Call for Applications : IDEAs-UNICAMP Advanced Students’ Workshop on Development Challenges in a time of Climate Crisis August 25-26, 2025, UNICAMP, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil.

Click here for the Concept Note

Applications to be accepted until May 10, 2025, 23:59 UTC

Introduction

A much-discussed challenge facing the international community is the effort to reform the international financial architecture, or the channels, institutions and rules mediating the cross-border flow of capital. These issues have gained prominence in recent years with widespread external vulnerability and the recurrence of debt crises that defy resolution, the financing challenge posed by likely shortfalls in the realisation of the SDG targets set for 2030, and the need to allocate resources to combat global warming and its climate change effects and consequences. A system in which all adjustments in response to global imbalances and crises must be made by low- and middle-income countries—as has been the case for the past couple of decades has not only failed but has been shown to be unfit for purpose when it comes to meeting the urgent challenges of our times.

As part of the global effort to address these issues, IDEAs, a progressive, South-led network of development thinkers and practitioners, and the Institute of Economics of the State University of Campinas (IE-Unicamp), Campinas, SP, Brazil are organising a workshop on “Development Challenges in a time of Climate Crisis” for advanced students. The workshop will expose participants to frontier areas of research in international political economy, macroeconomics, development economics, and finance. Its outline (see below) is aimed at students enrolled in Master’s programmes, preparing for their PhDs and students who are already enrolled in PhD programmes, and to those who plan to start working after their post-graduation as research analysts, journalists or in other positions requiring them to understand these issues.

The workshop will be offered back-to-back with the PERI-UNICAMP-IDEAs Global Conference on “Financing climate action in the South: The Scope for Innovation” to be held between August 27-29, also at IE-Unicamp, Campinas, SP, Brazil. Advanced students selected to participate in the workshop will be able to take part in this international conference.

Workshop outline (Tentative)

Monday August 25, 2025

9:15 am-10:30 am      Global neoconservatism and the transformed challenge of development

10:30 am -10:5 am      Coffee break

10:45 am-12:00 pm    International inequality, external debt and development financing

12:00 pm-1:15 pm      Capital flows, external debt and macroeconomic management today – Lessons from Latin America

1:15 pm-2:15 pm        Lunch break

2: 15 pm-3:30 pm       The state and development: The African experience

3:30 pm-3:45 pm        Coffee break

3:45 pm-5:00 pm        From extractivism to resource-leveraged development: Experiences in low- and middle-income countries

Tuesday August 26, 2025

9:15 am-10:30 am       Addressing compounding vulnerabilities: Some Asian experiences

10:30 am-10:45 am     Coffee break

10: 45 am-12:00 pm   The contemporary development challenge: A Caribbean perspective

12:00 pm-1:15 pm      Multilateralism and the prospects for development cooperation today

1:15 pm-2:15 pm        Lunch break

2: 15 pm-3:30 pm       The development challenge in a time of climate crisis

Eligibility

Applicants should have completed post-graduation in economics. Candidates who have completed post-graduation in other social science disciplines, but are keen to enrol in this workshop, are also welcome to apply. Preference would be given to candidates based in countries of the Global South.

Application

Deadline: MAY 10, 2025, 23:59 UTC

Apply online HERE

In your application, you would need to include:

1. Statements of grades/Marksheets of your under-graduate and postgraduate degrees
2. A statement of purpose explaining your academic background, your academic interests and why you want to enrol for this workshop
3. One letter of recommendation from a teacher, supervisor or anyone else you have professionally worked with. The LoRs of candidates who are in full-time jobs or are enrolled in full-time PhD programmes should be from their employer/supervisor, and should include an affirmation that, in the event of their selection, they would be able to devote necessary time to travel and participate in the workshop.

Travel and lodging

All travel and lodging costs (with shared two bed accommodation) will be taken care of by IDEAs from August 24-27, i.e. including the Conference days.

Selection

An admissions committee constituted by IDEAs will review the applications and shortlist candidates. Selected candidates will be notified by May 31, 2025.

Confirmation of admission

Selected candidates will be required to confirm their acceptance of the offer of admission by email by 15 June 2025.

Contact

For any queries, email response@networkideas.org