Adam Pickering

AI-generated ‘poverty porn’ fake images being used by aid agencies Exclusive: Pictures depicting the most vulnerable and poorest people are being used in social media campaigns in the sector, driven by concerns over consent and cost

Not surprised but still disappointed that major INGOs are using generative AI for their poverty porn campaigns.

The fact that some have defended it as a consent hack shows how far we have to go to incentivise progressive narratives.

www.theguardian.com/global-devel...

I worry that we are misunderstanding what philanthropy is when we ask this. It isn't ODA and expecting it to be accountable and responsive in the same way might not help. We need more of it - and not just in the US and Europe. We need to sell it as an innate civil and political right.

Co-ordinating Action for Civic Space This toolkit offers practical guidance to adherents to the OECD Development Assistance Committee (DAC) Recommendation on Enabling Civil Society in Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Assistance....

Great new toolkit for donors on Coordinating Action on Civic Space by @oecd-ocde.bsky.social brnw.ch/21wUosY a includes some grown up recommendations that reflect the scale of the challenge.

So @moreincommonuk.bsky.social shows a lesser seen case for aid - countering Russian and Chinese influence - to be pretty popular with the public. More so even than UK economic growth and security. www.moreincommon.org.uk/latest-insig...

Congrats to former USAID colleagues and collaborators for bringing together resources and learning on Democracy, Rights and Governance into a new hub and ensuring that knowledge is accessible to all DRGHub.org

What to do if you’re targeted by the White House 22 things your nonprofit can do if faced with politicized executive actions

Nonprofit organizations are an integral component of civil society providing critical resources, defending civil liberties and more. That’s why they’re likely the Trump admin’s next target. We put together resources to help orgs navigate this scary time: www.ifyoucankeepit.org/p/what-to-do...

We've lost a formidable and respected campaigner and advocate for international development.

And you're sure he didn't have a writing credit? First episode wasn't till 1991 so you know, it's possible.

Kazakhstan Investigates Recipients of USAID Funding - The Times Of Central Asia Following the cancellation of USAID funding, the Kazakhstani government and parliament are scrutinizing the recipients of U.S. financial assistance. The issue

Kazakh government is latest to launch investigations into former USAID recipients working on human rights, free press, and democracy timesca.com/kazakhstan-i...

ODA was already falling in the region and the aid sector had its head in the sand about preparing for aid exit. We need to do what we can to ensure the process is handled well. Chaotic aid exit could damage governance and undo hard won gains.

I don't agree with everything though.

"Anti-rights movements and actors are shameless, unethical and have no moral restraints."

I think that lacks nuance to such an extent it might be unhelpful.

New Report: “Countering extreme right narratives across movements: learning from experimentation”. The Hive is proud to share our new report on “Countering extreme right narratives across movements: learning from experimentation”, which…

Fascinating new report on Countering Extreme Right Narratives from the Global Narratives Hive. Some useful tips for activists and donors.

Congrats to @ficivilsociety.bsky.social and all the funders, activists and researchers who developed the Hive. An idea that looks more relevant every day.

It's a clear trend now, and it's far from restricted to Europe.

🔎 UPDATED: ICNL's global analysis bit.ly/49DDa8m provides civil society with:

🔶 Substantive arguments against overbroad #ForeignInfluence registration laws
🔶 Potential response strategies
🔶 An assessment of how CSOs are likely to be impacted

The trend line is clear. Even the positives are improvements from a very low base and are by no means secure.

We need work on the demand side. We need to support those demanding responsive and accountable government. #FreedomInTheWorld

The reducing of the UKs ODA budget is clearly a blow on the back of other donor announcements. Long term challenges to #civilsociety sustainability are increasingly medium and short term issues now. We'll have to use the funding we do have increasingly strategically to build resilience.

Foreign Influence Registration Laws and Civil Society This report develops a typology of salient features of foreign influence registration laws and then shares key recommendations for substantive arguments against overbroad foreign influence registratio...

We need politically literate responses that acknowledge the real threat of foreign interference. A typology that seperates laws designed to protect democratic governance from those designed to undermine it must be utilised. This @icnl.bsky.social report is a great start www.icnl.org/post/report/...

Defending Civic Space Against “Foreign Agent” Laws

Good article by James Savage of @fundhumanrights.bsky.social on donor responses to foreign agent laws.

europeandemocracyhub.epd.eu/defending-ci...

#civicspace #humanrights

A bright blue sky with scattered white clouds and the sun shining in the top right corner. The text “OGP under a Bluesky.” is displayed in bold black font on a white rectangular background. In the bottom left corner, there is the Bluesky logo, a white butterfly inside a blue circle. The Open Government Partnership logo is positioned in the bottom right corner.

Hello, BlueSky! We're the Open Government Partnership —a global community of governments, civil society, and changemakers working together to make governments more transparent, accountable, and inclusive.

Perspective 1: Go all in to support #civilsociety in this moment of need. Stand up for your values.

Perspective 2: Perspective 1 is good money after bad. Support those with a path to sustainability in an era of reduced funding.

Humility needed.

Looks interesting and timely from Civicus. Small grants to social movements supporting freedom of assembly. www.civicus.org/index.php/en...

In historic decision, European Commission promises strategy to support, protect, and empower civil society - European Civic Forum The European Commission has today published its 2025 work programme, including a pledge to introduce a Civil Society Strategy — a historic decision that follows years of campaigning by the European Ci...

European Commission to develop a civic space strategy. civic-forum.eu/press/in-his...

Ten Findings from Ten Years of Data on Transnational Repression Transnational repression threatens security and human rights. The more we know about who is committing it and how, the better we can fight to end it.

10 key findings from 10 years of collecting and analyzing data on transnational repression--by @freedomhouse.bsky.social
freedomhouse.org/article/ten-...

So many potential reasons that young people aren't working for CSOs. Recruitment practices might be to blame. But I wonder whether a shift in forms of political activism to informal, peer led movements makes institutional civil society seem less attractive / relevant? These are global trends.

Respect the right to advocate for a return to previous aid policy. But we should be asking probing questions:

- How do we shift narratives at home and abroad?
- What would an alternative conception of the work look like?
- How could we have / should we be building resilience rather than dependency?

I'd argue USAID cuts mark more than the end of an era of American generosity. If we put aside the (very significant) immediate real world impact of the cuts and focus on the big picture, this might mark an inflection point for the concept of "development". A large bail of straw for the camel.

The air seems fresher here.

I am conflicted though. Civic freedom requires that we try and defend civic spaces and it feels uncomfortable to abandon the "other place" as a lost cause.

But here I am.