Ronald N. Harpelle

Bruce Muirhead

The book focuses on the International Development Research Centre as a unique institution that has funded research in the developing South—research proposed and undertaken by Southern researchers—and how, as a result, it has had tremendous impact despite a relatively small budget. The IDRC is much better known in the developing South than in Canada; in many of the roughly 150 countries in which it has provided research funding it has contributed to creating a very positive image of Canada. The centre’s arms-length relationship with Canadian government assistance provides it with enormous freedom and flexibility—it was established in 1970 with its own act under the Trudeau government. The IDRC board is one-half international and one-half Canadian and is the only governmental agency in the world that has this structure, giving them unique insight into Southern development issues. One of the IDRC’s founding principles was its insistence on having Southern researchers decide which projects would be put forward for possible funding, and much care has been taken to avoid “research imperialism” or “colonialism.” An analysis of the path less travelled, but which IDRC found amenable, is fundamental to this history of the centre, and the book highlights the decisions, ideas, and practices that flow from this basic premise.

40 Years of Ideas, Innovation, and Impact

IDRC

Michel S. Beaulieu

David K. Ratz

Above the entrance to the Finnish Labour Temple in Thunder Bay is the motto labor omnia vincit – “hard work conquers all” – reflecting the dedication of the Finnish community in Canada. Hard Work Conquers All examines Finnish community building in Canada during the twentieth century. Waves of immigrants imbued the relationship between people, homeland, and host country with the politics, ideologies, and cultural expressions of their time. This collection of essays explores the cultural identities of Finnish Canadians, their ties to Finland, intergenerational cultural transfer, and the community’s connections with socialism and labour movements. It offers new interpretations of the influence of Finnish immigration on Canada.

Building the Finnish Community in Canada

Hard Work Conquers All

Long-Term Solutions for a Short-Term World demonstrates the complexity of the challenges that poor countries face and introduces the readers to the concept and impact of participatory research for development. Participatory research requires researchers to work with communities, governments, and other relevant actors to deal with common problems. Finding solutions requires participants to reflect critically on the cultural, economic, historical, political, and social contexts within which the issue under investigation exists. The book contains a collection of essays from development researchers and professionals, each of whom is an activist who has made significant contributions to the struggles of the poor in their own societies. Essays are presented as case studies and, in each, the contributor explains the specific development problem, the paths followed to solve the problem, lessons learned as a result of the research, and the development challenges on the horizon in his field of research. Together, these essays present a fascinating picture of how some of today’s most pressing development issues are being dealt with through research, demonstrating how interdisciplinary and alternative approaches can be implemented in new and innovative ways.

Canada and Research Development

Long-Term Solutions for a Short-Term World

A detailed social history of an ethnic minority's adaptation to life in Central America during the first half of the twentieth century.

Ronald N. Harpelle

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