Michael Welch interivews co-author Nick Barry-Shaw on the recently published book Paved with Good Intentions. The book cuts through the NGO catchphrases of âparticipationâ and âempowerment,â Paved with Good Intentions is a critical history that examines the relationships between NGOs, the Canadian government and social movements, in both the North and South. Connecting the NGO boom to the onset of the neoliberal era, this book illustrates how NGOs have served to soften the blow of structural adjustment while co-opting dissent. This book is a call to judge NGOs by the standards they set for themselves when they claim to work for development in poorer countries.