Today ODID launches a new blog, Debating Development. The blog will feature posts from academics and research students at the department and will offer a forum for us to communicate and discuss the rich diversity of research being carried out here. We hope it will encourage a lively conversation both within the department and with those outside it who are interested in our work.

Frances Stewart, Emeritus Professor in Development Economics, has written the first post looking ahead at how negotiations on climate emissions targets and post-2015 human development goals might be reconciled.

The next few weeks will see posts on a range of themes, including:

• Barriers to the development of a robust private sector in the Arab world by Adeel Malik
• Some key findings from Young Lives research over the past year by Paul Dornan
• Negative perceptions of Qur'anic students in Nigeria by Hannah Hoechner
• A possible plurilateral solution to the governance gap in the Arctic region by Corneliu Bjola

We very much hope you'll join the conversation by visiting the blog and commenting on what you read!

• http://blog.qeh.ox.ac.uk