Environmentalist Robert Chambers first taught us altruism: suggesting that
improving the quality of life of the poor means “putting the last first”. In
Whose Reality Counts? (Intermediate Technology, £3.25, ISBN 1 85339 386
X), he argues that we also need to disempower the rich and dominant to put “the
first last”. This will require institutional and professional
overhauls—and personal soul-searching. Uncomfortable, sometimes funny, but
essential reading.
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