Jessica Abrahams

3 weeks ago | prospectmagazine.co.uk | Jessica Abrahams

You’ve heard of body positivity and sex positivity. But what about death positivity? It’s a rising movement that started in the US and has been gaining traction, particularly in western countries, over the past decade. Behind the seemingly oxymoronic name, the movement seeks to dismantle the taboos around talking about death and allow people to explore different ways of thinking about the end of their lives. What it means to have a “good death” is deeply personal.

1 month ago | devex.com | Jessica Abrahams

With U.K. aid expecting another deep cut, we look at where the dwindling money is likely to go. U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently announced that the country would slash its aid budget to just 0.3% of gross national income by 2027 — the lowest level since 1999. That’s down from 0.5% at the moment, and from 0.7% just a few years ago. What might those cuts look like in practice? First, let’s look at the numbers.

1 month ago | devex.com | Jessica Abrahams

After the recent election in Germany, the next chancellor is expected to be center-right leader Friedrich Merz. What will his policy be on aid? After swingeing cuts to aid in the United States and some parts of Europe, the spotlight is now on Germany. Europe’s largest economy is currently the world’s second-biggest aid donor, but with cuts in the U.S., Germany might step up to take the lead.

1 month ago | jdsupra.com | Jessica Abrahams |Peter Baldwin |Craig Heeren

A dispute recently arose between Department of Justice officials about the propriety of opening a criminal investigation and taking steps like issuing a “freeze letter” related to government contractor activity in the environmental sector, leading to the resignation of a senior figure in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.

1 month ago | devex.com | Jessica Abrahams

Decolonization lives on; a sudden departure at Human Rights Watch; and evidence that MacKenzie Scott was right. The global development sector is facing a devastating moment. The freezing of U.S. funds has disrupted projects globally, with significant human cost. But could there be an opportunity here — a chance for the sector to reset? It’s a debate that I’ve seen playing out across my social media feeds over the last couple of weeks.