Why words matter: Deconstructing the discourses of development education practitioners in development NGOs in Portugal

Considering discursive transitions in development education, we discuss the main findings of a qualitative study with practitioners in Portuguese development non-governmental organizations, based on semi-structured in-depth interviews. Our goal was to understand practitioners' accounts of their field of action and the discursive transition between development and (global) citizenship. The research provides new information about the Portuguese situation and contributes to the reconceptualization debate. The analysis reinforces the complexity of the field, connected to its focus on processes, and its highly organic, personal and multidimensional nature. It also depicts a nuanced understanding of terms and an increasing identification with global citizenship education as an umbrella term for practitioners' action and an alternative to the North–South and development narratives attributed to development education.