In the 1970s and 1980s, the World Bank earned a justifiably bad reputation for seeking to impose solutions cooked up in Washington. Now, the bank takes great care to work in partnership with countries to figure out solutions to economic challenges. Richard Calland discusses the value of this approach with the bank’s country director for South Africa, Paul Noumba Um.

Academic research can be a valuable space for telling stories. But because of rigid publication standards, writers often withhold the “human” element. Caroline Lenette explains why digital storytelling is an important tool for helping real people like refugee women from countries such as the DRC and Sudan, share their stories.