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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 01/10/2026

Three years on from Australia’s launch of the 2023 International Development Policy, the world has changed profoundly. Our brief: 🔴 Tracks the progress made against commitments, and 🔴 Examines two dynamics that will shape Australian development cooperation Read more: lnkd.in/gA7Gccfd

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 14/05/2026

“Development cooperation is no longer the soft edge of foreign policy. It is now uniquely suited to advancing Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s four priorities: region, relationships, rules and resilience.”

lowyinstitute.org

The 4Rs: A new(ish) narrative for Australia’s development cooperation

Development cooperation advances all four of Australia's foreign policy priorities – region, relationships, rules and resilience – in ways no other tool can.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

The 2026-27 Australian Federal Budget was released last night. What’s the long term, big picture story? ⚫ Amidst rising global threats and aid cuts, this year, Australia’s international affairs budget makes up $76.18b, or 9.54% of the total Commonwealth budget.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 13/05/2026

The 2026 Australian Federal Budget was released last night. International affairs, including defence, development, diplomacy, intelligence, and international policing, make up $76.18b, or roughly 9.54% of Australia's total 2026-2027 budget.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/05/2026

The 2026 Australian Federal Budget has just been released. International affairs, including defence, development, diplomacy, intelligence, and international policing, make up $76.18b, or roughly 9.54% of Australia's total 2026-2027 budget.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

The Intel’s editor, Victoria Cooper, sets the scene for this fortnight’s question and why it deserves to be asked:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 06/05/2026

This fortnight’s Intel featured insights from Imogen Harper, Dr Cameron Hill, and Mira Sulistiyanto, responding to the question: 🔴 DFAT’s development performance report is out— what should you know? Multiple perspectives. Different angles. All here 👉 www.devintelligencelab.com/intel/05may2026

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 05/05/2026

This fortnight on the Intel we ask: 🔴 DFAT’s development performance report is out—what should you know? Our expert contributors pitch in: ⚫ Australian Council for International Development’s Imogen Harper ⚫ Development Policy Centre’s Dr Cameron Hill ⚫ The Lab’s own Mira Sulistiyanto

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

The Intel’s editor, Victoria Cooper, sets the scene for this fortnight’s question and why it deserves to be asked:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

This fortnight’s Intel featured insights from Serena Sasingian, Grace Stanhope, and Richard Moore, responding to the question: 🔴 Non-ODA support for development - What works, what doesn't? Explore the points of agreement, tension, and difference here 👉 www.devintelligencelab.com/intel/21april2026

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 21/04/2026

This fortnight on the Intel we ask: 🔴 Non-ODA support for development - what works, what doesn't? Our expert contributors pitch in: ⚫ Lowy Institute’s Serena Sasingian’s ⚫ Lowy Institute’s Grace Stanhope ⚫ The Lab’s Richard Moore

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 06/04/2026

"AI will transform development" - but what's actually being talked about? The Lab's Geordie Fung, argues the transformation can be understood through 3 lenses: AI for efficiency, AI for effectiveness, and AI as a force reshaping development trajectories www.devintelligencelab.com/analyses/ai-...

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

What is non-ODA support for development (NODA)? ⚫ The primary objective of Official Development Assistance (ODA) is the sustainable development of the recipient country.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

In recent years, Australia’s non-ODA (NODA) support to countries in the region has grown dramatically. Yet uncertainty remains about the nature and development impact of this funding. Our new brief ‘Non-ODA support and the future of development cooperation’ looks at this issue and finds:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The Intel’s editor, Victoria Cooper, sets the scene for this fortnight’s question and why it deserves to be asked:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

This fortnight’s Intel featured insights from Renat Muruket and Jocelyn Condon, Sharon Bhagwan Rolls, and Beth Eggleston responding to the question: 🔴 When does ‘gender mainstreaming’ become ‘gender washing’? Multiple perspectives. Different angles.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

This fortnight on the Intel we ask: 🔴 When does ‘gender mainstreaming’ become ‘gender washing’?

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

The Intel’s editor, Victoria Cooper, sets the scene for this fortnight’s question and why it deserves to be asked: "Few abbreviations elicit as buzzy reactions as ‘AI’. Artificial intelligence has entered all our lives, and Australia’s policy wonks are no exception."

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

This fortnight’s Intel featured insights from Geordie Fung, Pia Andrews, and Michael Barlow, responding to the question: 🔴 Australia is drafting an international strategy on AI: so what for development? Multiple perspectives. Different angles.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

This fortnight on the Intel we ask: 🔴 Australia is drafting an international strategy on AI: so what for development? Our expert contributors pitch in: ⚫ The Lab’s Geordie Fung ⚫ Pia Andrews ⚫ UNSW’s Michael Barlow

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

”Australia’s comparative advantage is not speed, it is trust. It’s our geography. It’s access to our education and health partnerships, and our economy, and it’s our long-term presence...

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 18/02/2026

Applications are still open for our Operations Officer role. This role will report to the General Manager and work closely with all members of the Lab team. Read the full position description and how to apply here 👉 www.devintelligencelab.com/hiring/opera...

devintelligencelab.com

Development Intelligence Lab 2.0 - Main Site

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Registrations are still open to join our first AI x Development discussion session of 2026! 🔴 When: Wednesday 18 February, 12pm AEST. 🔴 Where: Online.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

Do you have experience in organisational operations, like finance, HR, compliance, logistics, or administration? Do you excel in small teams that are values-driven? Are you curious about what life is like at a think-tank? If you answered yes, we want you!

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/02/2026

The Intel’s editor, Victoria Cooper, sets the scene for this fortnight’s question and why it deserves to be asked: “With so much noise in the system, the harder task is identifying what genuinely matters. So I asked three of our own: 2026: What are you watching?”

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 11/02/2026

“Australia has made it quite clear it wants to be the security partner of choice in the Pacific. When Australia is working so closely with forces across the Pacific, it is easier to have vehicles and equipment that match.”

theguardian.com

‘A free limo is hard to turn away’: how car diplomacy turbo charges politics in the Pacific

A luxury Chinese sedan gifted to Fiji is the latest in a string of vehicles donated by foreign countries to deepen partnerships and seek influence in the region

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 10/02/2026

This fortnight’s Intel featured insights from Bridi Rice, Richard Moore, and Blake Johnson, responding to the question: 🔴 2026 - What are you watching? Multiple perspectives. Different angles.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

This fortnight on the Intel we ask: 🔴 2026 - What are you watching? Our expert contributors pitch in: ⚫ The Lab’s very own CEO, Bridi Rice ⚫ The Lab’s Strategic Advisor, Richard Moore ⚫ The Lab’s Senior Analyst, Blake Johnson

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

We're excited to share that our AI x Development discussion sessions are back for 2026! To kick things off, we will have Lee Hickin, Executive Director of the National AI Centre, to discuss the recently released National AI Plan and the Centre's work.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/02/2026

What Nepali development challenge can be unlocked with an AI-powered solution? That’s the question six young Nepali entrepreneurs stepped up to answer over the past few weeks, as part of the Lab's partnership with UNDP Nepal.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 12/01/2026

Are you looking for a role that combines project leadership with analytical depth? The Lab is calling for applications to join our talent roster for hybrid Project Manager / Senior Analyst roles.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

The Lab is looking for people that are keen to bridge the divide between analysis and policy, want to rethink development cooperation, and love trying new things. Does this sound like you? If so, join the Lab’s talent roster as a Project Officer / Analyst this 2026!

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 21/12/2025

Meaningful conflict prevention can't be found in the defence or aid budget alone. It requires looking at how Australia's entire international affairs portfolio works together. Explore the data 👉 www.devintelligencelab.com/budgetlines/...

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 11/12/2025

The new parliamentary inquiry into the role of Australia’s international development program in preventing conflict is a welcome spotlight on an issue the Lab and many of our friends have been monitoring over the past few years.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Australia has been working for a while to build deeper connections with Pacific nations across economies, institutions, infrastructure and communities. Initiatives take different forms, from treaties, programs, financing tools and partnerships, but they all cluster into four overlapping spheres:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

We’re hiring! Ever thought about joining the Lab? We are currently on the lookout for an Operations Officer to join our team in Canberra.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 09/12/2025

Have you ever thought about joining the Lab? 👀 We’re currently calling for expressions of interest for hybrid Project Officer / Analyst and Project Manager / Senior Analyst roles.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 04/12/2025

“The Albanese Government’s Pacific agenda...aims to better integrate us with the region around us.” Pat Conroy, August 2024. Australia's Pacific integration agenda appears across speeches and policy documents, but the motivations behind it are rarely spelled out.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 03/12/2025

The new parliamentary inquiry into the role of Australia’s international development program in preventing conflict will shape Australia's approach for years to come. Are you preparing a submission? Draw from our analysis library to support your thinking 👉 www.devintelligencelab.com/our-analysis

devintelligencelab.com

Our Analysis

At the Lab, we apply our analysis to live policy problems facing Australian development cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

Australia’s ambition to integrate with the Pacific is not new… but the level of initiatives being pursued recently is unprecedented.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 01/12/2025

The Lab’s choice is an Intel edition that piqued curiosity here at the Lab but flew a little under the radar. This year, the Lab’s choice is: ‘In a shifting multilateral order, what should Australia fight hardest to protect?’

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

This year, one of the most-read Intel editions was ‘The use of AI is accelerating. What are we learning about the implications for development?’.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 27/11/2025

Last month, the Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade launched a new inquiry into the role of Australia’s international development program in preventing conflict. It’s a welcome spotlight on an issue the Lab and many of our friends have been increasingly monitoring.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

This year, one of the most-read Intel editions was ‘50 years of independence in PNG: What do we need to think about for the future of the Australia-PNG partnership?’. This was the first edition focusing on this topic, which featured three authors from PNG.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 26/11/2025

The Development Policy Centre’s Australasian Aid Conference 2025 kicks off next Wednesday, 3 December, at The Australian National University. The Lab’s CEO and our Senior Analysts will be presenting insights on a range of panels. Here’s where you can catch them:

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 25/11/2025

This year, one of the most-read Intel editions was ‘Trump. USAID. What does this mean for the region?’. We think this edition resonated because it offered reflections on what these impacts could mean in a moment when outcomes were unclear, but the magnitude was understood to be significant.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 24/11/2025

We launched The Intel in 2021 with the simple purpose of providing a space to engage in good-natured debate on things that matter most to Australian development. Each edition, we: - pose one wicked question, - publish three different perspectives on it, - each response in under 300 words.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

The latest Intel asked Yoon Young-kwan "Australia, South Korea, and Japan: what’s behind middle power development motivations?” Young-kwan’s experience as the former Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the Republic of Korea informs his response this week.

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Development Intelligence Lab @devintellab.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

Rising geopolitical tensions, democratic backsliding, and climate-related instability are some of the factors increasing the risk of violent conflict across the Indo-Pacific. How can governments, aid agencies, and regional bodies work together to spot the signs and prevent them?

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