FoKS seed funding for research on the transformation of global development cooperation
09/11/2026Dr. Philipp Gieg from the Chair of International Relations and European Studies and Dr. Anja Menzel from the University of Bamberg have been awarded €12,000 in seed funding by the Bavarian Research Alliance for Peace, Conflict and Security (FoKS). Their joint project examines how geopolitical power shifts and changing international norms are reshaping development cooperation, and what these changes mean for peace and security.
International development cooperation is undergoing profound change: traditional Western donors are cutting their budgets or, as in the case of the United States, discontinuing numerous development programmes altogether, while emerging actors from the Global South are gaining influence and advancing alternative approaches to cooperation. Dr. Philipp Gieg and Dr. Anja Menzel address these developments in their project “Reordering Global Development Governance: Power Shifts, Norm Change and Security Implications”.
The project focuses on the institutions, rules and actors that shape international development cooperation. It will examine how emerging powers challenge existing structures and norms, how traditional donors respond, and what consequences these developments have for political and human security in the Global South.
Networking and research collaboration
The seed funding provided by the Bavarian Research Alliance for Peace, Conflict and Security (FoKS) will support, in particular, a two-day academic workshop planned for 2027. The workshop will bring together researchers from different academic backgrounds and connect perspectives from research on norms, development studies and security studies. The aim is to develop a shared research agenda and lay the foundations for a larger research project. It will also prepare the ground for collaboration with researchers from the Global South.
Contribution to the FoKS Fellow Perspektiven series
The project also builds on a joint German-language contribution by Philipp Gieg and Anja Menzel to the “FoKS Fellow Perspektiven” series, published in early 2026. Entitled “How Is Development Cooperation Changing—and What Does This Mean for Global Security?”, both researchers focus on the security implications of the US withdrawal, the growing importance of geopolitical self-interest, and the options available to Germany and Europe.
