Development

• WWW Virtual Library of International Development Cooperation

  Part of the Argus Clearinghouse. Megadirectory of links to resources and sites related to issues in international development broadly, including such topics as aid, trade, economy, research, health, women's development, nutrition, education, ecology, demography, human rights, and development policy. The organization is clear and logical, and there are some good annotations. Links to development banks, trade organizations, and womenÕs development are particularly strong.

  
  

• The BUBL Information Service
  

  Site offers annotated links to development-related sites and is organized according to five general areas: economic development general resources, economic development societies, economic development centers and projects, economic development texts, and economic development journals. The organization is clear and simple, and the annotations are useful. Links are not comprehensive enough to be a "megadirectory," but it might be a useful jumping-off point.

  
  

• WorldWide Development Studies Forum

  Excellent jumping-off point for topics and resources related to development studies. Has a useful intermediate page that provides a short annotation of the site, some keywords, and a hyperlink to the site concerned. Site can be searched by keyword. Extensive and well-organized directory for development resources on the Web.

  
  

• A World Directory of Development Organizations and Programs

  Site maintains a huge directory of links to organizations and programs related to development. It provides contact and project information (where available) for organizations working in a wide range of development-related areas. Links can be accessed alphabetically, by nationality, by field of activity, or by country and field of activity. Excellent resource for contact and NGO activity information.

  
  

• InterAction

  Maintained by InterAction--a coalition of U.S.-based nonprofit groups working in the human rights and development areas around the world. Site offers some fairly good full-text online articles on various issues related to development, as well as a long, unannotated list of NGOs working in the human rights and development areas, government sites, multilateral institutions, and other related links. Although not the best jumping-off point, its full-text online offerings might provide a good resource.

  
  

• ReliefWeb

  Maintained by the United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs. Monitors emergencies, disasters, and other crises in the developing world as they occur. Well laid out, with excellent and extensive array of maps and updates organized by source and format. Excellent resource for up-to-date information from a wide variety of news services and online sources. First-rate site.

  
  

• World Bank's TechNet

  Operated through the World Bank, site offers links to various divisions and Internet resources of the World Bank. TechNet also hosts conferences or think tanks on various topics and then posts the results on the site. Good jumping-off point for World Bank-related resources on the Web.

  
  

• IANWeb Resources for Economic Development

  As with other parts of IANWeb, this site maintains a useful set of explanatory/descriptive icons and annotations to links related to development studies, including organizations, journals, and listservs. Links tend to be quite eclectic and only organized alphabetically, limiting somewhat its usefulness as a major jumping-off point. Although site is not comprehensive, its annotations and icons make it a good reference site.

  
  

• World Food Programme

  Official site of the World Food Programme of the United Nations. Offers an interesting set of links to resources and information about the activities of the World Food Programme, including contacts, annual reports, and financial plans. Provides an online emergency report detailing food emergencies in the developing world and elsewhere, some statistics on food aid, press releases, and links to other development sites of NGOs, international organizations, states, and research institutions. Interesting and useful resource.

  
  

• International Institute for Sustainable Development

  This comprehensive site is an excellent resource base and jumping-off point for issues related to sustainable development. Has amazing collections of annotated bibliographies related to sustainable development, lists of serials, links to Internet resources and journals, calendars of upcoming events in the sustainable development area, and up-to-date information on current events. The site's Hot Topic of the Month focuses on a particular issue-area for comprehensive coverage and links. A major attraction of the site is a subsection called Linkages, which is a useful resource providing information on past and upcoming international meetings related to environment and development. Through its Earth Negotiations Bulletin, linkages provides daily coverage of international negotiations and meetings. Site design is attractive, though the high graphic load might be a problem for some--a model Web site.

  
  

• Fourth World Documentation Project

  Organized by the Center for World Indigenous Studies, the Fourth World Documentation Project provides links to databases, full-text articles, and other information related to indigenous or Fourth World peoples. Some of the major topics covered include African documents, tribal and intertribal resolutions and papers, European and Asian documents, internationally focused documents, North, Central, and South American documents, and UN documents, treaties, and agreements. Extensive documentation and resources within each major category. Well organized with a low graphic load for easy downloading. Very good resource base and jumping-off point for a specialized topic.

  
  

• Devline

  A major attraction of this site is its Electronic Development and Environment Information System (ELDIS). ELDIS is a free directory and gateway to information resources on development and environment. It includes a large collection of links to databases, full-text materials, library catalogues, Web and gopher sites, and e-mail discussion lists. Links are extensively annotated.

  Includes information sources organized by source, topic, region, and type of organization. Excellent listing of annotated links to libraries with development material, newspapers, online map sources, and full-text resources. Site also includes a calendar of environmental and developmental meetings. There is also a guide to using the Internet in development research. A truly amazing and extremely useful site, ELDIS embodies everything that is potentially useful for research on the Web.

  
  

• Virtual Library on International Development

  This site, offering both French and English entry points, is a comprehensive resource base and jumping-off point. A major attractions is its detailed information on particular countries, organized by such topics as urgent action, general information, social indicators, human rights, news organizations, and thematic resources and references, all drawn from other sources on the Web. Very good jumping-off point to major reports, such as the UNDP Human Development Report, the Commission on Global Governance, the 1996 State of the WorldÕs Children, and the World Development Report. Easy to navigate, and includes a clickable map to resources on specific regions or countries, as well as an excellent set of general international relations links. A first-rate site.

  
  

• International Development Research Council

  Maintained by the International Development Research Council of Canada. Site provides useful set of diverse links to development sites, databases, and other information resources on the Web related to development. Provides information on publications from the council, but the links are the most useful component of the site.

  
  

• The Hunger Web

  Maintained by the Watson Institute of International Studies at Brown University. Good jumping-off point for hunger-related data and general information on development. Includes links to topics on research and research institutions, advocacy and policy, education and training (including syllabi and other materials for teachers), and field work (including reference materials and other information resources). Well organized with a fairly low graphic load and useful annotations to most of the links. Contains an index to all links maintained on the site.

  
  

• UNESCO

  Official page of UNESCO. Has both French and English entry points, and provides information on the history and organization of UNESCO, lists of publications that can be purchased from UNESCO, and some press releases and speeches from the Director-General. One potential draw of this site is its selection of online data drawn from its database of education, science, culture, and communication statistics from around the world and reaching back 40 years. There are also some full-text legal instruments related to UNESCO activities.

  
  

• United Nations Development Programme for Sustainable Development

  Official page of the UNDP. Provides links to program activities, online press releases, regional bureaus, country offices, publications, Human Development Reports, annual reports, catalogues of videos, and press releases. There are also some links to environmental-related resources and information on the Web. Links to regional bureaus are detailed. In the African case, for example, information is provided on UNDP programs and activities, general information on various issues and regions, and links to Africa-related Web sites.

  
  

• WWW Virtual Library: Sustainable Development

  Comprehensive megadirectory maintained by the Center for Economic and Social Studies on the Environment, located at the Universitè Libre de Bruxelles. Part of the WWW Virtual Library consortium. Extensive links to organizations, projects, online primary documents, electronic journals and periodicals, and databases on sustainable development. A first-rate resource base and jumping-off point for sustainable development.