Features

Special IDR features and series, including editorial collaborations.

flavia agnes image--women's rights

IDR Interviews | Flavia Agnes
Activist and lawyer Flavia Agnes tells us why securing women’s rights today seems much harder than it was in the ‘80s and argues that legislative reform is a battle half won without litigation support.

IDR Explains

A comprehensive introduction to a development topic, concept, or approach that captures expert views as well as the latest secondary research on the topic.

a group of women farmers with baskets of tomato-FPOs
IDR Explains | Farmer producer organisations (FPOs)
In just six minutes and five questions, get an introduction to farmer producer organisations in India—what they are, how they operate, their importance for India's farmers, and the major challenges they face.
group of women with raised fists-democracy
IDR Explains | Local government in India
In just seven minutes and five questions, get an introduction to local government in India—what it is, its structure, functions, sources of funding, and some of the challenges it faces.
Gloved hand holding a stained petridish
IDR Explains | Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs)
In just seven minutes and six questions, get a quick introduction to RCTs—how they work, why they're used, and what some of the criticisms and challenges around them are.

The well-being series

A partnership with Stanford Social Innovation Review, Skoll Foundation, Schwab Foundation at World Economic Forum, and The Wellbeing Project, focused on well-being in the field of social change.

image of a teacher in a classroom with students
What students want from their teachers
Researchers asked students what makes a caring teacher—and these same qualities may help support your well-being as an educator.
3 girls sitting in front of a laptop-social-emotional learning SEL
Social-emotional learning in India: The importance of intersectionality
Social-emotional learning (SEL) programmes should adopt an intersectional lens that takes into account young people’s diverse experiences of caste, class, and gender.
illustration showing the linkages between well-being and the environment
Integrating individual well-being with environmental systems
How cultivating a values-based, ecological worldview can help lay the groundwork for collective action toward the greater well-being of individuals, societies, and the systems in which we live.

Ground Up

Bite-sized stories from the people closest to the action.


Advocacy & Government

The PM-KUSUM pipe dream: Farmers lose faith in the solar scheme
Location Icon Raisen district, Madhya Pradesh; Rajgarh district, Madhya Pradesh

IDR Interviews

Conversations with visionaries on their life’s work, and their efforts to challenge the status quo in our country.



A day in the life of

Frontline workers and first responders share their insights from working at the grassroots.

a group of women playing snakes and ladders--newly married women
Teaching newly married women how to navigate patriarchal spaces
A day in the life of a field coordinator in Rajasthan who helps newly married young women in understanding the layered nature of gendered violence and how to counter it.
Men and women sitting on a field in a circle_forest resources

A young woman in Gujarat helps her community save their forest
A day in the life of a young woman in rural Gujarat who is helping her community combat unemployment, access welfare, and preserve local natural resources.
A woman shooting on a camera with people standing around her_Adivasi communities
An Adivasi journalist quits the newsroom to embrace YouTube
A day in the life of an Adivasi journalist from Chhotaudepur who uses YouTube to mainstream the voices of de-notified tribes and tackle discrimination.

Failure Files

Social change leaders chronicle their failures and lessons learnt.

Aerial shot of women protestors sitting_well-being
Preparing for a marathon, not a sprint 
Dalit civil rights activist Thenmozhi Soundararajan on why failure is an opportunity to build power, how systems of oppression affect well-being, and what healing looks like for individuals and communities.
Barbed wire_nonprofits
Why don’t nonprofits talk about their failures?
A number of risks, both real and perceived, stop nonprofits from talking about failure. Here's how various stakeholders can work together to overcome them.
rural women take part in a boat race in west bengal-leadership
The road to recovery
In Part II of a conversation with Dream a Dream CEO Suchetha Bhat and co-founder Vishal Talreja learn about what it took to rebuild an organisation in crisis, and why it needed a new kind of leadership.

Perspectives

Op-eds and commentary that hold a mirror up to civil society, reflect upon its evolution, and unpack key trends.

close up of a flower--nonprofit leadership
What new possibilities could your leadership unlock?
Successful organisations are those that enrich, and are enriched by their communities. What can leaders do to achieve this?
an old woman holding the indian flag--india political system
Is it time to reform India’s political system?
This Independence Day, Vijay Mahajan reflects on why we must change the rules of the game that has allowed social and economic inequalities to overtake the political process and tells us how this can be done.
Bunker roy holding a mic
In conversation with Bunker Roy
Journalist Rajni Bakshi speaks to Bunker Roy, Founder, Barefoot College, about the challenges he encountered on his journey and the lessons he learnt.