There are many sides to a story.
We live in a world where everything is connected. People, food products, technology, hurricanes, arms, mutual support, information - all travel across borders.
People around the World share aspirations and concerns – we all want to lead better lives, but the events around the world impact each one of differently. Often, living a better life is up to the person herself, but sometimes – cooperation, learning and sharing resources is important to advance faster and more effectively.
Global development is about seeing more than one side to a story – not to propose a ready-made solution to someone's life, but to ensure there are many means to an end. Those manifest through learning, sharing and adapting to local realities that, what works.
Global development is not only about the relationships of Global North and the rest of the world, it is about learning from stories around the World.
This e-tool is a collection of stories from the field to serve as food for thought about diverse responses to similar concerns. With a story from Latvia being coupled up with a story from elsewhere in the World we show how one story of striving for better lives can play out differently in different realities. And what all of the stories show is that development is not a question for the rich and the mighty, it is about how small actions can bring about change.
We thank all the contributors of the stories to this case book and look forward to expanding it to show even more examples to learn from and work with.