The Warwick International Development Summit (WIDS) is an annual, weekend-long conference organised and run by the International Development Society at the University of Warwick. Normally taking place during the first term, WIDS is the largest student-run Development Summit in the UK with multidisciplinary scope. Since its inception in 2006, the annual summit has attracted over 3,000 visitors, with speakers from 6 continents. The Summit scope includes raising awareness of developmental issues and plausible solutions for such global concerns.
2006
Richard Barker, General Director, Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry
Claver Gatete, Rwandan Ambassador to the UK
Sir Richard Jolly, Director of the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex
Ransford Smith, Deputy Secretary-General for Economic Affairs and Development of the Commonwealth of Nations
2007 – The Role of Global Governance in International Development
Duncan Green, Head of Research at Oxfam GB
Luis Alberto Lacalle Herrera, Former President of Uruguay
Patrick Low, Chief Economist at the World Trade Organization Secretariat
Ndioro Ndiaye, Deputy General Secretary of the International Organisation of Migration
2008 – Contributions to Development
Help or Hindrance?
Philippe Guichandut, European Microfinance Network
Mark Narron, Associate Global Social Investment Funds, Deutsche Bank
Michele Turner, Head of UK Volunteering at VSO
Patrick Watt, Head of Public Affairs and Campaigns, World Vision
2009 – Development for the Modern Age
Crisis, Climate and Cooperation
George Assaf, United Nations Industrial Development Organization
Hugh Bredenkamp, Deputy Director of the International Monetary Fund Strategy, Policy and Review Department
Michael John Foster, Member of Parliament (MP), Department for International Development
Andrew Mold, Senior Economist, OECD
2010 – Resources, Crisis and Conflict
Facing Up to the New Decade
Julia Bucknall, Manager at Water Anchor, World Bank
Claude Clemenz, Senior Research Analyst, OPEC
Dr. John Hancock, Counsellor in the Trade and Finance Division, World Trade Organization
Dr. Anke Hoeffler, Centre for the Study of African Economies, Oxford University
Katherine Hughes, RESULTS Interim Coordinator for the Leamington Spa group
Muzzafar Khan, Director, Space Energy AG
Elisha London, Global Poverty Project
Valerie Msoka, UN Mission to Sudan (UNMIS)
Katherine Nightingale, Senior Research and Policy Officer, Christian Aid
2011 – Ideas for a Better World
Owen Bennett-Jones, Syria and Lebanon Correspondent, BBC World Service
Peter Eigen, Founder, Transparency International
Jonathan Glennie, Research fellow and Author, ODI
Tim Gore, Climate Change Policy Adviser, Oxfam
John Hilary, Executive Director, War on Want
Nic Marks, Founder of the Centre for Well-being, New Economics Foundation
Branko Milanovic, Lead Economist, World Bank
Kate Nustedt, UK Executive Director of Women for Women International
Linda Polman – Freelance Journalist and Author
Jon Sopel, Presenter and Correspondent in the BBC
Anna Theofilopoulou, Former UN Official, Department of Political Affairs
2012 – The Faces of International Development
Old Ideas, New Solutions
Steve Andrews, CEO of Solar Aid
Baron Meghnad Desai, Emeritus Professor and Founder of Global Governance Institute LSE
Wyn Grant, Professor of Politics and International Studies at the University of Warwick
Mark Harrison, Professor of Economics at the University of Warwick
Alison Hook, Hook International
Joel Kibazo, African Development Bank Executive and former BBC and FT Journalist
Henriette Kolb, CEO of the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women
Omer Moav, Professor of Economics at the University of Warwick
Mahmoud Mohieldin, Managing Director, World Bank
Vinay Nair, Acumen Fund
Zoya Phan, Human Rights Activist, Burma
Talyn Rahman-Figueroa, Director of Grassroot Diplomat
Jeffrey Sachs, Director of The Earth Institute, Columbia University
Alan Winters, former Chief Economist of DfID
Stefan Wolff, Professor of International Security at the University of Birmingham
2013 – The Story of Development
Gilbert Achcar, Professor of Developmental Studies and International Relations at SOAS, University of London
Alex Cobham, Research Fellow, Centre of Global Development, Europe
Petko Draganov, Deputy Secretary General of Communications Strategy and Publications Policy, UNCTAD
Jacqui Hunt, Director Equality Now, London
Melanie Jamieson and Jayma Pau, Co-Directors, Leaders' Quest
Max Lawson, Head of Advocacy and Public Policy, Oxfam GB
Simon Maddrell, Executive Director of Excellent Development
James Meadway, Senior Economist, New Economics Foundation
Abhinay Muthoo, Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Warwick
Trygve Olfarnes, Deputy Director of the Nordic Liaison Office at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)
Helen Wass-O’Donnell, Development Director, International Voluntary Service
2014 – Development through the Lens of Diversity
Abdel Bari Atwan, Editor-in-chief of Rai al-Youm
Ken Banks, Founder of kiwanja.net and FrontlineSMS
Neil Buhne, Director of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Office in Geneva
Nick Dearden, Director of the World Development Movement
Bryony Everett, Associate Director at IMC Worldwide
Norman Finklestein, American political scientist, activist and professor
Joseph Hanlon, Visiting Senior Fellow at the Department of International Development of the London School of Economics
Michael Hershman, Co-founder of Transparency International and President and CEO of The Fairfax Group
Dr Kamal Hossain, Bangladeshi Politician
Baela Razi Jamil, Director of Programs for the Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (ITA), Center for Education and Consciousness (CEC)
Sir Richard Jolly, Honorary Professor and Research Associate of the Institute of Development Studies and member of the Council of the Overseas Development Institute
Mats Karlsson, Director of the Swedish Institute for Foreign Affairs, previously Vice President for External Affairs in the World Bank
Beatrice Lindstrom, Staff Attorney at the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH)
Franklyn Lisk, Visiting Professorial Research Fellow at Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation (CSGR), University of Warwick
Abhinay Muthoo, Head of the Department of Economics at the University of Warwick
Dr Allan Pamba, Vice President of Pharmaceuticals in East Africa for GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)
Natalie Samarasinghe, Executive Director of the United Nations Association - UK (UNA-UK)
Anne Stewart, Professor in the Warwick Law School
Ian White, International Affairs Officer at the World Bank
The WIDS Lecture Series was launched in October 2013 with the aim of expanding the focus of the annual Summit, by enabling more students to participate throughout the year. WIDS is thus able to maintain a stream of high-quality speakers to continuously engage students, in line with its mission of providing a platform for discussion, inspiration, and learning opportunities.
The Lecture Series was inaugurated on 10 October 2013 by the former Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Singapore, Ambassador Bilahari Kausikan. The theme for the talk was Diplomacy in Development and aimed to explore how foreign services create space for development.
The second talk was given by Paul-Andre Wilton, a distinguished conflict advisor at CARE International UK, who discussed issues surrounding conflict in international development. With a background initially in Education, Paul-Andre has worked in conflict, peacebuilding and development for five years in the UK and USA, with a focus on Africa.
The third talk was given by MP Andrew John Bower Mitchell, speaking on issues concerning International Development and military peacekeeping. A former United Nations military peacekeeper, he has extensive pre-government experience of the developing world, and is the founder of Project Umubano, a Conservative Party social action project in Rwanda and Sierra Leone in central and west Africa, launched in 2007.
The fourth and final talk in the 2013 Lecture Series was given by James Thornton, the founding CEO of ClientEarth, who was speaking on issues concerning International Development and environmental law. The New Statesman named him as one of 10 people who could change the world in 2009, whilst The Lawyer has picked him as one of the Hot 100 2013