King’s College London Prof elected new EADI President

Professor Andy Sumner has been elected the new President of the European Association of Development Research and Training Institutes (EADI). As a leading global network in the field of development studies, he will be instrumental in working with over 100 institutional members from 30 countries and providing a platform that brings together the wider development research community.

I am honoured to assume the role of EADI President. As EADI approaches its 50th anniversary, we need to reflect on the contemporary global challenges faced and how to respond with urgency.

Professor Andy Sumner
Sumner is a Professor of International Development at King’s and a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences. His research sits in interdisciplinary development studies and focuses on questions related to economic development and inequality dynamics across developing countries, and in Southeast Asia in particular.

In his opening blog post as EADI President, he reflects on the relationship between development studies and economics. Examining the history and varieties within the fields, he urges the importance of a safe and creative context for idea exchanges.

[…] to deepen any dialogue between the two fields, it is essential to consider not only intellectual barriers but also disciplinary cultures, histories, and funding. Myerson’s code of conduct is useful here and the importance of a safe and creative context for idea exchanges and active tolerance of emotions involved in the dialogue can facilitate meaningful and productive interdisciplinary collaborations.

Professor Andy Sumner
Professor Sumner joined King’s in 2012, and together with Peter Kingstone, he founded and subsequently led the International Development Institute at King’s, which later became the Department of International Development.

He will be serving a three-year term as EADI President and is proceeding previous President, Henning Melber (University of Pretoria).