Degrees of Participation: The Orangi Pilot Project

VIDEO: Orangi Pilot Project

http://www.oppinstitutions.org/

New 105 students, Bolivia and water

Hello new 105 students!

My name is Rebecca, and I did my practice experience this past summer in Cochabamba, Bolivia. I spent 10 weeks working with the Foundation for Sustainable Development (a large, multinational NGO/non-profit) and a local partner organization, Agua para el Pueblo (Water for People, which also works in different countries). I chose FSD because of its solid reputation and strong support network for interns. I had a strong interest in human rights, water, social justice, indigenous communities, and conflict resolution, so I was partnered with Agua. My work entailed doing household surveys of access to water and sanitation, installing a UV water treatment system in a school, meeting with local water committee presidents, writing reports about water access, sitting in on Agua meetings with local teachers and leaders, discussing private sanitation options with technology entrepreneurs, and designing a user pamphlet/presentation for the UV treatment system, among other things!

I am more than happy to talk to you if you are interested in Latin America, Bolivia, water issues... anything! My email is rmpeters@berkeley.edu . I am also a peer advisor for the GPP minor so don't hesitate to ask anything about that or come by my advising hours, Tuesday & Thursday from 2-3:30.

Also, here is a link to my blog from my practice: http://boliviawater.wordpress.com/2012/06/18/experiences-to-validate-privilege/  the more recent posts are not so much about my practice, but the May-June-July are mostly about water/Bolivia/development.

Warm regards,
Rebecca

infographic_Fall 2012_sector and region

created 8/29/12
by Hannah 

Welcome Fall 2012!

Welcome new GPP105ers! 

As per our discussions in class and section, this blog can be used to post inspirational pieces (e.g., links to documentaries, news articles, your own website/blog), keep up to date on current discussions and debates in our field (again, please post articles or news pieces you think are relevant to our interdisciplinary field of study), and to get in touch with alumni of the the GPP105 class or GPP minor who are active on our blog. 

Please try to label your posts so that things stay organized on the blog and you can focus-in on materials from your region or sector (see the labels tab). (Note: I will periodically moderate and re-organize the labels tab if needed)

We will be using the blog, and drawing on things you post, in both the Monday class and Wednesday sections. 

Welcome again and happy posting! 

Hannah 

Youth Leadership in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Hello!
For those of you who still check this blog I am sharing a link to another blog I made for the annual Youth Leadership Summit my colleague and I run in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 
Unfortunately, I couldn't be there in person this summer but I just finished leading my session via phone/skype and thought I would share about it with you.
I gave a presentation very close to that of George Sharffenberger's. Remember "S.M.A.R.T project design and Log Frames"? :)  I just got done explaining about these ideas to our youth leaders in Dhaka. Wewh! 

Keep in touch and PLEASE post pictures and stories from your PEs!!! 


Getting S.M.A.R.T. at the 2nd Annual Urdu-Speaking Youth Leadership Summit in Dhaka, Bangladesh

http://usyls.wordpress.com/2012/07/14/day-2-hannahs-session-by-skype-2/

Life in Uganda

My time in Uganda with the Uganda Village Project has been wonderful so far.... here is my blog if you wish to follow along!

http://silvette.wordpress.com/

-Stephanie Ullrich

African aid: helpful or hazardous?

Criticism of foreign aid to Africa is growing in recent years.http://stream.aljazeera.com/story/african-aid-helpful-or-hazardous-0022175The current controversy over TOMS Shoes and Invisible Children's Kony 2012 viral video has once again reignited the heated debate over whether the structure of foreign aid to Africa does more harm than good. 

One study found that used-clothing imports cause a 40% decline in apparel production in Africa. According to aid critics, the unending stream of foreign money creates a situation where governments are not accountable to their citizens, forming what are essentially aid-based rentier states. 

To proponents of aid, the solution is to fight for accountability and transparency to make aid serve its purpose, not to cut it off entirely. 

In this episode of The Stream, we speak to TMS “Teddy” Ruge (@tmsruge), Co-Founder of Project Diaspora and Joel Charny, Vice President for Humanitarian Policy at InterAction (@interactionorg). 

individual blogs

hello all,
great last section today. looking forward to staying in touch, and hearing about your PEs. post pictures, reflections, etc on this blog, or give us a link to your personal blog if you choose to keep one.
i've created a label "individual blogs"- so apply this label when you post your link, that way we can keep track of all the different individual blogs.

thanks!
Hannah 

Nesting in Kenya

Hi everyone!

Our section meeting today left me feeling really sad that I do not get to see all you wonderful people anymore =( . I think we all learned from each other this semester and I for one would personally like to continue to learn more about your practice experiences as they go on. That being said, for my practice experience my organization, Nest, requires all their summer fellows to keep a blog in which we share what we are experiencing in our practice sites and what dilemmas we are faced with. As we have been preparing for our fellowships we have been given prompts to respond to that put us into the frame of mind of what we will be doing over the summer. If your organization doesn't have such a requirement, I would encourage you to share your experiences here as I am sure the entire class would like to see as well.

So if you are interested, follow my blog, {Nest}ed Interest, as I prepare and then take part in what I expect to be an amazing experience working with Nest and Trade Africa in Nairobi, Kenya! And check out the beautiful ethically sourced jewelry and clothing available on their blog and website.

Nest's Mission (taken from their website, link above): 

A nonprofit dedicated to identifying and collaborating with responsible artisan businesses through the provision of customized capacity building programs to enable each enterprise to become profitable and have a significant positive social impact. We have searched globally to identify a network of existing artisanal workshops that have strong leadership, are scalable, and can transform their communities in one of three ways: alleviate poverty, empower women, and promote peace. Through a participatory model, we will work with the artisans to provide the services they need to both preserve and enhance artistic traditions and increase their ability to meet the capacity and quality demands of the exporting marketplace.

Take care y'all!

-CRYSTAL

Kristoff article

NY Times Kristoff article, "How can we help the world's poor?"

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/22/books/review/Kristof-t.html?_r=2

Kony, Development, News, Us

Hello peers -

It's been a weird day. I don't know about a lot of you, but the beautiful weather today came at a bad time, a time when I cannot enjoy it. With finals around the corner, papers due tomorrow, and planning for the practice experience this summer, I must solemnly stride past the gleeful revelers on Memorial Glade and retreat to the depths of Stacks to write.

However, needless to say, some news on facebook promptly broke my focus. I saw an NPR article titled "The Social Media Shuffle: from Kony to Spooning" (http://www.npr.org/2012/04/19/150964208/young-people-turn-from-kony-to-spooning-record). I don't know what caught my interest first - the Kony or spooning reference - but I read on. The article discusses the viral Kony video, and its rise and subsequent fall from fame. Tomorrow, as you may recall, was supposed to mark the "Cover the Night" campaign to make Kony famous. - if this doesn't ring a bell and you are curious, check out Stephanie's posts about KONY 2012. It seems like other events that fall on 4/20 will be taking more of a focus than the largely out of favor Invisible Children initiative.

That got me to another article I think is worth for EVERYONE to read - "The White Savior Industrial Complex" (http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/) by Teju Cole. Please read it for yourself - it touches on a lot of the discussion points we cover in 105, and examines the role of (white) Americans going abroad doing poverty alleviation and development work/projects.  I have several objections to this piece, not least of which is his discussion of "American sentimentality," but read it and decide what you think. Anyone who wants to talk about it - Cafe Durant on Tuesday evening?

Lastly, the "Savior" article lead me to this Ugandan blogger's website (http://rosebellkagumire.com/2012/03/08/kony2012-my-response-to-invisible-childrens-campaign/) where she comments on the Kony video from a Ugandan's perspective. Checkkk it out.

I hope some of you are able to enjoy the sunshine today and to everyone else - power to you, the weekend is around the corner.

Warmly,
Rebecca

Resources!

Hey everyone! 


A few resources for you all... 


OMPRAKASH - http://www.omprakash.org/ - has some scholarships/grants  available if you are working with a partner organization (http://omprakash.org/volunteergrants). A friend of mine is working with them on a grant in Chile, check it out!


Also - this a really cool website with the Foreign Policy Association with their "global job board" that lists international development type jobs in a searchable database. 

http://www.fpa.org/jobs/?act=jobs_list

Peace,

Rebecca

Hello all!


Stephanie and I recently attended the 5th Clinton Global Initiative University (CGIU) held at George Washington University in DC. The mission of CGI is to "inspire, connect, and empower a community of global leaders to forge solutions to the world's most pressing challenges" (http://www.clintonglobalinitiative.org/aboutus/default.asp?Section=AboutUs&PageTitle=About%20Us). 


At this CGIU, some 900 participants representing 160 countries and all 50 states attended, with projects ranging from Bamboo Bikes (see below), to public health initiatives like tracking cholera with cell phones, to gathering surplus medical supplies in the US and redistributing them to areas in need. We were there representing our commitment to increase opportunities for undergraduates to formally study water in an interdisciplinary fashion through our DeCal, expanding the Berkeley Water Group, and working to start a Water Sustainability, Science, and Policy minor on campus (please feel free to ask us more about this!). There were some amazing guest speakers including the famous (Usher and Kristen Bell), the respected (Chelsea Clinton and Madeline Albright), and the awesome (Vandana Shiva!). The other students and their projects were incredible as well, and we learned a lot from hearing about their commitments, goals, and dreams. 


We also attended some panel discussions - I went to "Raising Money for your Commitment" and "Methods for Measuring and Evaluating your Impact," while Stephanie went to talks on using Social Media to extend the reach of your project. If you are interested in getting our notes, let us know!  

Bamboo Bikes

Front row at Clinton and Stewart... nbd. 

Rotary World Peace Fellowship

Rotary World Peace Fellowship-- consider checking out the Rotary World Peace Fellowship if you are interested in doing further studies in Peace & Conflict studies and earning your master's degree with full funding, and at a university outside the US. 

Rotary Peace Fellows are leaders promoting national and international cooperation, peace, and the successful resolution of conflict throughout their lives, in their careers, and through service activities. Fellows can earn either a master’s degree in international relations, public administration, sustainable development, peace studies, conflict resolution, or a related field, or a professional development certificate in peace and conflict resolution.

http://www.rotary.org/ridocuments/en_pdf/084en.pdf

KONY2012: The Viral Video Controversy

Uganda has particularly been in the news lately due to a viral video campaign by a U.S.-based nonprofit group called Invisible Children. For those of you interested in the controversy over the Kony2012 video, I have created a list of some the media attention to the viral video, as well as some background about Uganda and the Lords Resistance Army. *If you have not seen the Kony2012 video, I suggest you read about Uganda's recent history first prior to watching it.*
Some of these articles may be controversial or difficult to read or understand. I encourage you to try to read them anyway and understand the variety of perspectives that are out there. I also encourage you to respond with your thoughts on these challenging issues. If you have worked in developing countries before, you may already be quite familiar with this fact, but things are never as simple as they seem. Please feel free to share other interesting articles on this blog!

*Uganda: Facts About The Country and Its History*
- Statistics and Resources from the World Bank <http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/AFRICAEXT/UGANDAEXTN/0,,menuPK:374963~pagePK:141132~piPK:141109~theSitePK:374864,00.html>
- BBC's Uganda Country Profile <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-14107906>/ Africa News Page <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world/africa/>
- 2007 Uganda Country Development Report from the UNDP <http://hdr.undp.org/en/reports/national/africa/uganda/name,3409,en.html>

*The Lord's Resistance Army*
- Who Are the Lord's Resistance Army <http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/para/lra.htm> - a History (GlobalSecurity.org)
- Q&A About the Lord's Resistance Army <http://allafrica.com/stories/201203220208.html> (AllAfrica and Human Rights Watch)
- What are U.S. Troops Doing in Central Africa? <http://www.theatlanticwire.com/global/2011/10/what-are-us-troops-doing-central-africa/43713/>(The Atlantic)

*The Kony2012 Campaign*
-Link to the Official Kony2012 Page from Invisible Children <http://www.kony2012.com/>
-The Soft Bigotry of Kony2012 <http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-soft-bigotry-of-kony-2012/254194/>(The Atlantic)
-Solving War Crimes With Wristbands <http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/solving-war-crimes-with-wristbands-the-arrogance-of-kony-2012/254193/>(The Atlantic)
-Invisible Children's Official Response to Criticism of Kony2012 <http://invisible.tumblr.com/post/18929372614/invisible-childrens-official-response>(IC
Tumblr) / IC Response #2 <http://invisiblechildrenblog.wordpress.com/2012/03/16/foreign-policy-invisible-children-responds/>(IC Blog)
-A Partial Defense of Kony2012 <http://thinkprogress.org/security/2012/03/08/440851/defense-kony-invisible-children/>(ThinkProgress)
-African Voices Respond to Kony2012 Campaign <http://boingboing.net/2012/03/08/african-voices-respond-to-hype.html>(BoingBoing)
-Viral Video, Vicious Warlord <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/15/opinion/kristof-viral-video-vicious-warlord.html>(NY
Times, Kristof)
-Ugandan Government Responds With YouTube Video to Kony2012 <http://allafrica.com/view/group/main/main/id/00016066.html>(AllAfrica)
-Kony2012 Screenings Cancelled in Northern Uganda <http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/03/15/kony-2012-video-uganda-screenings-cancelled.html?cmp=rss>(CBC News)
-The White Savior Industrial Complex <http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/03/the-white-savior-industrial-complex/254843/2/?single_page=true>(Atlantic)
-Ugandan Milton Allimandi and Congolese Yaa-Lengi Ngmei write powerfully on how United States advocates can move beyond Kony2012 to push for peace <http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/kony-2012-article-1.1057526?localLinksEnabled=false>



*List partially congregated by Alison Hayward MD, Uganda Village Project Director

The Uganda Village Project

Hello GPP 105 bloggers! On my first blog post here, I wanted to share about my PE organization. I have written the majority of my undergraduate work on the colonial history of Uganda, the conflict in Northern Uganda, child soldiers/forced labor in this region, and the social movements issues surrounding this topic. Therefore, I have wanted to work in Uganda for a long time. I found out about Uganda Village Project about 2 years ago and I have been wanting to work with them ever since. I feel so lucky that I will be able to experience this Summer working in Uganda establishing clean water projects and Healthy Villages initiatives in the Iganga District of Southern Uganda.

The Iganga District has been termed the "dirtiest district in Uganda". So I am excited to get involved with UVP's integrated water treatment approach:

 

I am really excited to learn a lot, maybe learn some Lugosa, and meet new friends... If only I could just wish away midterms/finals and have it be Summer already!

(pictures from the UVP website)

Thanks for reading...

-Stephanie Ullrich

CGIU conference notes

Hey everyone! Stephanie and I are leaving on Wednesday for the Clinton Global Initiative University in Washington DC. If anyone is interested in notes from the conference talks, which include "raising money for your commitment" (which could be used to raising money for your practice, or other projects!) and using social media marketing, let me know and I'll send them to you :] hope everyone is having a great break! -Rebecca

KhanAcademy: Universal Education

KhanAcademy, started by MIT / Harvard graduate Salman Khan, is like a web-based classroom that provides free lessons for primary and secondary students, in a variety of subjects. Khan narrates lessons while writing on a colorful chalkboard. KhanAcademy is being used all over the world by individual knowledge seekers, and is even being integrated as a learning tool into actual classroom settings.
See: CBS documentary on the Khan Academy
or
http://www.khanacademy.org/

Hannah's project in Bangladesh

For information on Hannah's work on the housing and land-rights situation of the camp-dwelling Urdu-speaking community in Bangladesh see the blog she kept while there from Sept. 2009- Aug. 2010.
http://hsbangladesh.blogspot.com
For useful summary of the projects that emerged through her research/ findings, see the post from October 26, 2010.
A link to her final report can be found at:
http://www.rmmru.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/HOUSING-AND-LAND-RIGHTS.pdf

Fulbright Scholarship

Apply through your university in the Fall semester (application usually due in early September) for post-graduation use of Fulbright Scholarship for either research or teaching English abroad.
http://www.iie.org/fulbright