FAQ on Poverties.org

#1 How can I cite/quote your articles? I can't find a publication date!

The articles on Poverties.org are meant to be regularly updated (at least as often as I can), re-worked, improved etc... So, I might add a publication date in the near future as I hope that Google as kept a record of them and since you - dear visitors - seem very eager to know for your own academic papers and articles. In the meantime, all I can tell you is that all these articles were published between January 2011 and now. Feel free to pick a date, I certainly won't say anything about it (it's my fault after all).

#2 Where can I find the sources to your pages?

I know that's a contentious point, especially as a former academic, but basically I use from 10 to 30 articles per page I write. That's hell of a lot, and the idea is to make these articles accessible and easy to read for everyone. Sometimes part of it also comes from notes I took in a conference or reading this or that book. I know it's a hassle but here's how I can help you:

- Sources to the main scientific e-journals/databases I use: JSTOR, Business Source Premier (EBSCO), World Economics Journal, Taylor and Francis Online (previously InformaWorld), Ingentaconnect.com, Oxford Scholarship Online. You may not have access to the articles - and each costs a lot of money - but you can always look at the abstract for free to confirm an argument;

- Also check these free online resources: Harvard International Review, Brookings, the National Bureau of Economic Research (very cheap articles too);

- Of course you can also directly ask me where I read this or that and I'll try to answer as swiftly as I can;

#3 What's the idea, ideology or political position of the website?

The core idea is pragmatism. I enjoy facts and a critical mind to understand and analyze a situation. Needless to say, there's a humanist approach too that completes this effort to understand other people's lives, their choices and hardships.

The website aims to provide an analysis of globalization, neoliberalism and cultural issues (corruption, discrimination) as the causes that have shaped so many countries' economic development and state of poverty in the past decades. Neoliberal policies have had some positive effects and I really don't mind saying it. What I mind is the end goal and hypocrisy embedded in such policies: the so-called pursuit of freedom which often hides how many international treaties and decisions benefit the very rich at the expense of the very poor (between and within countries).

Politics have become a matter of beliefs and faith, to the point that it's plain ridiculous and hypocritical. Maybe a taf disheartening as well. So, it seems we have come to increasingly disregard facts. There are of course various competing theories of economic development and anti-poverty strategies, but there is also "proven evidence" (a pleonasm, I know) that some policies work and others don't. That the private sector is good at doing some things and governments good at others.

#4 Why is there "poverty in India" on the same status as poverty in other continents in the navigation bar?

That's not a mistake due to the fact that my geography's not so good. I am well aware that India is not a continent and that it should be categorized under "Asia". But I have also built the website following a structure based on demand of information on the Internet. And in that regard, interest in India alone is about as "big" as in other continents.

#4 I'd like to know more about NGOs and other donations to non-profits

Yes, me too. Really, I'm still looking at the best way to create a space here for them to publicize or explain their work and discuss it. That way people would get better information and understanding of who does what, what their impact is and maybe who they want to donate to.

I'll probably add whatever research I can find on NGOs' impact on poverty reduction, what works best etc. Another idea would be to let you all share your experience with the NGOs you've either donated to or worked for. It could be some kind of forum or ranking that you could comment on and vote for. So for this, I need your help...

...and here's the contact form, tell me what you think of this!

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