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BR KER
issue 15 August 2009
O
The next inconvenient truth
Peak phosphorus
The impact of web 2.0 on research practices Participatory
development assessment The UK’s battle to make poverty
history Greening the Gulf
contents
2 Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor
3 EDITORIAL
Pooling forces In their contributions to ‘Who is the enemy?’ (special report, The Broker 14) Mary
Kaldor of the London School of Economics and Stathis Kalyvas of Yale University
4 On the website reflected on the nature of today’s conflicts and commented on each other’s
Louise Stoddard articles on The Broker website. Here are some excerpts from their comments.
6 Peak phosphorus
The extravagant use of fertilizers has led
to ever-increasing demand for natural
phosphorus. As phosphate reserves Kalyvas responds to Mary Kaldor responds to Stathis
decline, the impacts will be immense. Kaldor’s ‘New wars’ Kalyvas’ ‘War’s Evolution’
Arno Rosemarin, Gert de Bruijne and When the Cold War ended, Mary Kaldor I agree that the end of the Second World
Ian Caldwell was right to intuit that this would have War marked the decline and indeed
decisive impact on the landscape of obsolescence of interstate war. However I
10 A bright beacon of success conflicts. Now, with a decade of hindsight, disagree with the characterization of the
and hope we can assess these claims. Cold War as the ‘long peace.’ In Europe, it
Annette Jansen Is global armed conflict different after was an ‘imaginary war’, but outside Europe,
the end of the Cold War? Yes, intrastate the Cold War was expressed in so-called
conflict has replaced interstate conflict as proxy wars (or what Kalyvas calls civil wars,
11 SPECIAL REPORT the dominant form of armed conflict; but guerrilla wars or ‘low-intensity’ wars).
Social academia this change took place following the end of I also agree that the number of conflicts
Information and communication the Second World War, not of the Cold has declined and that contemporary
technologies have become War. Yes, intrastate conflict is typically conflicts have been, on the whole, less
indispensable for information sharing. associated with high levels of civilian deadly since the beginning of 21st century.
But many researchers are reluctant victimization and related atrocities, state But I am less optimistic than Kalyvas about
to enter the realm of social networks, weakening and sometimes collapse, our ability to manage contemporary security
and to start using web 2.0 tools for irregular actors, various sources of problems. First, the reason I prefer the term
collaborative writing, sharing work in financing extending beyond the state, ‘new war’ to ‘civil war’ is because of the
progress or publishing results. destruction and contagion; but one finds blurring of what is inside and what is outside
Janelle Ward all these features in most civil wars that the state in the context of globalization. Not
took place during the Cold War, not just in only are many transnational actors involved
the post-Cold War civil wars. in contemporary conflicts (diasporas,
19 Subjective truths Finally, are the responses to global transnational criminal groups, neighbouring
The starting point for development armed conflict driven by Cold War states, mercenaries, mujahideen,
evaluations should be how recipients perceptions? Kaldor argues that we need international agencies, NGOs, and so on),
experience change, rather than the set to develop a ‘human security approach’ to but such conflicts are rarely contained within
perspectives of the evaluators. deal with global conflict rather than rely on the nation state.
Ton Dietz, Francis Obeng, Jerim Obure a counterinsurgency logic reflective of the I think it is important to draw out these
and Fred Zaal Cold War, as the US seems to be doing. differences because of their implications
Perhaps. But whatever one thinks about for policy. The newly found enthusiasm for
22 UK aid targets still to be met its prospect of success, the current US counterinsurgency in the United States is
The UK’s New Labour government is focus on counterinsurgency (the so-called based on the assumption that these
continuing the battle to make poverty ‘Petraeus doctrine’) is not a relic of the conflicts are not very different from the
history. Cold War, but a reaction to real on-the- insurgencies of the Cold War period. But
Romesh Vaitilingam ground challenges. As such, current US actually what is needed is not only state
counterinsurgency practices should be building and poverty reduction, as Kalyvas
26 Greening the Gulf understood as responses to specific local points out, but the very difficult task of
Thom Bohlen challenges, rather than to global conflicts countering conflicts and violence rather
in general. than countering insurgency.
28 The MDGs post-2015
Ellen Lammers
Letters to the editor can be submitted online at www.thebrokeronline.eu/letters. Please include your full
32 Interventions name and email address. We reserve the right to edit letters, and to use any submissions sent to the letters column
of The Broker in any other format.
Ko Colijn
2 www.thebrokeronline.eu
editorial
Frans Bieckmann
Pooling forces Editor in Chief
editor@thebrokeronline.eu
O ver the last few months I have attended a number of
conferences that focused on the future of development
cooperation. Among these were the Practice of Civic Driven
Many conferences walk the line between academic debate and
policy. They influence how policies are framed and affect the
direction in which debates about issues move. And, for some
Change in the Hague, the Netherlands, and the High Level Policy participants and speakers, conferences are opportunities for
Forum, After 2015: Promoting Pro-poor Policy after the MDGs in gaining exposure, for defending the interests of their
Brussels, Belgium. Other conferences were aimed at designing a organizations and for networking to find new coalition partners
new architecture for ‘international cooperation’, which has been or funding sources. There is nothing wrong with that. But one
framed as a replacement for ‘development cooperation’. Some of important consequence seems to be very cautious exchanges of
these conferences are reported on briefly in this issue of The ideas and an almost complete neglect of the powerful interests
Broker, and they are all covered much more extensively in reports, that drive global processes. No one wants to offend anyone else,
blogs and debates on the magazine’s website. and everybody wants to stay friends. Therefore they strive for
Many of the conferences were inspiring because of the depth compromise and look for win–win situations in which all
of the debates; others were disappointing. They covered different stakeholders get their share.
topics, but had one thing in common: the participants were all While I am making a case for more honest, direct discussion
from the development sector. The development community is still about what experts from various backgrounds think needs to be
very closed and inward looking. Many conferences did bring done, I do not believe the starting point for development efforts
together government officials, NGO workers, policy makers, should be institutional interests or Northern political and policy
academics and, in some cases, business representatives who debates. The starting point should be the interests of the people
manage corporate social responsibility initiatives. That may sound concerned: the populations of the developing countries, or in the
like quite a mix of people, but they all had a development case of climate change, the entire world.
background or focus. There were no representatives from the In their article on participatory development assessment (PDA),
environmental NGOs. Or from human rights organizations, trade Ton Dietz, Francis Obeng, Jerim Obure and Fred Zaal present a new
unions, or organizations that focus on the consequences of evaluation method that begins with input from aid recipients.
globalization in Northern countries. They were not invited. What is interesting is the central position of subjectivity in this
Perhaps no one thought their inputs would be useful. method: it attaches great importance to how people perceive and
Even the successful workshop of the Civic Driven Change judge a specific intervention. Even if we, as foreign ‘experts’,
Initiative (see ‘Deep democracy’, The Broker10) was attended only disagree, the perceptions of the local people make their
by representatives of development NGOs, even though the assessment ‘true’. Or, on the flipside, if local people judge a policy
initiative goes beyond development, aiming at change processes measure, project, intervention or process as being faulty or failing
driven by citizens from any country or sector. to add anything to their well-being, no results will be possible
This issue’s feature article – ‘Peak phosphorus’ by Arno even if objectively it is effective. Such an approach opens up new
Rosemarin, Gert de Bruijne and Ian Caldwell – illustrates once ways to become really serious about the rhetoric of ownership
more how urgent it is to pool together forces from a wide range that formally drives all development policies. But it would also
of fields in order to tackle global issues. The availability of entail a much more modest attitude on the part of foreign (and
phosphorus, in the form of phosphate rock, may seem a rather even national) experts.
technical subject, but the impending depletion of these reserves This issue’s special report offers an introduction to the world of
could have far-reaching consequences. Rather than being an issue web 2.0, and how new social media can be used by researchers
only for agriculturalists and environmentalists, diminishing worldwide. The Broker is also looking at ways to use these online
supplies of phosphate could severely worsen the food crisis. If tools to deliver information to readers. There are no wikis on The
there is a rise in the price of fertilizer, of which phosphorus is a Broker website – yet – but we have launched several new blogs.
crucial ingredient, food prices will also rise. The main victims will Researchers could use these new technologies to share and
be the poor living in developing countries. The authors also show collaborate on research as it is happening. But the academic world
that geopolitical motives and the policies of big multinationals faces an important dilemma that has not yet been resolved: how
have a heavy influence on the phosphate and fertilizer industry. to guarantee the quality of information and knowledge, given the
The situation is urgent, requiring global initiatives to regulate the enormous amount of data that is now accessible on the web. Does
extraction of the earth’s remaining phosphate reserves, and to the ‘wisdom of crowds’ really apply to academia, as some people
promote phosphorus recycling. assert? I offer space in The Broker to anyone who can prove that.
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 3
www.thebrokeronline.eu
On the website
Confirming many of the observations In the driving seat
made in this issue’s special report on
web 2.0 and social media, growing Also in June, the Civic Driven Change (CDC)
numbers of readers are contributing initiative (see ‘Deep democracy’, The Broker
to online blogs and debates on 10) organized a workshop on the practice of
The Broker website. In recent weeks CDC in The Hague, which attracted more
13 bloggers have offered their views than 150 participants representing 45
on various meetings and events, organizations. The CDC initiative aims to
prompting lively discussions. develop a new, citizen-driven approach to
development and social change. It draws
attention to broader change processes in
Windows on the world which development interventions play a
Some researchers already write blogs in small part, and how social change can be
preference to diaries, collaborate in wikis brought about by citizens themselves.
instead of workshops, and prefer to visit Willemijn Verkoren, of the Centre for
virtual conferences rather than attend International Conflict Analysis and Management (CICAM) at Radboud University Nijmegen,
meetings in person (see page 17). While prepared an overview of the workshop, which is now available on The Broker website.
there is no substitute for face-to-face Also available are 11 reports written by her students summarizing the discussions within
interactions, and the inspiration and ideas the various thematic working groups. The reports cover issues such as promoting
that often emerge from them, at responsible citizenship, civic agency and party politics, and children and civic action.
The Broker we hope our online coverage In her overview, Verkoren observes that, in the words of Alan Fowler, CDC now has
of conferences, workshops and events ‘wheels’ and is ‘rolling’. ‘Many people have expressed interest in the concept, hoping that it
throughout Europe will provide useful will lend inspiration for a changed approach to development. … Not only is CDC attracting
windows onto the dynamic world of interest, but a common understanding of the concept appears to be emerging. … Now, the
research into globalization and time may have come to start making some real changes in the practice of development’.
development issues. >> www.thebrokeronline.eu/en/articles/Civic-Driven-Change
This section of the magazine highlights
just some of the recent debates and blog
entries on The Broker website. We invited Cultivating the social sciences potential technological solutions to
various experts to contribute to the The Science Forum agricultural and environmental problems,
debate on the High Level Policy Forum, 2009, organized by rather than on a strategy to address such
‘After 2015: Promoting Pro-poor Policy the Consultative challenges. This tension between technical
after the MDGs’, held in Brussels in June. Group on and social scientific approaches, or the
Due to the large number of responses, we International challenges of adopting a multidisciplinary
have brought together their perspectives, Agricultural Research perspective, is an area that The Broker is
together with a report of the Forum, in a (CGIAR), was held at committed to exploring.
special overview of the discussion so far Wageningen ‘Amid all of the technocratic discussions,
(see page 28). This overview incorporates University in the the insights of social science … have faded
the insights of the guest bloggers for the Netherlands in mid-June. The forum was into the background. Organizational,
forum, among them Sakiko Fukuda-Parr significant in view of the CGIAR’s efforts to managerial and institutional considerations
(professor of international affairs at the reinvent itself as a consortium that are frequently invoked, but by and large
New School, New York), Charles Gore emphasizes multiple strategic partnerships. social science seems to be regarded as a
(UN Conference on Trade and On behalf of The Broker, Dominic Glover, a minor appendage of science – a vestigial
Development) and Heather Grady postdoctoral fellow at Wageningen, wrote organ rather like the human appendix:
(Realizing Rights: the Ethical Globalization a lively blog from the forum, which everybody agrees that it should be present,
Initiative). attracted comments from many readers. but nobody really knows what it is for. And,
>> www.thebrokeronline.eu/blogs Dominic reported on the discussions and if it grumbles too much, it can always be
assessed the perspectives expressed from cut out – the organism of normal scientific
the conference floor. practice will carry on happily without it’.
By Louise Stoddard, web editor In his penultimate post, Dominic >> www.thebrokeronline.eu/Reinventing-
observed that the discussions focused on agricultural-science
4 www.thebrokeronline.eu
Blogs
More conferences and events online working on various forms of value chain Resident bloggers Thea Hilhorst and
development.’ Frans Bieckmann have commented on
Keeping pace with innovation >> www.thebrokeronline.eu/convergence-of- the highs and lows – the encouraging
systems sciences stories and the irritations – associated
The Convergence of with their work.
Sciences – Recently Thea has
Strengthening Building blocks for African reported from the
Innovation Systems development launch of the World
(COS-SIS) programme Reporting from Disaster Report 2009,
is a partnership ‘Respacing Africa’, and discussed
between the the third European ‘Weather
Netherlands and conference on Information for All’
agricultural African Studies, held – a new public–
universities in Benin, at the University of private initiative
Ghana and Mali. As part of the Leipzig, Germany, launched by Kofi
programme, a conference of the same guest blogger Annan, former UN Secretary-General and
name was recently held in Cape Coast, Marieke Hounjet kept now president of the Global
Ghana, where 80 or so participants participants and Humanitarian Platform.
discussed progress in strengthening other readers up to date with the After losing her laptop on a train, and
innovation systems for agriculture and proceedings and discussions in a building retrieving it 24 hours later in the lost and
rural poverty reduction in the region. that was finished just in time to welcome found, Thea concluded that ‘trust in
During the conference, Jim Woodhill, the 1000 visitors. During the four days people pays off’. She then wondered
director of the Capacity Development and participants attended over 150 panel whether this could be a useful motto for
Institutional Change programme at discussions covering issues including funding agencies that demand too much
Wageningen University and Research globalization, urban poverty, peace and control, and could help to improve
Centre, wrote a blog for The Broker. Jim governance. As architect of the conference donor–NGO relations.
talked with other participants reporting blog, Marieke invited website visitors to
on their thoughts and experiences. Chris read and comment on her postings. She In his blog, Frans
Cordon, of the University of Ghana, told attended many of the panel sessions, reflected on some
Jim: ‘There is a terrible disconnect reported on workshops and described her ‘threads and trends’
between the users of knowledge – experiences keeping up with the ambitious addressed by
farmers, policy makers and scientists. We programme of events. participants at ‘After
just don’t have a proper integration of ‘My understanding of inspiration here 2015’, the High Level
knowledge flow. COS-SIS is helping to moves beyond its pure “rational” sense. Policy Forum held in
bridge this gap’. In his blog, Jim described When I was watching the speakers in the Brussels. He noted
the event, the questions raised and his panel on “navigating urban space” this that one ‘element
thoughts while on a morning run along morning I saw how, when they introduced that kept coming up was the need to
the beach. “the site” of their research (specific develop a much stronger bottom-up
‘I marvelled at the skill of the fishing country, city or neighbourhood) they approach’, observing a potential overlap
boat builders and was reminded of the instantly started smiling, and that really is with the Civic Driven Change process.
reality that many people still don’t have most inspiring.’ A loyal U2 fan, Frans also remarked on
basic sanitation facilities. Against the lack >> www.thebrokeronline.eu/africa-conference the media hype associated with Bono’s
of such basic needs, does talk of innovation recent comments on Italy’s poor aid
systems make sense or is it just academics record. Regrettably, Iacopo Viciani’s
being academic?... By the end of the day article in The Broker on the same subject
there was a big question on my mind. Is Coming up (‘Low scores for the chair of G8 Africa’,
COS-SIS trying to improve things for Over the coming months The Broker’s issue 14) received somewhat less
farmers within the existing market and resident and guest bloggers hope to report attention. If only Bono could be
policy system, or is it trying to radically from various conferences. Keep an eye on persuaded to write a guest blog for
change the system? This is perhaps a the website to see if they are visiting an The Broker…
critical question for many organizations event near you. >> www.thebrokeronline.eu/blogs
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 5
The next inconvenient truth
Peak phosphorus
Phosphorus, a key component of fertilizers, is crucial for the world’s food
supplies. But as reserves of phosphate begin to run out, the impacts are
likely be immense – in terms of rising food prices, growing food
insecurity and widening inequalities between rich and poor countries.
R eports of the world’s diminishing mineral resources are
easy to come by. In the case of oil, for example, there is
no shortage of researchers, industry experts and policy
Summary
• Phosphorus is one of the three key components of fertilizers, and is
makers who are eager to discuss the problems of peak oil, crucial for the world’s food supply system.
declining reserves, the need for secure supplies and the • Phosphate extraction will peak around 2030, after which time global
implications of rising prices for the global economy. economic development could be constrained not only by supplies of
But there is one mineral that has received much less oil, but by the availability of phosphorus.
attention. Reserves of phosphate rock, the main source of • So far, governments, UN agencies and international NGOs have failed
phosphorus used in fertilizers, are running out. Very few to acknowledge, let alone respond to, the problem.
reports have examined the implications of the world’s • Innovative strategies are urgently needed, especially agricultural
dwindling supplies, but based on the data that are available, reforms to reduce the demand for fertilizers, and policies to
it is clear that alarm bells should be ringing. promote the recovery and reuse of phosphorus from organic
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for all plants and waste.
animals. It is also one of the three key components (together
with nitrogen and potassium) of fertilizers, and so is crucial
for the world’s food supply system. With continued Morocco/Western Sahara. At current rates of extraction, the
population growth, improving diets and rising global US will deplete its reserves within 30 years, and global
demand for food and biofuels, the need for phosphate reserves will start to run out within 75–100 years.
fertilizers to improve crop production will only increase. Phosphorus cannot be manufactured from alternative
Over the years, the extravagant use of fertilizers has led to sources, but it can be recovered and reused. Some can be
ever-increasing demand for natural phosphorus. As these recovered from human, animal and organic waste, but as yet
reserves decline, the impacts will be immense – including there have been few initiatives to promote recycling.
falling farm output, higher food prices, growing food Phosphate extraction will peak around 2030, after which
insecurity and escalating social and economic challenges for time demand will exceed supply. Economically recoverable
which the world is unprepared. Within a few decades, global reserves of phosphate rock (those that can be profitably
economic development could be constrained not just by extracted using existing technologies) are currently estimated
supplies of oil, but by the availability of phosphorus. at 15 billion tonnes, and about 167 million tonnes are
extracted per year. According to the US Geological Survey,
Peak phosphorus at the current rate of extraction, which is increasing by 2%
Reserves of phosphate rock are found in several countries, per year, phosphate reserves will last about 50 years, but at
but the largest commercially recoverable reserves are 3% per year, they will last less than 45 years. In 2007–8,
located in just three – China, the United States and however, the amount extracted increased by a record 7%,
driven mainly by China, where output rose by 10%, and the
US and Morocco by 4%.1 Even if so-called base reserves
By Arno Rosemarin, Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), (those that are not economically recoverable at present) are
Gert de Bruijne, WASTE, advisers on urban environment and exploited, these would be depleted within 75 years if the rate
development, Gouda, the Netherlands, and Ian Caldwell, Stockholm of extraction were to rise to 3% per year. The cost of
Environment Institute, Stockholm, Sweden. processing these low-grade base and offshore reserves would
also be enormous, raising the cost of producing food, making
6 www.thebrokeronline.eu
Alamy / Fine Art
A phosphate factory in Western Sahara, Morocco.
this commodity the main determinant of global economic soaring price of fertilizer and to devise schemes to lessen the
development. impacts of high food prices on the world’s poor.1
Prices might have remained high, had it not been for the
Price volatility economic recession that began to bite in late 2008. As the
The availability of phosphate is reflected in the price of demand for biofuels fell, so did the need for fertilizers, and
fertilizer, and ultimately in the cost of food. In 2007–8, the so did world prices. The rapidity of the events of 2008
price of phosphate fertilizer unexpectedly increased fivefold, prevented any changes in policies with regard to fertilizer or
due partly to the growing demand for biofuels to replace oil. agriculture. What did become apparent, however, was that
The use of fertilized crops to produce biofuels such as the fertilizer industry is highly vulnerable because of the link
ethanol pushed fertilizer into a pricing structure determined to biofuels, and that many developing countries cannot
directly by the soaring price of oil. The result was a surge in afford conventional chemical fertilizers. The volatility of the
food prices, and even conflicts in some developing countries phosphate market also affected the prices of nitrogen and
where farmers could no longer afford to buy fertilizers. In potassium, the two other components of fertilizer, and thus
response, in April 2008, UN Secretary-General, Ban the price of food in general. Clearly, the knock-on societal
Ki-moon set up a Task Force on the Global Food Security effects of spiralling fertilizer prices need to be better
Crisis. This led to two food security summits – in Rome in understood if we are to respond effectively when the next
June 2008 and in Madrid in January 2009 – to address the major price shift occurs.
Phosphorus
Phosphorus is essential for all living systems. It is a building block of DNA from around 1.5 billion in 1850 to 6.5 billion today.
and cellular membranes, and a key element in energy metabolism. The Phosphorus is used in the production of fertilizers and animal feed,
human body contains about 1 kg of phosphorus, mainly in bones and and in the manufacture of explosives, plastics, detergents and pesticides.
teeth, and we each consume and excrete up to 3 grams per day. Most fertilizer is commercially produced using the wet extraction
Phosphorus was discovered in 1669 by Hennig Brand. By evaporating process, in which phosphate rock is dissolved in sulphuric acid to produce
human urine, Brand produced ammonium sodium hydrogen phosphate, phosphoric acid. Global production of phosphoric acid was 35 million
a substance that glowed in the dark and burned with a brilliant flame, tonnes in 2008.
which he described as phosphorescence. Phosphorus was first obtained Unfortunately, the wet extraction process produces highly polluting
from bone ash, and from the mid-1800s from rock phosphate, or by-products, including phosphogypsum (calcium sulphate) and an acid
apatite, which is found in fossil marine sediments and volcanic deposits. leachate that can seep into groundwater if it is not properly contained.
For centuries, human and animal waste had been used directly as a Stockpiles of gypsum waste are growing by about 175 million tonnes per
fertilizer. But when cities in Europe and North America started to build year – about five times the amount of phosphoric acid produced. In
sewerage systems to prevent outbreaks of diseases such as cholera, farmers Florida, stockpiles of gypsum have already reached 1 billion tonnes.
had to look elsewhere. Soon, imports of natural fertilizer in the form of The overuse of fertilizers, and nutrient runoff, have resulted in the
guano, and eventually fossil sedimentary and volcanic rock phosphate, accumulation of phosphorus in terrestrial and freshwater ecosystems.
provided cheap and abundant substitutes. As a result, agriculture was able This nutrient overload – levels are about 75% above those in pre-industrial
to expand far beyond sustainable limits, and the world’s population grew times – now threatens many rivers, lakes and coastal zones.
>
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 7
basic ingredient of phosphate fertilizers. Sulphuric acid is
produced mainly in the developed countries, although China
is now also self-sufficient. Sulphuric acid supply and demand
directly determine the price of phosphate, so here too there
are geopolitical implications. It is for this reason that
Reuters / Anuruddha Lokuhapuarachchi
sulphuric acid producers publish reports and hold
conferences to discuss global trends in phosphate production.
By controlling the supply and price of sulphuric acid, the
developed countries can in effect control the price of the
phosphate they import.
Reducing the risks
Clearly, innovative strategies are urgently needed to ensure
greater stability in fertilizer and phosphate markets. More
efficient extraction of phosphate at source would help to
A foretaste of things to come? In Sri Lanka, the decision to award a phosphate reduce wastage of this valuable resource. Higher prices could
mining concession to a foreign consortium led to widespread protests. discourage the inefficient use of phosphate products and
promote recycling, although price increases should be kept
to a minimum in order to avert spiralling food prices.
Geopolitical implications Crucially, wide-ranging agricultural policy reforms are
As fertilizer prices rise, the increased inequality of access needed to reduce the demand for phosphate fertilizers. In
between rich and poor countries will have major geopolitical particular, farmers should be encouraged to use them more
impacts. This makes supplies of phosphate one of the most efficiently, and to switch to organic fertilizers and
pressing global resource questions, one that requires composting technologies. In Europe, the EU Common
urgent attention. Agricultural Policy, with farm subsidies amounting to
Just five countries together control almost 90% of the €50 billion per year, has created a distorted market that
world’s reserves of rock phosphate. China, the largest promotes wasteful use of fertilizers, because in effect farmers
producer, has already begun to safeguard its supplies by and consumers do not pay the full market price. Reducing
imposing, in mid-2008, a 135% tariff on exports. The US is and ultimately eliminating these subsidies would provide
quickly depleting its own reserves – extraction has now more open market competition, and persuade farmers to be
peaked. Aside from a number of smaller producers, led by more frugal. Consumers must also be convinced that they
South Africa and Jordan, the next largest supplier of can play an effective role in controlling food prices through
phosphate is Morocco. their decisions as to what and how much they eat.
Morocco’s phosphate reserves are located in the Western But perhaps the most effective way to minimize the impacts
Sahara, a territory that is internationally recognized as a of phosphate shortages would be to promote the recovery and
sovereign country, but which has been effectively occupied reuse of phosphorus and other nutrients from organic waste
by Morocco since 1975. In 2004, the US signed a bilateral and wastewater streams. With policy reforms to promote the
free trade agreement with Morocco that allows the US development of recycling technologies, the EU could become
long-term access to its phosphate. The deal received no more or less self-sufficient in phosphorus (see box, page 9).1
media attention. Unsurprisingly, as a permanent member of In developing countries, especially in Africa where farmers
the UN Security Council, the US has consistently vetoed any use limited amounts of chemical fertilizers, recycling could
resolution requiring Morocco to leave Western Sahara. allow them to become almost self-sufficient. For rich
Australia, in contrast, recently halted imports of Moroccan countries, a shift to a recycling economy would present
phosphate in protest against its occupation of Western major challenges, requiring the retooling of the agricultural
Sahara, and this move also attracted little attention. infrastructure and the adoption of new farming practices.
None of the major phosphate producers have so far taken New incentives such as carbon taxes to combat climate
proactive steps to conserve or manage their reserves change will also encourage the fertilizer and phosphate
sustainably. China’s 135% export tariff could result in higher mining industries to become more efficient. The production
prices, which in turn could encourage more efficient use of and transportation of fertilizers involves the substantial use
fertilizers within the agricultural sector. But its impacts on of fossil fuels, which could be reduced by shifting to local
the demand for phosphate are only likely to become apparent organic recycling systems.
during 2009, once the importing countries have used up
their stockpiles. An unacknowledged problem
A further factor that is likely to become significant in the So far there has been little acknowledgement, let alone
coming years is the availability of sulphuric acid. On average, response, from governments, UN agencies or international
it takes nearly 3 tonnes of sulphuric acid and 3.5 tonnes of NGOs to the world’s dwindling phosphate reserves. The US
phosphate rock to produce 1 tonne of phosphoric acid, the Geological Survey and the International Fertilizer Industry
8 www.thebrokeronline.eu
USA
7.8% Morocco
37.0% China
26.6%
Jordan
5.8%
South Africa
9.7%
Five countries control almost 90% of global phosphate reserves
Eight countries account for 65% of global sulphuric acid production
Association (IFA) publish their own reports, but there is no resource management. Fertilizer companies also are more
non-partisan international body responsible for monitoring, interested in potential profits than in conserving this finite
compiling statistics or providing policy direction. Yet articles resource.
are beginning to appear highlighting the implications of the Above all, efforts must be made to improve public
situation, and the body of knowledge is growing. At an awareness of the problem. Most people acknowledge that
international conference on nutrient recovery from mineral resources are scarce, but assume that more will
wastewater, in Vancouver in May 2009, participants from somehow be found. While this could be true for phosphate
more than 30 countries met to discuss the status of recycling to some extent, unless action is taken to conserve the stocks
technology, and to develop ‘new thinking’ for the future.1 that remain, reduce the demand for fertilizers and recycle
There has also been little response from the private sector. phosphorus wherever possible, the costs to society are likely
The major phosphate mining companies tend to keep a low be very high – in terms of rising food prices and widening
public profile, and are not known as leaders in sustainable inequalities between rich and poor countries.
Recycling potential in Europe □ Cordell, D., Drangert, J.-O. and White, S. (2009) The story of
Improving recycling systems in Europe would help meet phosphorus phosphorus: Global food security and food for thought. Global
demand. Each year the EU uses about 1.34 million tonnes of Environmental Change, 19: 292–305.
phosphorus in the form of phosphate fertilizers. Of this, 250,000 □ Cordell, D., Schmid-Neset, D., White, S. and Drangert, J.-O. (2009)
tonnes are contained in animal feed supplements and 110,000 tonnes Preferred future phosphorus scenarios. In: K. Ashley et al. (eds)
are used in the manufacture of detergents, all of which could be Proc. International Conference on Nutrient Recovery from Wastewater
recovered and reused. Streams. International Water Association, pp.23–43.
Arne Haarr, of the European Union of National Associations of Water □ Haarr, A. (2005) The Reuse of Phosphorus. Position paper, EU2-04-
Suppliers and Waste Water Services, recently calculated how much of SL09. European Union of National Associations of Water Suppliers
the European demand for phosphorus could be met through improved and Waste Water Services.
recycling systems. All organic waste contains phosphorus, with animal □ Prud’homme, M. and Heffer, P. (2008) World Agriculture and
manure being the most important source. Haarr estimated that the Fertilizer Demand: Global Fertilizer Supply and Trade 2008–2009.
animal waste produced each year in Europe contains around 1.6 million Summary Report, International Fertilizer Industry Association.
tonnes of phosphorus. And if fully implemented, the EU’s Urban □ Vaccari, D.A. (2009) Phosphorus famine: The threat to our food
Wastewater Treatment Directive could also have a major impact. In supply. Scientific American, June, pp.54–59.
2005, the EU produced at least 9.4 million tonnes of dry solids from □ Global Phosphorus Research Initiative: www.phosphorusfutures.net
sewage sludge, from which about 300,000 tonnes of phosphorus and
other nutrients could have been retrieved. 1 For a longer version of this article, visit
www.thebrokeronline.eu
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 9
book review
A bright beacon of success
and hope
Freedom from Want: The Remarkable Success Story of BRAC,
the Global Grassroots Organization That’s Winning the Fight Against
Poverty, by Ian Smillie, Kumarian Press.
A review by Annette Jansen
O ne wonders if a book that has been
showered with praise by Nobel
laureate Amartya Sen, former Irish
agriculture project based on poultry
farming. By 1992, the project involved
1.9 million women, and had managed to
president and High Commissioner for establish commercial and social linkages
Human Rights Mary Robinson and former that connected local activities to the
US president Bill Clinton needs to be wider national economy, and introduced
reviewed again. Yet this acclaim may well women to the experience of making real
be an expression of relief from a sector profits.
that has been the target of much The poultry project story reveals another
scepticism and is hungry for some positive key ingredient of the BRAC approach: trial
news. Ian Smillie’s Freedom from Want and error. After the failure of a large-scale
delivers that and more. Its tone and style project in Sulla, Bangladesh, BRAC realized
inspire hope in the reader. that, in Smillie’s words, ‘the constructive
The book tells the captivating story of dealing with error is much more important
the Bangladeshi NGO BRAC (Building than reliable adherence to an action plan’. militarization of aid, which seems
Resources Across Communities). Founded Start small scale, conduct research, test, somewhat out of place in a book that
in 1972 by Fazle Hasan Abed, BRAC now improve, retest and only then scale up. In refers so little to this problem, and at a
has at least 57,000 branches in countries Abed’s words, ‘small is beautiful, but big is time when donors have embraced an
such as Uganda, Afghanistan and necessary’. integrated approach to security and
Pakistan. Freedom from Want is an But BRAC did not only invest in its development. Similarly unexpected, Smillie
account of the organization, which projects. ‘Development is not about then begins singing a song of praise for
through trial and error and a high dose of buildings, it is about what goes on inside human rights, stating, ‘Rights, including
perseverance discovered what Smillie calls buildings, and inside the heads of the people legal rights, children’s rights, and rights for
‘the fallacies in standard approaches to in the buildings’, Smillie writes. BRAC women and for men, were the
community development’. discovered the importance of investing in cornerstones of long-term development’.
Already in the early 1970s, BRAC people. Instead of bringing people in from This may cause the reader to wrongly
realized that development was not about abroad, BRAC recruited women from the conclude that NGOs are correct to mobilize
‘getting bigger’, but about ‘how to make villages and trained them to work as health people to demand their rights. What this
things different’, and how to change the advisers, teachers or silk producers. book shows instead is that, although
patterns of power distribution that keep Realizing that ‘the best way to keep the human rights ‘conscientization’ is
the poor poor. At a time when ‘gender’ best staff in absence of large salaries was to important to raise people’s awareness and
was anything but a buzzword, BRAC ensure the greatest satisfaction possible’, boost their confidence, real change is
decided to focus on the economic they sent promising young staff to obtain about building different power structures
empowerment of women. It did so by masters degrees or PhDs at the world’s top that link the poor to the wider world of
launching, in 1975, a sustainable universities. BRAC changed the lives of many economic opportunities. BRAC’s country
people, not least those of its founders. It is director in Uganda remarks that
these personal stories that make this book microcredit is not a human right, but can,
Annette Jansen is an independent such a fulfilling read. if properly used, become a vehicle for
humanitarian policy and advocacy adviser and So is there anything negative to say attaining human rights – thus reversing
PhD student at the University of Amsterdam. about the book? In his closing chapter, the often heard logic that ‘rights precede
Smillie suddenly starts bashing the development’.
10 www.thebrokeronline.euSPECIAL REPORT
The impact of web 2.0 on research practices
Social academia
Since the emergence of the web 15 years ago, information
and communication technologies (ICTs) have become
indispensable for most researchers. Email and online access
to public or restricted databases have become essential
tools, allowing academics to keep in touch with their peers
and up to date with the latest developments. Widely
dispersed research groups can now easily coordinate their
work online by means of Skype conference calls.
Within some sections of the academic community there
is considerable hesitation to adopt web 2.0 applications for
social networking through blogs, wikis, twitter and sites
such as Facebook and YouTube. Granted, some academics,
including a few professors, now write personal blogs, but in
general, researchers seem reluctant to enter the realm of
social networks, and to start using web 2.0 tools for
producing collaborative reports, sharing work in progress or
publishing their results.
There are perhaps three major obstacles. First, the formal
system of peer review to guarantee the quality of research
is at odds with the informal and much more open ways of
communicating via online social networks. The second
obstacle is the ‘publish or perish’ rule – researchers must
publish in peer-reviewed subscription journals in order to
further their academic careers. This does not fit well with
philosophy behind social networking that all knowledge
should be freely available. Finally, the ambition of all
researchers to publish their findings before anyone else, and
to secure potentially profitable intellectual property rights,
discourages them from sharing work in progress on
platforms that are open to all.
In this special report, Janelle Ward examines two web 2.0
applications, blogs and wikis, that are slowly gaining
acceptance among academics. The Broker wishes to open a
discussion on the processes of generating and publishing
knowledge in the web 2.0 era. In particular, The Broker will
address whether the principles and applications of web 2.0
could contribute to greater inclusion and higher-quality
research or represent a distraction that may dilute the
quality of research, and whether a divide is in the making
between researchers of the web 2.0 generation and the
ANP
academic establishment.
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 11SPECIAL REPORT
The challenges of social media
Rewriting research
A growing number of academics are using web 2.0 tools such as blogs
and wikis to share their findings, discuss new developments, and find
new ways for collaborative research. How does this open and informal
medium fit with traditional academic processes? Although there are still
some significant hurdles to be overcome, as well as doubts, web 2.0
represents more than just a new technology. Its widespread use,
including by academics, may offer solutions to many existing problems,
as well as open up new prospects for communicating research.
A cademics have long operated within a system of
peer-reviewed scholarship. The research process is seen
as incomplete until a group of anonymous experts has
Jill Walker of the University of Bergen, Norway, has
identified three types of research blogs, noting that some are
closer to traditional forms of academic publication than
commented on and approved a paper prepared according to others.1 Blogs of the first type are aimed at what she calls
specific criteria. Only then can the work be published in an public intellectuals, and are forums for social debate based
academic journal. Publishing a piece of research in such a on theories of political science, feminism, media analysis,
way demonstrates the author’s legitimacy within a and so on. Blogs of the second type are used as research logs,
community of scholars, and such publications are the basis and serve as ‘a record of research conducted and ideas that
for advancement in any academic field. might be pursued’. Such blogs have traditional roots, and are
But as academics embrace the opportunities offered by similar to a sociologist’s notebook or a laboratory scientist’s
web 2.0 applications for social networking, especially blogs record of experiments. The third type includes
and wikis, are they about to shake up this traditional ‘pseudonymous blogs about academic life’ that frequently
system? demonstrate ‘a tongue in cheek refusal to revere the ivory
tower experience’. In such blogs, researchers tend not to
Academic blogging focus on their work, but to discuss personal aspects of
The term ‘web log’ was coined by blogging pioneer Jorn academic life.
Barger, editor of the influential blog ‘Robot Wisdom’, who
described it as a web page where a blogger ‘logs’ other web
pages she finds interesting. They may be personal or group
web pages that are regularly updated, often with fairly brief Web 2.0: harnessing collective intelligence
postings. Web 2.0 is a loose collection of ‘second-generation’ web-based
Blogging is online self-publication, and a blog has a technologies and services designed to facilitate collaboration and
potential audience ranging from zero to millions. There is no sharing between users. Web 2.0 applications include blogs and wikis,
peer review, no editor, and spell checking is optional. But as well as social networking sites such as twitter, YouTube and
certain rules do govern the world of blogging, and there are Facebook that encourage user-generated content.
parallels between success in academia and success as a Web 2.0 is not about centralized control and static web pages;
blogger. In order to examine the world of academic blogging, rather, it sees users as co-developers and co-creators. Tim O’Reilly,
it is first necessary to understand how such blogs are founder of O’Reilly Media, believes that the real value of web 2.0 tools
constructed, who is blogging, and why. lies in their ability to harness the collective intelligence of many
individuals, which is the driving force behind Wikipedia. Other
applications include RSS (really simple syndication), which allows users
By Janelle Ward, assistant professor in the Department of Media and to subscribe to a ‘feed’ from a website and automatically receive
Communication at Erasmus University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. updates to its content.
12 www.thebrokeronline.euSPECIAL REPORT
Alamy / Archives du 7ème
Perhaps the most important function of academic blogs, increasing opportunities for collaboration and providing a
says Adam Kotsko of the Chicago Theological Seminary, is social outlet for members. The blogs were also used to make
that they fill a role analogous to the political blogs that link to research available to the public, often to obtain feedback.
and comment on particular news stories; that is, bringing Academics do this by writing about their ongoing research,
new scholarly research to the attention of an interdisciplinary sometimes in an attempt to improve the quality of their articles
audience. before submitting them for publication, or even afterwards. In
While it is generally assumed that academic blogs are June 2009, World Bank economist Charles Kenny posted the
written and maintained by individuals, there are also group draft of a complete book on his blog, together with a request
blogs. A group blog can sometimes serve as a newsletter for for comments and suggestions for improvement.
members of the blogging community, offering reviews of
recent articles and books, as well as spreading the word Who are academic bloggers?
about conferences or grant opportunities. It is difficult to estimate how many academics are active
In a recent study of 12 group blogs, María José Luzón of the bloggers. Anecdotal information indicates that academic
University of Zaragoza, Spain, found that they served a bloggers are a blend of researchers at the start of their
number of purposes, including publicizing the group and its careers, mid-level professionals and ‘big shots’– tenured
research.1 They helped to create a sense of community, professors with perhaps more to say and little to lose.
ResearchBlogging.org: beyond peer review?
One example of a successful blogging community is ResearchBlogging. In a recent post, Dave Munger, the site administrator, discusses a
org, which ‘strives to identify serious academic blog posts about number of scenarios regarding the criteria for blog posts published on
peer-reviewed research, with an aggregation site where others can look the site. At present, all posts must discuss peer-reviewed research. This
to find the best academic blogging on the Net’. means that bloggers are not recognized (i.e. their content is not
Bloggers who wish to be included on the site register their blogs and aggregated) for writing about research that has not been published in
select a variety of tags, or labels, describing their content (such as formal academic journals. This presents an interesting conundrum, as
engineering, health, social sciences, etc.). The result is a large community sites like Researchblogging.org want to make new research results
of academics often post summaries of recent research and add their available to a wide community of scholars. When Munger opened the
own commentaries, which ResearchBlogging.org posts on its homepage. discussion on twitter, some respondents offered enthusiastic support,
Because the site pools together knowledge from a variety of disciplines while others expressed concerns about distinguishing preprints from
at a central location, it may be especially useful for those involved in peer-reviewed research, and that the site’s overall mission might be
cross-disciplinary research. diluted.
>
The Broker issue 15 August 2009 13SPECIAL REPORT
In 2007 Gina Walejko, of Northwestern University in one recent post she noted that ‘one of the responsibilities of a
Chicago, carried out an online survey of US-based publicly paid academic is to participate in public debate. Yes,
academic bloggers. In her sample, which was drawn from there should be ways to register blogging in a way that would
the ‘blogroll’ (a list of links to other blogs) of the site give us “points” when counting publications, and I am
Crooked Timber, and excluded graduate students, Walejko certain this would propel Norwegian academics into a
found that 50% of the 197 respondents were tenured; 57% blogging frenzy. No, I wouldn’t turn down the money if I
were male; 44% worked in the humanities and only 14% in were paid for this. But yes, I am willing to do it, because it’s
the social sciences. part of what I am supposed to do’.
When asked why they blog, 91% of survey respondents
said they were motivated by intellectual stimulation and Rewards of blogging
discussion; 73% enjoyed the opportunity to test their ideas Academic blogging efforts are currently not rewarded, at
and share them with non-academics; and 64% were least not officially. Academics are paid and promoted on the
interested in building an online community.1 Clearly, basis of articles published in quality, peer-reviewed journals
academics see benefits to their blogging that go beyond with a high impact factor. Individual blogs are in many ways
traditional academic rewards, such as obtaining feedback on just the opposite. But there are clear indications that online
their research ideas, and creating a network of like-minded writing may increase the quality of research and can result in
scholars across the globe. a dedicated network of scholars.
The focus of academic blogging often goes beyond For example, Julia Davies of the University of Sheffield,
research itself, to look at the struggles of academic life. This UK, and Guy Merchant have identified several themes in
personal level of writing can help to create a support relation to academic blogging. They believe that the process
community. The Chronicle of Higher Education, a magazine of hyperlinking and allowing others to contribute content
and website for US academics, for example, has compiled a works to strengthen group membership. ‘Through blogrolls,
selection of blogs that it describes as featuring ‘occasional bloggers can stake out an interest, an identity and even
discussions about academic life, careers and the job market’. loyalties to others; through blogrolls, a certain “character”
Other academics see their online contributions as part of for the blog can be established’. If so, then blogging holds
their work, regardless of whether their employers encourage real promise. Not only could it change the type of output
the activity. Torill Mortensen, of Volda College, Norway, that is expected of academics, but it might also help to
describes the contents of her blog as ‘media studies, reader- improve the quality of their research by exposing their ideas
response theory, role-play games, Internet culture, travel, to a broader audience.
academic weirdness and online communication put together Thus far, however, there is no solid evidence that blogs are
at random’. Mortensen provides links to her online articles having a real impact in the academic world. There is also
and encourages colleagues to participate in the dialogue. In very little information available about the individuals who
read and comment on blogs, and what conditions lead to
success – however that is defined. Statistics are hard to come
by. Although scholars have attempted to sample various
Benefits and risks of blogging academic disciplines, there has been no global or national
At a meeting in 2004, academics and industry representatives study that has examined this issue. At the same time, the
identified the following benefits and risks of academic blogging: practice of blogging has gained wide attention, and many
Benefits believe that it is helping to bring about positive changes in
• speed of publication (and dissemination) the academic world.
• spontaneity But blogging isn’t the only writing tool that has the
• the ability to publish (and receive feedback on) work in progress potential to change academic practice. Another possibility is
• bloggers can use their own personal voice, and speak informally writing collaboratively, and some academics are already
about their work using online tools to cooperate in new ways.
• blogging bypasses the editorial process
• reports on work in progress and articles can be made widely Wise groups
available for peer review Collaborative writing, by definition, requires that scholars
• scholars can establish connections with others work together. Can web 2.0 applications give rise to a new
• a blog becomes a searchable archive of ideas/observations that can form of collaborative writing? Co-authorship is part of
be used or developed later. normal academic practice, but traditional writing culture
Risks may not support this type of bottom-up approach to
• by sharing information about their work before it is published, knowledge gathering. What online opportunities exist for
researchers risk having their ideas attacked or even stolen academics to collaborate in the writing process? Although
• blogging may damage a researcher’s credibility a wide variety of open source tools are already available,
• blogging takes time, perhaps at the expense of more traditional including online editors and file sharing, synchronization
research activities. and storage services, this section focuses on the use of
wikis.
14 www.thebrokeronline.euYou can also read
