10. Discussing how to make the transition to locally-led development

Decision-making and resources within our sector are still largely controlled by those living in the Global North, and our work – including the work on decolonizing aid – is for the most part done within colonial frameworks. The language we use, the systems we follow, what we regard as knowledge and who we consider as experts, are most often viewed through a colonial lens.

How we move towards locally-led development and decolonize the global development sector is an uncomfortable, highly political and essential conversation we need to have if we are to increase the impact our sector can have and solve some of the world’s toughest problems. It’s also one we have to have if we are to truly transform our sector. For social justice to exist and for us to address problems such as hunger, poverty, inequality and the challenges of the climate crisis, our thinking and how we work needs to transform. This starts with conversation and will hopefully extend into sharing strategies, tools and learning on what works.

In response to requests from participants at our 2021 Forum to include this issue on our agenda, we are supporting and encouraging these conversations through dedicated sessions at the 2022 WILD Forums:

1. Decolonizing Aid: Our Goals,

Roles and Journeys: What does this journey mean for us? How have we come to terms with our own complicity in the prevailing

system, and what are we doing as individuals and organizations to change it?

2. A Leadership Lens on Locally-Led Development:

A panel to explore the opportunities and considerations for advancing women’s leadership and fostering equity, diversity, and inclusion within the context of increasing locally-led development.

Critical to these sessions is the creation of a psychologically safe space, where these tough conversations can be held in a spirit of respect, optimism and curiosity. (See p.26 for more on psychologically safe spaces.)