As of March 2026, this website is no longer being updated. I now work mainly on climate issues, especially in Brighton and Hove, and new work can be found on the website of Climate:Change, our independent think-tank on socially inclusive action in the City: www.climatechangebh.org.uk.
Meanwhile, however, this website has over 850 entries, mostly representing my work on international development from 2010-2025. Among much else, there are over 50 book reviews, more than 20 papers and training cases on bridging research and policy and on managing think-tanks, nearly 100 articles on climate change, and many papers on other topics, including aid, food security and nutrition, and the future of international development. See ‘Topics and Themes’ for more details. I can be reached at sm@simonmaxwell.net.
The recession’s storm holds a silver lining for development cooperation
The recession’s storm holds a silver lining for development cooperation, Europe's World, Spring 2009 with Jean-Michel Debrat
Governments’ typical reaction to economic crisis is to help at home and leave others to fend for themselves. But Jean-Michel Debrat of the Agence française de Développement and Simon Maxwell of the UK’s Overseas Development Institute say that giving a hand to poorer countries at this critical point will benefit everyone.
Not only should Europe maintain its development activities, but it should also transform them into an engine for growth. By investing in the less-developed regions around it, Europe would kill three birds with one stone: narrow the gaps that threaten regional stability, gain the international influence that it deserves, and find an adequate economic plan to face crisis................. (see link in title for full article)