DSAI Annual Conference

Held annually, the DSAI Annual Conference is a key event for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners in the international development sector. The DSAI Steering Committee selects a theme of critical relevance to the global development community in Ireland, featuring high-calibre keynote speakers, panel discussions, and expert insights on the most pressing issues shaping the field.

Through an open call for papers, our study groups host parallel sessions during the conference, providing a key moment for our members to connect with us and each other. Each year at our conference we also hold our members AGM.

Previous Conferences:

The 2025/26 Conference Theme was 'Development in the Interregnum: Past, Present, and Future(s)' and was held on 15–16 January 2026 at Trinity College Dublin. International development is at an inflection point with the current conjuncture defined by a conflation of interacting destructive forces, disruptions, uncertainties, and opportunities for change. This conference examined how, why, and in what ways the contemporary conjuncture can be understood, and what possibilities and future pathways exist for development cooperation.

The 2024 Conference Theme was 'Achieving just food systems in an Era of Global 'Polycrisis'' and was held on the 30-31 October hosted by University College Cork. Food is central to all life on the planet, and yet, access to food has never been more contested. Globally, food systems are under pressure now more than ever, and complex challenges arise with great frequency at the intersects between food, climate, and conflict.

The 2023 Conference Theme was 'Territories of Technology, Innovation and Development' and was held on the 25-26 October hosted by Dublin City University. The introduction of information and communication technology (ICT) has changed our world, the way we live, work, do business, learn, bank, interact and socialize. In the past two decades, ICT has been embraced by many in the Global South.

The 2022 Conference Theme was 'Critical Perspectives on Sustainable Development' and was held on 16-17 November hosted by University of Limerick. In the context of unfolding climate breakdown, with the socio-political implications becoming more apparent, it seems appropriate to re-examine once again the concept of ‘sustainable development’.

The 2021 Conference Theme was 'Climates of/for Development'.  Held on November 11th-12th during the 26th United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow (COP26) it aimed to provoke a debate amongst scholars, development practitioners, activists, and others, to facilitate further thinking and study about what type of climate we need for development and how we place our climate concerns front and centre in our post-pandemic world.

Here's a look back at our Annual Conference 2019: