Policies work as instruments of governance at local, national, and international level and these multiple sites need to be scrutinized closely. Anthropological perspectives on the system of policy and governance, and the roles of ethnicity, language, gender, social capital, class and marginality, local aspirations have been debated. Discussions have been carried out around empirical elucidation and interpretation of grounded experiences, and special reference has been made to questions of accountability, institutionalization and sustainability. These issues have been examined with an innovative approach of blending quantitative and qualitative data in a meaningful way. The commission endeavours to promote the effective use of such knowledge to deepen conversation between anthropology and other disciplines, as well as with public policy-makers and development practitioners.

The commission is a multidisciplinary platform (with an anthropological lens) for critical engagement in a multi-layered discourse on policy, governance and development practice. It welcomes a dialogue between practitioners who provide insights from different positionalities to create a more comprehensive understanding of contemporary issues in this field, with the intention of facilitating effective action. The focus remains on a rights-based approach at the grassroots.

We look forward to the expertise of your experience to enrich this commission. If you want to join us, please write to our Social media coordinator:

Dr. Loveena Sehra at – policyanddev.iuaes@gmail.com