About the Conference:
To mark its 50th anniversary, we invite present and former staff, students, and associates of CDS to participate in sharing personal experiences of international development, and reflections on the idea of development – evolving, contested, local, national and global. The conference aims to showcase reflections of a wide group of participants through presentations, group discussions, poster sessions, and publications. It will take place at the University of Bath Claverton Down campus from 13.30 on Thursday 11 to 15.00 on Friday 12 September 2025. Food will be provided between these times, but participants will need to make their own arrangements for accommodation. A room on campus is one option – see here. Online participation is also planned.
About CDS:
Established in 1975, CDS continues to bring together staff, students, and associates of the University of Bath who share a commitment to understanding development, defined as both a human aspiration and a historical process, operating at multiple levels and across many fields. The work of CDS links development to pursuit of human wellbeing, poverty reduction, environmental sustainability, and social justice. It reflects the complexity of development as a contested concept, and the contribution diversity, plurality and collaboration can make to our understanding of it. CDS both values academic autonomy, and supports research that engages directly with policy, practice, and power. A timeline of highlighting events in the evolution of CDS can be found here.
Registration and participation at the conference:
To register an interest in attending the conference – in person or online - please click HERE and fill out the Microsoft form. In addition, we invite you to submit a one-page abstract for a short reflective essay, an idea for a poster, or a photograph-plus-caption using the same link. The conference will draw on this material, which we also aim to share through the CDS website and other outlets.
The deadline for submissions is 24 April 2025. Tickets for the conference will be made available once the programme is finalised.
We anticipate asking those attending in person to contribute towards catering costs, including a conference dinner on the Thursday evening. But we aim to draw upon the BRID Fund (see below) and other sources to contribute to costs, and to enable current students to attend without charge.
In person participation at the conference will be limited to 150. In contrast, the number of former staff and students who have participated in development-related courses and programmes at the University exceeds 5,000. Preference for in-person attendance will be given to those who submit material for presentation at the conference.
The BRID Fund:
In 2020, a generous donation from an alumnus enabled CDS to set up the ‘Bath Research in International Development’ (BRID) Fund, which provides bursaries to support student internships, practicums, and placements, doctoral level field work, student conference attendance, and staff public engagement activities. You can read about activities funded to date here.