Mandate

The foundation of The Development Review in 2010 was in part a response to the scarcity of academic publication opportunities for undergraduates in the field of International Development Studies. Undergraduates not yet tied to the practices or mandates of an employer or influenced by biases outside of the University learning environment have the unique quality of being uninhibitedly critical and provocative in their arguments. This quality makes venues of undergraduate academic publications, especially in fields like International Development Studies, integral to the progressive and comprehensive critical dialogue within the industry.

The Development Review is also among York University’s first undergraduate academic publications in the social sciences, which are among York’s most highly recognized fields of academic prominence. While our journal holds no ideological reservations, York University has earned a reputation around the world for its unique culture of critical thinking and social thought and York’s undergraduates produce a unique critical and analytical approach to contemporary world issues which we are committed to supporting.

It is the intention of our interdisciplinary journal to generate constructive and critical dialogue on the various topics included in our volumes and to provide undergraduates with the opportunity to compete for publication opportunities which can help them build careers and acquire academic recognition. It is by these means that our journal serves as a catalyst for creative and improved development approaches to solve the pressing issues facing the world today.