Master thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (MSc)
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This thesis dives into the stories and lives of female low-caste garment workers in South India, uncovering their agency and strategies within the complex web of social norms and expectations. It's...Show moreThis thesis dives into the stories and lives of female low-caste garment workers in South India, uncovering their agency and strategies within the complex web of social norms and expectations. It's all about understanding how factors like caste, gender, and labor intertwine to shape their lives in the bustling world of textile factories. The journey starts by shining a light on the influence of big international brands on the factories' conditions and how the caste systems still affects people’s lives and opportunities. We dig into how traditional gender roles shape the lives of these female workers, dealing with both unequal power dynamics and family expectations. With the guiding question, "How exactly do female low-caste garment workers in South India show their power, and how do they tackle the challenges they face in their lives and jobs?" in mind, the research takes us through six chapters. The heart of the matter reveals that these workers, despite the odds, aren't just passive players. They've got agency and plans, like prioritizing their children’s education if their financial situation allows it in order to break free from the cycle of struggle. And then there's the central role of NGOs like READ, who give them skills and a voice to demand better conditions. Wrapping it all up, the conclusion shows strength doesn't always mean pushing back hard; it's often about finding ways to stand tall and find strategies when facing difficulties. All said and done, this research paints a vivid picture of these female workers' multi-faceted strengths, highlighting how they navigate their world with grit and grace, all while shaking up the social norms that surround them.Show less
Dit onderzoek legt zich toe op het analyseren en verklaren van de invloed van maatschappelijke organisaties in de discussie omtrent de toelating van repatrianten en spijtoptanten uit Indonesië in...Show moreDit onderzoek legt zich toe op het analyseren en verklaren van de invloed van maatschappelijke organisaties in de discussie omtrent de toelating van repatrianten en spijtoptanten uit Indonesië in Nederland. Door te kijken naar een grote hoeveelheid archiefmateriaal (vergadernotulen, briefpost, nota's, moties, periodieke uitgaves) van een viertal zeer diverse organisaties kan bepaald worden welke tactieken een significante rol speelden in het uitoefenen van invloed op de Nederlandse overheid. Deze scriptie bouwt daarmee voort op Vosters' onderzoek naar de invloed van NGO's. Dit onderzoek toont aan dat in eerste instantie organisaties met een directe lijn tot de overheid meer invloed konden uitoefenen dan organisaties die een outsider status hadden en zich in een formeel isolement bevonden. Deze insider organisaties beriepen zich hierbij vaak op hun expertise over het onderwerp en hun logistieke autoriteit, waardoor de overheid taken naar hen overhevelde en er een wederzijdse afhankelijke relatie ontstond. Outsider organisaties konden echter extremere eisen stellen, waarbij ze ook meer gegenderde emotionele en morele claims maakten. Hoewel de overheid hier niet responsief voor was, namen de insider organisaties deze eisen en tactieken over tijd over, waardoor outsider organisaties indirect toch nog hun invloed deden gelden. Dit problematiseert de strikte scheidslijn tussen insider en outsider en laat zien dat organisaties met extremere eisen zonder formele toegang tot de overheid toch zeer invloedrijk kunnen zijn.Show less
Academics have generally overlooked how NGOs use and produce knowledge to influence policymaking, or have acknowledged it but have not assessed it using the concept of epistemic communities....Show moreAcademics have generally overlooked how NGOs use and produce knowledge to influence policymaking, or have acknowledged it but have not assessed it using the concept of epistemic communities. However, knowledge can also be a powerful tool in the hands of NGOs. Indeed, this study demonstrates that NGOs are more than just advocacy actors; like epistemic communities, they influence politicians’perceptions and actions with their knowledge. To determine this, I have closely examined the role of knowledge in three NGOs bases in Brussels: Ciré, CNCD11.11.11 and Plate-Forme Mineurs en Exil, and interviewed one employee from each organisation. I then compared my findings to expectations of how NGOs would use and produce knowledge to influence policymaking, and determined that they matched the characteristics of epistemic communities. Nevertheless, this research is based on interviews and looked at specific cases. To generalise my conclusions, further research would have to be done.Show less
This thesis looks at the postcapitalist potential of NGO practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. Specifically, this thesis discusses the Palestinian NGO Ma’an Development Center and to...Show moreThis thesis looks at the postcapitalist potential of NGO practices in the occupied Palestinian territories. Specifically, this thesis discusses the Palestinian NGO Ma’an Development Center and to what extent it promotes a specific form of postcapitalism known as the Community Economy in the context of the Palestinian NGO sector as a whole. The goal of this thesis is two-fold: 1) adding a new dimension to the study of NGOs in the occupied Palestinian territories and 2) enriching postcapitalist scholarship with a case study from an understudied geographical area.Show less
With ever-increasing numbers of migration, an effective integration for refugees becomes more important every day. Abraço Cultural is a Brazilian NGO that aims to employ refugees and train them to...Show moreWith ever-increasing numbers of migration, an effective integration for refugees becomes more important every day. Abraço Cultural is a Brazilian NGO that aims to employ refugees and train them to be language teachers for their native language, whilst also teaching students about their home country's culture. This thesis investigates the effectiveness of Abraço Cultural's aid in integration by analyzing interviews held with refugees in their employment. It aims to measure Abraço Cultural's success rate by comparing it to domains for integration as laid out in a theoretical framework by Ager and Strang (2008).Show less
In dit onderzoek wordt de invloed van NGO's op het mensenrechtenbeleid van Nederlandse banken geanalyseerd. Voor deze analyse is de casus over het IMVO-convenant bancaire sector gebruikt.
In dit onderzoek is de invloed van de Vereniging VluchtelingenWerk Nederland op de (rechts)positie van vluchtelingenvrouwen in de jaren tachtig onderzocht. Aan de hand van documentatie van de...Show moreIn dit onderzoek is de invloed van de Vereniging VluchtelingenWerk Nederland op de (rechts)positie van vluchtelingenvrouwen in de jaren tachtig onderzocht. Aan de hand van documentatie van de organisatie zelf, is het werk en succes van het bureau Vrouwenwerk nader geanalyseerd. Gebleken is dat het bestaan van het bureau op was te delen in drie fases: de pioniersfase, de differentiatiefase en de integratiefase. Werkzaamheden waren onder meer gericht op onderzoek, beleidsbeïnvloeding, organisatievorming en werkgelegenheid. Dit onderzoek heeft een specifieke en gedetailleerde weergave opgeleverd van hoe een belangenorganisatie voor vluchtelingen zich manoeuvreerde in het cross-culturele en interdisciplinaire werkveld. Bovendien laat dit onderzoek zien hoe het bureau Vrouwenwerk het vluchtelingenvrouwenvraagstuk mondiaal op de kaart zette in de jaren tachtig.Show less
From the very start of European involvement in East and Central Africa, Westerners were fascinated by the natural places and animals they encountered in this exotic continent. Tales from famous...Show moreFrom the very start of European involvement in East and Central Africa, Westerners were fascinated by the natural places and animals they encountered in this exotic continent. Tales from famous African explorers like Henry Morton Stanley and David Livingstone gave the impression of a dark and wild continent as opposed to the orderly and civilized Europe. In the early imperialistic period of Africa, European powers tried to implement their notion of nature to their colonial territories. That is to say, a strict division between what is considered nature and what is considered not. Through (neo)colonial ties a fabrication of nature has developed and affected the Sub-Saharan African landscape for more than 150 years. Colonial imposition of European ideas like the European hunting tradition, the Romantic notions about nature, imposition of economic development and wildlife conservation all had a lasting impact on the African continent. By means of colonization, but also long afterwards, Sub-Saharan Africa has thus been highly influenced by old Western notions about Africa's nature. This thesis sets out to discuss how the Western philosophy of the relation between human and nature has dominated and continues to dominate many places in Africa as Western conceptions of what nature is and what it is not are seemingly still present to this day and age.Show less
The aim of this research is to empirically examine the factors that influence the relationship between development NGOs and the state. This is done through an in-depth case-study of the...Show moreThe aim of this research is to empirically examine the factors that influence the relationship between development NGOs and the state. This is done through an in-depth case-study of the relationship between NGOs and the Dutch state. A special focus is on the relationship between the Dutch state and Cordaid. The results show that the current institutional framework has relatively most impact on the shape of the current relationship. Moreover, the research argues for the incorporation of interpersonal relationships in the theoretical framework of NGO-state relationships. The effect of resource dependence is arguably smaller than is assumed in previous literature.Show less
Master thesis | Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology (MSc)
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Achieving universal primary education is both promoted as a global development goal and as a priority for the Tanzanian government. To reach this goal, the government is committed to making primary...Show moreAchieving universal primary education is both promoted as a global development goal and as a priority for the Tanzanian government. To reach this goal, the government is committed to making primary education accessible for as many children as possible by making it both compulsory and free of charge. Nevertheless, there is still a problem with absenteeism in Tanzania. This ethnographic research explores the range of factors and reasons, besides tuition fees, that influence children's absenteeism through a case study of three primary schools in rural northern Tanzania. It analysesthe collaboration between these three schools and the Dutch-Tanzanian NGO Kamitei Foundation in addressing this issue. Based on interviews with teachers, parents, and pupils themselves, the main argument of this thesis is that the different roles that children have within rural households have consequences for their level of attendance. These household activities differ according to gender, and to the extent of how indispensable the children are within their household. Moreover, I found that differences in classroom pedagogy and in schools' policies of dealing with absenteeism also influenced the rate of absenteeism among pupils. Based on my findings, I argue that punishment or ignorance by the teachers as a response to not being present at school is one of the main factors that makes absence recurring, which makes it hard to reduce it. The Kamitei Foundation and the schools try to reach a consensus on this issue by working together to offer good quality education, even though it can be hard to reach the same level of understanding.Show less
While development literature generally understands NGOs as main catalysts for bottom-up and cost-effective development projects, feminist critiques of women’s NGOs generally argue that they...Show moreWhile development literature generally understands NGOs as main catalysts for bottom-up and cost-effective development projects, feminist critiques of women’s NGOs generally argue that they undermine the quest of social movements for a new social order as well as the very foundations of feminism. Critical feminist scholars believe that feminism has been mainstreamed into development agendas and therefore ‘NGOized’ (Jenkins 2011, Roy 2011, Pearce 2010). The term ‘NGOization’ which is commonly understood as the depoliticization, professionalization and institutionalization of movements for social change (Kamat 2004, Hemment 2007) has been widely discussed in recent critical development literature. A point largely dismissed by critical feminist scholars analyzing the severe implications for feminist movements is the need for relativization and contextualization. This thesis contributes to filling a gap in the academic literature by discussing the relevance of a feminist critique of the process of institutionalization and professionalization of feminism and women’s grassroots movements, while at the same time exploring the extent to which the concept of ‘NGOization’ only provides a partial understanding of the realities lived by feminist activists and women at the grass-roots and at the NGO level alike. In other words, this dissertation stresses the need to move beyond a one-sided understanding of the ‘NGOization’ concept that overemphasizes the negative impacts and effects of these developments. In order to do so, this thesis argues that feminist NGOs are best understood when their hybrid nature is taken into account. Hybridity means that they expand their sphere of influence both at the grassroots levels and in the institutional sphere. As such, NGOs need to be understood as “spaces for the exercise of power, both liberatory and oppressive” (Costa 2014, 172). Therefore, the following research question is explored: What are the opportunities and limitations of transforming women’s movements into women’s NGOs in Peru?Show less
This thesis deals with the topic of decision making of NGO's in the seventies and eighties. The model of 'webs of significance' is used to describe why the Dutch NGO Novib chose to support specific...Show moreThis thesis deals with the topic of decision making of NGO's in the seventies and eighties. The model of 'webs of significance' is used to describe why the Dutch NGO Novib chose to support specific projects in East-Africa and to reject others. By looking at the motivations which are present in the archival material for support or rejection this thesis argues that external actors did not have much influence on the decision making of Novib. Instead, it argues, internal criteria such as support to local organisations, support for small, sustainable projects, et cetera were very much present in the organisation. Novibs webs of significance (which lead to a decision) were internally formed and therefore Novibs decision making was not only ideological (western) but also independent, pragmatic and risk-averse.Show less
Bachelor thesis | South and Southeast Asian Studies (BA)
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This thesis will explore the effectiveness of the unique developmental approach of the Indian Women's Union SEWA. This women's union and activist network works through the agency of self-employed...Show moreThis thesis will explore the effectiveness of the unique developmental approach of the Indian Women's Union SEWA. This women's union and activist network works through the agency of self-employed women to empower and develop. By using the conceptual debate of structure and agency, this thesis will make a contribution to the effectiveness of projects for women empowerment in India.Show less
This thesis will be divided into three chapters. Chapter one will describe the main concepts concerned with the relationships between the state and NGOs and between local governance and NGOs, as...Show moreThis thesis will be divided into three chapters. Chapter one will describe the main concepts concerned with the relationships between the state and NGOs and between local governance and NGOs, as well as the roles NGOs play in these relationships. Furthermore, it will also explain how these relationships differ between the developed and developing regions of the world, which will be referred to as – ‘the North’ – and – ‘the South’ – respectively. Chapter two historically analyse the state-NGO in the context of Peru from 1985 to 2000. Emphasis will be placed on the different impacts NGOs had as well as the roles and regulations they took on with the state. This chapter will make use of a comparative analysis of Peru’s leadership under first the democratic leader, García (1985-1990), and second the authoritarian leader, Fujimori (1990-2000). Chapter three will be centred on a case study of the NGO Tierra de niños. This chapter will aim to discover this NGO’s 4 function in practice, by analysing its relationships with the state and the municipality in Nuevo Pachacutec. The goal here is to consider how a NGO contributes to the provision of social services to the poor, and what the result of this is on their livelihoods.Show less
Museums are institutions whose roles have been changing constantly throughout the history of their existence. Nowadays, their social role receives an increased importance, as museums are officially...Show moreMuseums are institutions whose roles have been changing constantly throughout the history of their existence. Nowadays, their social role receives an increased importance, as museums are officially recognised as institutions of social service by the International Council of Museums (ICOM). The purpose of the present thesis is to examine the museum’s social role in the case of the Syrian refugee crisis by identifying ways that museums as institutions can contribute to its relief. In order to approach this topic, a correlation is drawn between museums and Development NGOs, as the latter have a well-established presence in the provision of social work. Therefore, as a secondary purpose, this thesis compares and contrasts these two types of organisations, identifies similarities and seeks aspects of NGOs that museums can learn from in order to enhance their efficiency in assisting in times of humanitarian crisis, like the in Syrian refugee one.Show less
The topic on LGBT rights in China is a very sensitive one. The Chinese government’s policy towards homosexuality is believed to be “three no’s”: “No approval; no disapproval; no promotion.” While...Show moreThe topic on LGBT rights in China is a very sensitive one. The Chinese government’s policy towards homosexuality is believed to be “three no’s”: “No approval; no disapproval; no promotion.” While the Chinese Ministry of Health no longer has homosexuality on its list of mental illnesses since 2001, it is still not openly discussed in China and not an issue that the Chinese governments deems as something that needs to be discussed at a national level. This paper will endeavour to answer the following question: How can gay and lesbian NGOs in China attempt to encourage the Chinese government to safeguard the rights of gays and lesbians through the law-making process? This paper will use as an example environmental NGOs to examine what kind of strategies and resources they have utilized to engage into political territory, and how gay and lesbian NGOs can use the same strategies and resources to do the same. Because the issues gay and lesbian NGOs engage themselves in, it will be difficult for them to persuade the Chinese government to form policies regarding the protective rights of gays and lesbians in China, unless they are able to convince government officials to sponsor them and argue that protecting the rights of homosexuals will be more beneficial for the government than if they do not.Show less
Despite many attempts to curb corruption throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, corruption remains to be one of the main reasons for NGOs to fail. This thesis analyses the motivations for actors to...Show moreDespite many attempts to curb corruption throughout Sub-Saharan Africa, corruption remains to be one of the main reasons for NGOs to fail. This thesis analyses the motivations for actors to participate in the NGO sector. Additionally, the thesis uses literature to illustrate how corruption functions in highly corrupt countries. Finally, three case studies demonstrate how these factors contribute to the failure or success of an NGO.Show less
This thesis discuss the current power relations between the NGOs and teh state in China and explores the survival and struggle strategies used by the NGOs to achieve better autonomy under the...Show moreThis thesis discuss the current power relations between the NGOs and teh state in China and explores the survival and struggle strategies used by the NGOs to achieve better autonomy under the authoritarian rule of the party. This thesis introduces the development path of civil society in China, focusing on environmental NGOs and woemns rights NGOs. By studying the strategeis used by NGOs in these fields, this thesis aims at better capture the nature of power relations between state and NGOs in china.Show less
