016). These changes have been forcing the long-time actors to revise their relationships with one another, as well as engage with 'new kids on the block'. Everywhere, new approaches are being tested: to redress power imbalances between donors and recipients for more locally owned agendas; to magnify the impact of official development assistance (ODA) and its coherence with other policy objectives; to improve synergies between missions of the academic, other civil society, and private sector organizations involved; to inform and influence local dynamics for positive change at scale; to systematize and account for results that can be meaningful to all those involved; and finally, to learn from ground-level experience for organizations to remain relevant, effective, and efficient players within the new ecosystem. This flurry of experimentation is healthy, though challenging to many.

The field of interest at stake is complex and complicated, with pursuits often at odds with one another and opportunities for collaboration often overlooked. While the need for creative thinking and experimentation is greater than ever, there is still little research published on the challenges experienced and solutions found by CSOs, as they adjust to changes in the larger international development network.

This book is intended to help fill the void. It explores the shifting power dynamics between donors in the Global North and recipients in North–South development research partnerships; the difficult, yet mutually desired, research collaborations between Global North non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and Global North universities; and strategies devised by NGOs to create and use knowledge for influencing positive social change locally, as much as for improving themselves as organizations. It identifies and documents several inspiring practices to overcome specific challenges, drawing on the experiences of selected Canadian CSOs (CCSOs), including universities, NGOs, and coalitions thereof. These CSOs vary in size, field of expertise, mandate, and geographic focus; yet, they have all been developing different approaches to tackling challenges identified by their community in Canada. It is the hope of all the contributors to this book that such case studies will inspire others in tackling their own challenges and remaining significant players in international development.

The following sections introduce the concept of civil society that is central to this book, the changing global ecosystem for international development, and its implications for Global North CSOs. The focus is on relationships among and between CSOs, particularly development NGOs, and other actors in the Global North and Global South, and on the need for new knowledge to inform such relationships. Lastly, the various chapters assembled in this book are introduced. Emphasis is placed on their contribution to the state of knowledge, on past and recent developments which heighten their relevance to current conversations, as well as on literature reviews, primary data gathering, and original fieldwork on which analyses and conclusions are based.

Defining civil society

According to Dr Lester Salamon, director of the Center for Civil Society Studies at Johns Hopkins University, civil society is:

a broad array of organizations that are essentially private, i.e. outside the institutional structures of government; that are not primarily commercial and do not exist primarily to distribute profits to their directors or 'owners'; that are self-governing; and that people are free to join or support voluntarily (Salamon et al., 2003: 3).

As key interlocutors, regulators, and funders of CSOs, governments' definitions circumscribe both the sector and the roles which governments expect organizations in this sector to play in their development assistance policy. For instance, the Canadian government's own definition borrows from that adopted by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD):

a wide range of non-governmental and non-profit-driven organizations through which people organize themselves to pursue shared interests or values in...