The Political Dynamics of Development and Resistance (POLS2404)

Week 1: Welcome, Introductions and Methodological Foundations

Our first meeting will be dedicated to introducing and outlining the course, its modalities and its objectives. We will talk about the organisation of the learning experience, and about how we will approach the complex but very interesting topic of political dynamics of development and resistance. We explore the evolution of development theory and the importance of resistance in shaping political outcomes. Theories include modernisation theory, dependency theory, and intersectionality. To prepare for the opening meeting, please refer to the Library Reading List for POLS2404.

Learning outcomes: L01, L03

Week 2: Feminist Political Economy Perspectives on Development

This week introduces feminist political economy as a critical lens for understanding development, focusing on how global economic systems shape and often marginalize gendered labour, care work, and social reproduction. We examine how intersecting structures of power—such as patriarchy, capitalism, and colonialism—impact women and other marginalized groups in both formal and informal economies.

Key theoretical frameworks include social reproduction theory and feminist economics, which help us analyse the undervaluation of care work and the systemic invisibility of gendered labour in mainstream development discourse. Case studies such as global care chains and UN gender data initiatives will be used to ground these theories in real-world contexts.

This module contributes to the course’s broader aim of rethinking development by foregrounding the relational and embodied dimensions of labour, and by highlighting how feminist perspectives offer transformative alternatives to dominant economic models.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04

Tutorial 1

Feminist Political Economy in Practice

This week’s tutorial introduces key concepts in feminist political economy through interactive activities. Students will take part in a group discussion on global care chains, exploring how gendered labour is shaped by transnational inequalities. The session also includes a hands-on introduction to UN gender data, where students will begin learning how to interpret and apply quantitative insights to development issues. Finally, students will form their groups for the upcoming case study assessment to begin planning their topics and approach.

Learning outcomes: L01, L04

Week 3: Open Reading Week

This week we continue with the task of exploring conceptual aspects of understanding the politics of development and resistance, and we focus in particular on its political economy underpinnings. Karl Polanyi s work provides a rich and instructive framework for working through some of the contradictions and conflicts induced by market-centred development. We encounter his concept of a double-movement and consider its relevance for understanding and analysing resistance to the politics of the market. Some concrete examples will supplement our discussion throughout.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03

Open Reading Week

Learning outcomes: L02, L03

Week 4: Ontological Politics & Plural Worldviews

This week introduces the concept of ontological politics, focusing on how different communities construct, experience, and defend diverse ways of being and knowing. We explore how Indigenous cosmologies challenge dominant development paradigms by revealing that development is not a singular or universal trajectory, but a contested and plural process shaped by multiple realities.

Through theories of political ontology and decolonial thought, students will examine how knowledge systems are embedded in power relations and how struggles over land, life, and meaning are also struggles over what counts as reality. Case studies—such as the Zapatista movement—will illustrate how Indigenous worldviews offer alternative visions of autonomy, care, and collective life beyond the logic of extractivism and linear progress.

This module deepens the course’s commitment to rethinking development by foregrounding the politics of knowledge and the legitimacy of diverse world-making practices.

Learning outcomes: L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 2

Mapping Indigenous Territories and Development Conflicts

This tutorial begins with a recap of key concepts from the lecture, focusing on ontological politics and Indigenous cosmologies. Students will then engage in a spatial mapping activity to explore how Indigenous territories intersect with development conflicts, highlighting contested claims to land, resources, and sovereignty. This exercise encourages critical reflection on how space and knowledge are politicised in development contexts. The session will conclude with the formation of case study assessment groups and initial topic selection, helping students begin planning their collaborative research projects.

Learning outcomes: L02, L03, L04

Week 5: Post-Development Alternatives

This week introduces post-development theory as a critique of mainstream development paradigms, challenging Western-centric notions of progress, growth, and modernity. We trace contemporary global inequalities and political domination to their colonial roots, examining how development has historically been co-constituted with systems of power, representation, and knowledge production.

Students will engage with alternative frameworks such as Buen Vivir and Ubuntu, which offer relational, community-based, and ecologically grounded visions of well-being. These perspectives reject the universalising logic of development and instead propose plural, culturally embedded pathways toward justice and sustainability.

This module supports the course’s broader aim of rethinking development by foregrounding epistemic diversity and the need to decolonise both theory and practice.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03

Tutorial 3

Rethinking Well-Being and Quiz 1

In this tutorial, we critically examine how well-being is measured beyond conventional economic indicators like GDP. Through a comparative analysis of alternative well-being frameworks—including those rooted in relational, ecological, and cultural values—students will reflect on how development can be understood through more inclusive and justice-oriented lenses. The session also includes Quiz 1, an in-class activity designed to assess your understanding of key concepts introduced in the first three weeks, including post-development theory, colonial legacies, and plural pathways to well-being.

Learning outcomes: L02, L04

Week 6: Climate Justice & Environmental Resistance

This week examines the intersection of environmental degradation and social justice, highlighting how ecological crises are deeply entangled with histories of colonialism, global inequality, and resistance. Students will critically engage with concepts such as climate colonialism, extractivism, and the environmentalism of the poor, using these to interrogate dominant narratives of sustainability and development.

Drawing on theories of environmental justice and slow violence, the module explores how environmental harms are unevenly distributed and resisted, particularly by Indigenous and marginalized communities. Case studies—including the Standing Rock Sioux resistance to the Dakota Access Pipeline and Amazonian struggles against deforestation—will ground theoretical insights in lived experiences of resistance.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 4

Climate Justice and Group Assessment Check-in Session

This week’s tutorial focuses on applied policy writing through a climate justice statement drafting exercise, where students will articulate key principles and demands grounded in the course’s critical frameworks. The activity encourages students to reflect on the intersection of environmental degradation, inequality, and resistance.

The session also includes the first of two check-in sessions on group case study projects, providing space to assess group dynamics, clarify roles, and refine research plans as students prepare for their collaborative assessment

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Week 7: Labour Struggles & Just Transitions

This week explores the politics of labour within development, focusing on how workers and labouring communities navigate and resist systems of exclusion and precarity. Building on earlier discussions of political economy and historical legacies of inequality, we examine how labour struggles have evolved in response to shifting global dynamics, including informalisation, austerity, and climate change.

We critically engage with contemporary debates around labour rights, informal economies, and the potential of universal basic income and social protection as tools for justice. The concept of a just transition—ensuring that climate action does not deepen inequality—is central to our inquiry. Through case studies such as Ecuador’s post-extractivist movements and global green job transitions, students will apply theories of labour resistance and political economy to real-world struggles.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 5

Labour Data and Video Assessment Planning

This tutorial begins with a recap of key concepts from the lecture, focusing on labour struggles and just transitions. Students will engage in a hands-on data analysis activity using labour statistics and transition policy examples to explore patterns of inequality, precarity, and reform.

The session also includes dedicated time for planning the individual video assessment, with a focus on the visual and multimedia components. Students will discuss strategies for presenting their research creatively and effectively, and clarify expectations for both the video and live Q&A components.

Learning outcomes: L02, L04

Week 8: Urban Inequality and the Politics of Space

In this week we explore how urban spaces are shaped by and contested through power, inequality, and resistance. We explore the politics of space through the lens of spatial justice and the right to the city, examining how urban development often reproduces exclusion along lines of class, race, and colonial legacies.

Students will engage with critical urban theory and grassroots responses to urban inequality, focusing on housing struggles, displacement, and the reclaiming of public space. Case studies from Latin America and Europe will illustrate how urban social movements challenge dominant models of development and articulate alternative urban futures grounded in justice, dignity, and collective rights.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 6

Mapping Urban Resistance and Group Case Study Check-In

This tutorial begins with a GIS mapping exercise to explore urban resistance movements and spatial justice. Students will analyse how contested urban spaces reflect broader struggles over development, displacement, and the right to the city. The activity encourages critical engagement with spatial data and visual storytelling.

The session also includes our second group check-in for the case study assessment, providing time to reflect on group dynamics, refine research plans, and ensure progress toward a cohesive and collaborative final submission.

Learning outcomes: L02, L03, L04

Week 9: Water, Power, and Indigenous Resistance

This week explores water as a deeply political, cultural, and spiritual resource, central to both development struggles and Indigenous sovereignty. We examine how access to and governance of water is shaped by colonial histories, extractive economies, and contested claims to land and life.

Students will engage with Indigenous perspectives on water governance and resistance, focusing on how water is defended not only as a resource but as a relative, a right, and a site of cultural survival. Case studies such as the Dakota Access Pipeline protests and Māori struggles for water rights will ground our analysis in real-world movements that challenge dominant development paradigms.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 7

Mapping Water Conflicts and Quiz 2

This tutorial focuses on the politics of water through a conflict mapping exercise, where students will analyse disputes over water access, governance, and extraction. Using real-world examples, the activity deepens understanding of water sovereignty, Indigenous resistance, and the contested nature of environmental resources in development contexts.

The session also includes Quiz 2, an in-class assessment designed to evaluate your grasp of key concepts from recent modules, including environmental justice, extractivism, and Indigenous governance.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

MID-SEMESTER BREAK

(Mid-Semester Break)

Week 10: Food Sovereignty and Agrarian Resistance

This week focuses on food justice and the global struggle for food sovereignty as a powerful alternative to industrial agriculture and corporate-controlled food systems. We examine the Food Sovereignty Movement (FSM) as a transnational network advancing ecologically sustainable, socially just, and culturally grounded approaches to food production, distribution, and consumption.

Students will critically compare industrial agribusiness models with agroecological alternatives, exploring how peasant movements—such as La Vía Campesina—mobilize against land dispossession, environmental degradation, and the commodification of food. We will analyse the political and economic forces shaping global food systems and the grassroots strategies used to reclaim autonomy over land, seeds, and livelihoods.

This module contributes to the course’s broader aim of rethinking development by highlighting how food sovereignty movements challenge dominant paradigms and offer transformative visions rooted in solidarity, sustainability, and resistance.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Tutorial 8

Advocacy Writing and Final Assessment Prep

In our final tutorial, we focus on advocacy writing by drafting a concise and persuasive policy brief on food sovereignty. This exercise draws on course themes of resistance, justice, and alternative development models, helping students translate critical analysis into actionable policy language.

We will also conduct a final check-in on the video assessment, with particular attention to preparing for the live Q&A component. Students will have the opportunity to share progress, clarify expectations, and receive peer feedback to strengthen their final presentations.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04

Week 11: Digital Resistance and the Politics of Technology

This week explores the dual role of digital technologies as tools of both resistance and control within contested development landscapes. We critically examine how digital platforms shape political participation, surveillance, and social movements, drawing on theories of networked protest, digital rights, and platform capitalism.

We investigate how digital activism emerges in response to authoritarianism, inequality, and dispossession, while also considering how technologies can reinforce existing power structures. Case studies such as the Arab Spring and Indigenous digital sovereignty movements will ground our analysis in real-world struggles over visibility, voice, and autonomy in the digital sphere.

This approach helps us rethink development by interrogating how digital technologies mediate power, resistance, and justice in contemporary global contexts.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04

Week 12: Transnational Resistance and Solidarity Economies

This week explores how transnational movements and solidarity economies challenge neoliberal development models and cultivate alternative political imaginaries. We examine how global networks of resistance—rooted in diverse local struggles—forge connections across borders to contest inequality, corporate power, and extractive governance.

We engage with the political practices and visions of movements such as the World Social Forum and Zapatista internationalism, analysing how they construct spaces of autonomy, mutual aid, and collective action. Emphasis is placed on how these movements reimagine development through principles of solidarity, self-determination, and grassroots democracy.

This module contributes to the course’s broader aim of rethinking development by highlighting the power of transnational resistance to inspire transformative alternatives grounded in justice, care, and cooperation.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L04

Week 13: Video Presentation

Final Presentations – Development Challenges and Resistance

In this final online lecture, students will present their individual video assessments in a collaborative and supportive setting. Using Microsoft Teams, students will be randomly assigned to breakout rooms of 4–5 peers, where each person will share their 5-minute pre-recorded video, followed by a 5-minute live Q&A led by their peers.

This session is designed to showcase your research on development challenges and resistance movements, while also practicing critical communication and engagement skills. The Q&A component encourages thoughtful dialogue and reflection, reinforcing the course’s emphasis on relational learning, applied analysis, and diverse perspectives on development.

The Q&A session will be recorded to assist in marking each student's engagement in their content area discussion.

Learning outcomes: L01, L02, L03, L04