Supporting Pastoralism and Agriculture
in Recurrent and Protracted Crises
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Simon Levine

Simon Levine leads the Pastoralism and Crises thematic group in SPARC. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the Overseas Development Institute and specialises in livelihoods and vulnerability analysis, land rights, and in early response in humanitarian crises.

Featured resources

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A woman walks through goats grazing in front of a hut
Policy brief

This brief looks at what ‘people-centred’ EWS means, particular challenges of improving it in conflicts and recurring crises, and the implication of a knowledge-system way of thinking about EWS.
A herder walks beside his goats down a dirt road
Policy brief

This brief suggests how to think differently about DRR in conflicts, rather than how to implement it, and draws on evidence that it is necessary and possible even in conflicts and recurring crises.
A woman stands in front of a blue sky looking beyond the frame of the image
Policy brief

This policy brief reflects SPARC’s learning on why the main models used by the international humanitarian community for planning anticipatory action show limited promise in difficult places and what alternative approaches might be more helpful.
Rows of camels drink from a water trough
Technical report

The current approach to providing new water supplies is undermining pastoralists’ resilience, not enhancing it. This report covers nine sites across Marsabit Co., Kenya and Somali Region, Ethiopia.
A man walks down a path, leading his herd of goats
Technical report

This report looks at general lessons about the development model and theory of change, and its appropriateness for pastoral economies.

Latest news and features

Four weeks after the rains, this pond in Makueni county, Kenya, built through public works, was almost dry, and no-one was using what water was left as it was contaminated by livestock.
Blog

Too many public works programmes may be failing to deliver long-term benefits – not due to poor execution, but by design. If we want to use them effectively, we need to rethink what they are trying to achieve.
An abandoned water tower.
Blog

If one picture says a thousand words, then a whole volume on resilience building through water projects is captured in these six photographs.
A young girl wearing a shawl over her head carries a bucket as she walls passed some tents
Blog

What do aid practitioners need to do to engage more seriously with context? Simon Levine unpacks the key lessons from SPARC's new report.

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