Law Commons^™

Development Through Sport: Fans And Critics Of The New Player On The Field, Danielle Ireland-Piper

Danielle Ireland-Piper

Literature on international aid and development espouses the principle of ‘do no harm’. In that context, there has been an increased interest in, and incident of, Development through Sport (DTS) initiatives. As with all new players in an old game, the DTS movement has both its fans, and critics. This paper seeks to acknowledge the benefits advocated by fans; engage with its critics; and propose means by which to reconcile the two. In so doing, the distinction is made between ‘Sport Development’, and ‘Development through Sport’. The paper concludes that goodwill, while commendable, is not enough achieve sustainable development goals. …