Good News Agency – Year XI, n° 181
Weekly – Year XI, number 181 –
14th January 2011
Managing Editor: Sergio Tripi,
Ph. D.
Good News Agency carries
positive and constructive news from all over the world relating to voluntary
work, the work of the United Nations, non governmental organizations and institutions
engaged in improving the quality of life – news that doesn’t “burn out” in the
space of a day. It is
distributed free of charge through Internet to 10,000
media and editorial journalists in 54 countries and to 3,000 NGOs and 1,600
high schools, colleges and universities. It is an all-volunteer
service of Associazione Culturale dei Triangoli e della Buona Volontà
Mondiale, an educational charity associated
with the United Nations Department of Public Information. The Association has been recognized by
UNESCO as “an actor of the
global movement for a culture of peace” and it is a member of the World
Association of Non Governmental Organizations.
International
legislation – Human rights – Economy
and development
– Solidarity
Peace and
security – Health – Energy and Safety – Environment and
wildlife
Religion and spirituality – Culture and education
Ban welcomes
22 December 2010 –
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed today’s vote by the United States Senate
to support the ratification of the nuclear arms reduction treaty signed earlier
this year by the leaders of
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37148&Cr=nuclear&Cr1=
The 2008 Convention comprehensively
bans the use, production, stockpiling and transfer of cluster munitions, sets
strict deadlines for clearance of contaminated land and destruction of
stockpiles of the weapon, and includes groundbreaking provisions for assistance
to victims and affected communities. A total of 108 countries have signed the
treaty, of which 49 have ratified.
The treaty entered into force
as binding international law on 1 August 2010, and its historic First Meeting
of States Parties was held from 9-12 November in Lao PDR – the most heavily
cluster-bombed country in the world. In June 2010,
http://www.stopclustermunitions.org/news/?id=2806
20 December 2010 - Biocides
are substances used in products such as insecticides, disinfectants,
repellents, wood preservatives and anti-fouling paint for ships. On 20
December, the environment ministers agreed on new rules to reduce the risks
posed by biocidal chemicals. For the first time, the legislation identifies
which active substances may not be used in biocidal products. The most
hazardous substances will no longer be permitted, in particular those that can
cause cancer, mutations or fertility problems.
The rules now also cover
articles incorporating pest control chemicals. A wide range of everyday
products, for instance sleeping bags or sofas, are treated with biocidal
substances. They may no longer be treated with unauthorised chemicals and must
be labelled so as to prevent allergic reactions to chemical residues. The rules
also apply to all imported articles.
Under the new regulation, an
optional procedure for authorising biocidal products at EU level is introduced
to reduce the administrative burden on producers.
http://www.consilium.europa.eu/showFocus.aspx?id=1&focusId=553&lang=EN
Security Council steps up
fight against sexual violence in conflict
16 December 2010 – The United
Nations stepped up its battle against sexual violence in conflicts around the
world today with the Security Council calling for perpetrators to be publicly
listed and punished with sanctions. “Even as we take this step here,
catastrophe is unfolding for communities caught in the chaos of conflicts,”
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon told the 15-member body at the meeting where it
unanimously adopted the resolution. It had been sponsored by 60 countries,
including some where the worst cases of recent abuse have been perpetrated.
The Council resolution –
voicing deep concern at the slow progress in combating the scourge and the
limited number of perpetrators brought to justice – stresses the need to end
impunity and vowed to take “appropriate steps to address widespread or
systematic sexual violence in situation of armed conflict” in accordance with
procedures of relevant sanctions committees.
Mr. Ban’s Special
Representative on Sexual Violence in Conflict, Margot Wallström, said today’s
resolution will help ensure that mass rape is never again met with mass
impunity.
“Instead of serving as a
cheap, silent and effective tactic of war, sexual violence will be a liability
for armed groups. It will expose their superiors to increased international
scrutiny, seal off the corridors,” Ms. Wallström said. “The resolution the
Council adopted today may not bring justice to every victim throughout the history
of war – but it will help to ensure that conflict-related sexual violence no
longer goes unreported, unaddressed or unpunished.” (...)
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37097&Cr=sexual+violence&Cr1=
EU ratifies UN Convention on
disability rights
Brussels, 5 January –
Following formal ratification, it is the first time in history the EU has
become a party to an international human rights treaty – the United Nation's
(UN) Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. The Convention aims
to ensure that people with disabilities can enjoy their rights on an equal
basis with all other citizens. It is the first comprehensive human rights
treaty to be ratified by the EU as a whole. It has also been signed by all 27
EU Member States and ratified by 16 of these. The EU becomes the 97th party to
this treaty.
The Convention sets out
minimum standards for protecting and safeguarding a full range of civil,
political, social, and economic rights for people with disabilities. It
reflects the EU's broader commitment to building a barrier-free
The EU signed the UN
Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities on its opening day for signature
on 30 March 2007 (IP/07/446). It has since been signed by all 27 EU countries
and a further 120 states worldwide. Following completion of the ratification
procedure, the EU as a whole is now the first international organisation which
has become a formal party to the Convention (as are 16 EU Member States too).
The Convention commits parties
to making sure that people with disabilities fully can enjoy their rights on an
equal basis with all other citizens (MEMO/10/198). For the EU, this means ensuring
that all legislation, policies and programmes at EU level comply with the
Convention's provisions on disability rights, within the limits of EU
responsibilities. Ratifying countries, such as the EU Member States, should
take action in the following areas: access to education, employment, transport,
infrastructures and buildings open to the public, granting the right to vote,
improving political participation and ensuring full legal capacity of all
people with disabilities.
UN chief lauds global fight
against human trafficking
13 December 2010 –
Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has lauded the global initiatives against the
trafficking of human beings, saying the measures are helping liberate those who
are exploited and bringing to justice perpetrators of the crime. “This despicable
crime is no longer being ignored,” Mr. Ban said in a video message to delegates
attending the Luxor International Forum against Human Trafficking in
Mr. Ban also drew attention to
the General Assembly’s launch this year of the Global Plan of Action to Combat
Trafficking in Persons and to the newly-created UN Voluntary Trust Fund for
Victims of Trafficking in Persons.
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37044&Cr=human+trafficking&Cr1=
Stepping up the fight against
people trafficking
13 December 2010 - Every year
several hundred thousand people are believed to be trafficked into the EU or
within the Union itself. To come to terms with this serious crime and gross
violation of human rights, members of the Civil Liberties' and Women's Rights
committees on 29 November backed an agreement with European governments on new
tougher rules. The whole European Parliament will now debate and vote on these
rules.
The aim is to create a more
hostile environment for the human traffickers, stronger protection for the
victims and more rigorous prevention. Many of the victims - mainly women and
girls - are exploited for prostitution (an estimated 40%), or for menial labour
- about a third.
Ahead of the debate Swedish
Social Democrat Anna Hedh who acted as rapporteur for the Civil Liberties
Committee says the agreement is "much better than what I ever believed we
would get".
She added, "we have
managed to strengthen the protection for victims with a clear focus on rights,
extra protection for children and added a clear gender perspective."
The new Directive will replace
current rules dating from 2002. EU countries will have two years to transpose
the rules.
Partners
In Health, Abbott and the Abbott Fund unite to combat severe childhood
malnutrition in
Innovative
partnership to build new production facility for locally sourced nutrition
products; Abbott and PIH to combine unique business and non-profit expertise to
empower local communities, strengthen long-term economic development
“This ambitious partnership
between PIH, Abbott and the Abbott Fund will help to address severe
malnutrition in Haiti, while also serving as an example of how partnerships can
help to provide economic empowerment for local communities,” said Paul Farmer,
co-founder of PIH. “PIH and Abbott experts are working shoulder to shoulder
with Haitian farmers and community health workers to create local, sustainable
solutions to treat malnutrition in children. By sharing the collective expertise
and resources of business, non-profit organizations and civil society, we can
help the people of
Green
Online
daily deals available from a variety of green companies around
Green America and its partner
Q4 Marketing have launched Green Deals (http://www.GreenDeals.org), a website
that provides people who care about good deals and going green with daily deals
from local and national online green companies. Over 100,000 people are already
signed on to Green Deals. All participating companies meet Green America's
strict standards for social and environmental responsibility in their policies,
practices, and products.
Green Deals also features tips
on everyday green living, coupons, and other offers from their Green Approved
Businesses. Recent deals have included organic chocolates, green cleaning
supplies, and environmentally friendly water bottles.
http://www.csrwire.com/press_releases/31369-Green-America-Launches-Green-Deals-Groupon-for-Greenies-
US$
29.91 million IFAD loan and grant to increase rural financial sector
investments in
Rome, 22 December 2010 – A new
US$ 29.31 million loan and US$ 0.6 million grant from the International Fund
for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to the Republic of Kenya will provide
better access to financial services, increase incomes, and improve production
and outputs in the rural smallholder farm and off-farm sectors.
The loan and agreement for the
Programme for Rural Outreach of Financial Innovations and Technologies (PROFIT)
were signed today in
The financial sector in
The PROFIT will implement
structural changes required to improve the performance and sustainability of
the rural financial sector by investing in new innovations and technologies. It
will encourage the development of a range of tailored financial products, most
importantly: savings and remittance services, value chain financing,
medium-term financing for the agriculture sector and micro venture capital
modalities, as well as provide technical support services.
Contact: Jessica Thomas j.thomas@ifad.org
$
13.5 million IFAD grant to boost cassava, maize and rice development in
The Steering Committee of the
Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme (GAFSP) Trust Fund will transfer
US$20 million to IFAD for purposes of co-financing the Support to Agricultural
Development Projectect (PADAT).
The IFAD and GAFSP financing
agreement for the PADAT was signed today in
The PADAT will help to raise
productivity of small-scale growers of three staple food crops: cassava, maize
and rice; and enhance value-added/marketing of their outputs. With the support
of the Government and other donors, the project will promote pro-poor rural
economic growth. The PADAT coverage is nationwide, starting with the areas
where farmers, women as well as men, are particularly vulnerable to poverty.
The project is expected to directly benefit some 107,500 small farmers.
Approximately 75,000 of these direct beneficiaries will be reached through
3,000 producers’ organizations. The total number of indirect beneficiaries will
be 368,000.
Approved projects for
The
United Nations recognizes the role of culture for development
On 20 December 2010, the
United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on culture and
development, which emphasizes the important contribution of culture for sustainable
development and for the achievement of national and international development
objectives, including the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
This represents a major
breakthrough at the international level in so far as there is no explicit
mention of culture in the MDGs. This new resolution will encourage stakeholders
to more fully integrate the cultural dimension into development processes
thereby ensuring their sustainability.
This resolution comes in the wake
of the United Nations MDG Summit, which took place in September 2010. The
outcome document adopted by the
http://portal.unesco.org/culture/en/ev.php-URL_ID=41466&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html
Deloitte's
new documentary film series showcases the power of skills-based volunteerism to
help nonprofits achieve long-term social impact
Four
short films help tell the story about how companies can have greater impact
with a unique approach to community involvement
New York, January 6 - Deloitte
has released a powerful documentary film series, “Making A
Difference…Differently,” that dramatically illustrates the impact that can be
realized when people and companies contribute business skills to help nonprofit
organizations achieve their goals. This documentary series is available for
viewing at Deloitte.com.
Told through the personal lens
of professionals who have worked pro bono on issues such as urban poverty,
college access for low-income students, disaster response and the paralympics
movement, Deloitte's film series exemplifies how resource-constrained
nonprofits can achieve much more when given the resources to address the
operational and capacity challenges they invariably face. Each of the four
short films, “Fellowship, Skills, Ready and Empower,” offers a compelling story
of volunteers affecting social change through the contribution of business
skills and acumen, to help a nonprofit organization deal with tough business
issues.
2011
- European Year of Volunteering
6 January – The European Year
of Volunteering aims to encourage more people to get involved by: making it
easier to volunteer; rewarding
volunteers, for example by formally recognising the skills they acquire in the
course of their work; improving the quality of volunteering by providing
training and matching volunteers to suitable vacancies; raising awareness of
the value of volunteering.
Throughout the year, a group
of volunteers will be touring the EU to show people the kind of work they are
doing. During their 10 days in each country they will also meet policy-makers
to discuss what’s important to them. A team of 27 volunteer journalists will
take turns in covering each leg of the tour and produce a series of audiovisual
and written reports that will be broadcast and published in the media and
online. Four high-profile conferences will take place throughout the year to
assess key issues related to volunteering.
Work at national level will be
coordinated by the EYV Alliance, a cluster of 33 European volunteering networks
founded in 2007. Potential volunteers can use the
The EU has been working to
promote volunteering for many years and in 1996 set up the European Voluntary
Service to encourage young people to volunteer abroad in local communities.
The European Year coincides
with and complements UN-led activities to mark the tenth anniversary of the
International Year of Volunteers.
http://ec.europa.eu/news/employment/110106_en.htm
“Twenty years of war have left
Over the past few weeks, the
ICRC and the Somali Red Crescent have distributed two-month rations of rice,
beans and oil to some 240,000 displaced people and needy residents, and
blankets, kitchen sets and plastic roofing to over 300,000 people. Priority has
been given to disabled people, orphans and households headed by women. The aid
reached many different cities in
http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/news-release/2011/somalia-news-2011-01-05.htm
USA -
Multi-family owner, the Bascom Group, creates a national movement to raise
funds and awareness for UNICEF
With
over 90 apartment communities across the country participating, the Bascom
Group raises $19,000 for the
Spreading across over 150
countries, UNICEF is a global humanitarian relief organization providing
children with health care, clean water, nutrition, education, emergency relief
and more. Every year the organization holds a “Trick or Treat for UNICEF”
campaign, allowing children to participate by asking for donations instead of
sweets.
In addition to promoting the
“Trick or Treat” campaign, the Bascom Group properties also spearheaded
resident events of which 100% of proceeds were donated. On-site teams created haunted
houses out of model units; bake sales, sporting contests, and raffles were also
held, which generated buzz and excitement. Educational kiosks were set up in
each leasing office, creating awareness and providing education. Undoubtedly,
this project caught on and it developed into a national movement of self and
community awareness. (…)
ADRA
continues aid to Serbian earthquake survivors
Silver Spring,
Through this intervention,
ADRA has helped more than 2,000 people through the distribution of emergency
winter aid kits. These lifesaving kits contain pillows, blankets and quilts for
the victims who were forced to evacuate their damaged homes. This assistance is
particularly vital as the temperature is expected to go below freezing and many
of the victims have lost all their belongings and are now living in tents. The
emergency packs were prepared by volunteers in the capital of
http://www.adra.org/site/News2?news_iv_ctrl=1141&page=NewsArticle&id=11191
Conrad
N. Hilton Foundation awards $750,000 in emergency relief for
Los Angeles, 8 December 2010 -
The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation has awarded grants of $750,000 to support the
work of four humanitarian organizations conducting relief operations to assist
people in Pakistan affected by this summer's severe flooding, placing it among
the largest U.S. foundation donors for the disaster.
“While flood waters have
receded significantly, the scale of damage left behind is daunting both in
terms of geographic size and long-term economic impact,” said Steven M. Hilton,
CEO and President of the Foundation. “At least 12 million people in
Grants of $400,000 to Oxfam
A $100,000 grant to BRAC
West
African caravan promotes peace from the ground up
By Ryan Hyland
Rotary International News – 6
January - A caravan led by former Rotary Peace Fellow Richelieu Allison
journeyed through four countries in
The peace caravan consisted of
two buses with about 40 Rotarians and representatives of the West African Youth
Network, a group that mobilizes and trains young people to restore peace and
human rights in the region. The caravan traveled to border towns in
The caravan, which included
workshops and peace vigils, began in
“Rotary is fully committed to
promoting peace,” says
After graduating in 2006 from
the inaugural class of the
RI President Ray Klinginsmith
notes that 516 Rotary Peace Centers alumni, including 54 Africans, already are
making a difference through grassroots efforts and key decision-making
positions in governments and organizations around the world. (...)
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/110106_news_peacecaravan.aspx
23 December 2010 – MAG is
working to protect returnees coming back to southern
The scene was one of
excitement, nervousness, anticipation and sheer exhaustion. The last eight days
spent on an excruciatingly hot and packed boat from
Dressed in their best clothes,
carrying bags of luggage and resting in whatever shade they could find, the 74
girls, 56 boys, 402 women and 138 men crowded into the dusty compound grounds
of the Southern Sudan Relief and Rehabilitation Commission waiting to be
officially registered by the local authorities.Mothers breastfed their infants,
older children looked after their younger siblings and men stood in tight-nit
groups, deep in discussion. Before the registration began, a MAG Community
Liaison team greeted the new returnees and invited them to sit under a large
tree in preparation for a special Mine Risk Education (MRE) session.
The Community Liaison team
showed the returnees large banners with pictures of the various landmines most
commonly found in southern Sudan, and explained to the people how best to
protect themselves from the mines, which areas to avoid and which warning
signs, both local and international, to recognise. Large banners with pictures
of commonly found unexploded ordnance (UXO) were then shown. Again the message
was clear: stay away and do not touch.
http://www.maginternational.org/news/sudan-supporting-the-safe-resettlement-of-returnees-/
24 December 2010 –
International Trust for Demining and Mine Victims Assistance (ITF) received
contribution from the
http://www.itf-fund.si/News/Republic_of_Korea_donation_to_the_ITF_323.aspx
UN and partners unveil
programme to combat
16 December 2010 – With drug
traffickers in West Africa increasingly adjusting their tactics to avoid
counter-narcotics efforts, the United Nations and partner organizations today
launched a comprehensive, integrated programme to combat drug trafficking and
organized crime in the region.
The programme – the UN Office
on Drugs and Crime Regional Programme for West Africa 2010-2014 – covers 16
countries and will respond to the needs of West African countries on the
principle of shared responsibility, addressing the transcontinental nature of
the challenge, in particular, the transatlantic route. It will focus on peace
building, security sector reform, and national and regional institution- and
capacity-building; as well as strengthening action in the areas of organized
crime, trafficking and terrorism, justice and integrity, drug prevention and
health, and awareness raising and research.
The launch of the West Africa
programme took place at a high-level meeting at UN Headquarters in New York,
co-chaired by UNODC, the UN Office for West Africa and the Economic Community
of West African States (ECOWAS), and in cooperation with the UN Department of
Peacekeeping Operations, the UN Department of Political Affairs and the
International Criminal Police Organization, better known as INTERPOL.
The Special Representative of
the Secretary-General for
http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=37093&Cr=unodc&Cr1=
After nearly two years working
in
Since January 2009, MAG has
assessed 2,132 residential and agricultural sites for the presence of lethal
UXO, responded to more than 250 requests for Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD)
support, and safely identified 360 items of UXO and 2,100 small arms
ammunition.
During this time MAG also
pioneered a technique for the safe disposal of white phosphorous projectiles,
destroying all the 95 artillery shells that it located.
MAG began work in Gaza as a
response to the emergency generated by Operation Cast Lead, which saw the scale
and type of UXO contamination in Gaza significantly expand as a result of the
23-day bombardment by land, air and sea.
MAG has also worked to raise
awareness of the scale and type of contamination, and actively sought to change
risk-taking behaviours amongst vulnerable groups, such as those communities
located in or near the buffer zone along the border, and contractors working on
the UNDP Rubble Removal Programme.
http://www.maginternational.org/news/gaza-programme-to-minimise-uxo-risks-comes-to-an-end/
Preventive
diplomacy, investigative mandates a focus of latest publication of the United
Nations Department of Political Affairs
The importance of preventive
diplomacy for reducing conflict around the globe and the UN’s growing
responsibilities in managing investigative mandates, panels and fact-finding
inquiries are among the topics explored in the latest issue of Politically
Speaking, the bulletin of the UN Department of Political Affairs. The bi-annual publication profiles the work
of UN political missions and envoys in the field, among other responsibilities
of the Department of Political Affairs.
Additional topics featured in the Fall/Winter 2010-11 edition include:
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Current and previous issues of
Politically
Speaking are available at the website of the Department of Political
Affairs: www.un.org/depts/dpa.
Mothers
in remote
7 January – Nearly half of
pregnancies in the
Fortunately, 87 Muslim women
in the remote islands of Tawi-Tawi now have greater access to culturally
appropriate family planning methods as well as quality health facilities and
services. What made the difference? The USAID-funded Sustainable Health
Improvement through Empowerment and Local Government (SHIELD) project, which
works to increase women’s access to family planning counseling and services.
To help ensure that the family
planning initiative met the women’s needs and was culturally appropriate,
SHIELD-trained community health action teams first met with the women
themselves. The staff organized information sessions in the Tawi-Tawi villages
so the women could learn and ask questions about a full range of family
planning methods and staff could learn more about their needs and concerns.
Tawi-Tawi is located in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao. Following the
information sessions, the teams connected interested women to rural midwives
for more information and counseling.
Of the 87 mothers served in
early December, 36 chose the birth control method of bilateral tubal ligation
(commonly known as getting one's “tubes tied”) and 51 women chose other family
planning methods.
Geneva/Abidjan, 7 January -
The ICRC and the Red Cross Society of Côte d'Ivoire have treated almost 80
people injured during recent clashes in Duékoué, in the west of the country,
where they are continuing to help 12,000 displaced persons.
Despite difficult security
conditions, volunteers from the Ivorian Red Cross have been attending to
casualties day and night since violence broke out in the town. “We've been
working continuously since Monday. At the same time, I'm also trying to find
part of my own family,” said Ivorian Red Cross volunteer and first-aid
coordinator Christine Dehe Mahan.
The ICRC has provided medical
supplies for the treatment of casualties at the hospital and other medical
facilities in the town. Meanwhile, Red Cross first-aiders have delivered to the
morgue the bodies of 14 people killed during the clashes
The number of people fleeing
the violence has swamped the Catholic mission in Duékoué. “We estimate that
some 12,000 people are spending the night at the mission, but the number
changes with the situation,” explained ICRC delegate Edmond Corthésy. An
assessment of the situation is under way in two other areas of Duékoué, where
displaced persons have just arrived.
http://www.icrc.org/eng/resources/documents/news-release/2011/cote-d-ivoire-news-2011-01-07.htm
After
vaccination campaign, hopes of a substantial reduction in meningitis A
epidemics in
6 January – “It is
encouraging, because this is a new vaccine which gives protection for 10 years,
and if the coverage rate is really so high, this could prevent the outbreak of
meningitis A epidemics, the most common form of this disease in Africa,”
confirmed Seco Gerard, field coordinator for Médecins Sans Frontières in Dosso.
It is almost midday. The air
is dry and rasping. By the side of the road, sheltering under some branches,
five women patiently await the arrival of the last people to vaccinate. We are
in Tourobon, a village in the Dosso district, and it is the last day of the
vaccination campaign against meningitis and meningococcus A. The two
vaccinators, the preparer and the pointer (the person who records the number,
age and gender of those vaccinated) explain that they have only vaccinated 39
people since this morning. “It's the end! We are sure to have vaccinated all
the children and women aged 30 and over in the village and its
surroundings."
Initial results from Phase One
of vaccination campaign in the
Phase Two of this major
vaccination campaign – also carried out in neighbouring
Save
the Children intensifies public awareness efforts in
Westport, Conn. , USA, 22
December 2010 - A lack of accurate public information about cholera is further
complicating efforts to combat the epidemic in Haiti, where the disease has
already claimed more than 2,500 lives, according to Save the Children.
In response, the humanitarian
organization has launched a wide-reaching public awareness initiative to
increase understanding about the cause and spread of the disease.
“It will be extremely
challenging to beat back this cholera epidemic without giving people a better
understanding of where the real risks lie and the best ways to avoid them. As
it is, fear and misperceptions are driving a lot of counterproductive actions,”
said Charles MacCormack, president and CEO of Save the Children.
Across
Save the Children is working
to educate communities about the benefits of cholera treatment units, as well
as the strict measures taken at them to prevent further contamination as
limiting the spread of the disease is a chief priority for all treatment units.
http://www.savethechildren.org/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=8rKLIXMGIpI4E&b=6230287&ct=8985081
The mission coincides with the
first anniversary of the 7.0 earthquake that devastated
At the clinic in Deschapelles,
Hollinshead, Martin and Meenzhuber will work with a team of healthcare
professionals, including orthotists and prosthetists, to provide care to
patients. While many of the patients lost a limb in the earthquake, others have
been waiting for a prosthesis for years.
Immunization
campaigns move ahead in
By Dan Nixon
Rotary International News, 17
December 2010 - Rotarians in the
Republic of the
At least 179 people have died
in the outbreak, with 476 cases of acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) reported as of
7 December. Most of the cases involve young people between ages 15 and 29 and
have occurred in the city of
Georges Moyen, the nation’s
health minister, says the Rotarians’ support was well targeted and timely. “All
you have offered, Pointe-Noire has lacked,” he says. “The weakness is a lack of
social mobilization.” Rotary International and its partners in the Global Polio
Eradication Initiative -- the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention -- are responding strategically to
the outbreak. Rotary has provided a total of $500,000 in emergency grants to
WHO and UNICEF for immediate polio immunization efforts throughout the country.
The outbreak is due to
imported poliovirus that is related to the virus circulating in
http://www.rotary.org/en/MediaAndNews/News/Pages/101217_news_congoupdate.aspx
For
maternal health, go door to door
By Damakant Jayshi
It hasn’t always been easy for
Maharjan and other community health volunteers like her. Indeed, she says, “It
was very difficult those days when people suspected (us) of various ill
intentions.”
Yet they must have been doing
something right all these years. According to Maharjan herself, she has noticed
that there has been improved awareness about sanitation, diseases, and health
centre services in the last several years. That’s not all, though. Manik Ratna
Shakya, head of the Satungal Health Post, says, “Along with the government’s
and several donors’ incentives and initiatives, their (the volunteers)
contribution – a selfless one at that – is the biggest in meeting the target of
reducing maternity and child mortality rates.”
For sure, it’s not an
achievement to scoff at, since it means that this impoverished Himalayan
country is likely to meet the fifth Millennium Development Goal (MDG) on
improving maternal health. In fact, just this September, Nepal was selected by
the MDG Awards Committee, in collaboration with the United Nations Office for
Partnership, to be among 49 Least Developed Countries that posted significant
achievements in relation to the MDGs. Nepal was cited for its outstanding
national leadership, commitment, and progress towards improved maternity
health.
Among
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=53880
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2011
Nonprofit Technology Conference -
The Nonprofit Technology
Network's signature conference will take place from March 17-19,
The 2011 NTC offers many fun
and informative opportunities to connect with peers, exhibitors, and experts
who share your commitment – and your challenges. From our member reception and
progressive party to one-on-one chats and hands-on trainings, your weekend in
the Capital will be chock-full of opportunities to share, bond, and build
relationships. You can start right away, on our social networking site, MyNTC.
There's no shortage of
educational experiences at the 2011 NTC. Learn alongside passionate nonprofit
pros who, like you, want to use technology effectively to advance their
missions and bring about change. Breakout sessions, training courses, and
consultations offer the valuable learning opportunities you need to keep moving
forward.
If you're looking to reach the
nonprofit sector, there's no better place to show off your latest and greatest
products and services. Exhibit and provide hands-on demos at our popular
"Science Fair" – or sponsor the entire conference; we have
opportunities available for any size organization. Your message will reach an
audience of committed, tech-savvy professionals committed to improving their
effectiveness and making the world a better place. (Source: WANGO, December 23, 2010.)
Institutional solar cooking
gains momentum in India.
30 December 2010 - A news release from the Ministry of New and
Renewable Energy in India, reporting on important
activities in 2010, states: Solar concentrating systems, comprising
automatically tracked of parabolic dishes, have been found to be useful for
generating steam to cook food for hundreds and thousands of people in community
kitchens especially at religious places such as Shirdi, Mount Abu, Tirupati
etc. The world’s largest system is functioning at Shirdi for cooking food for
20,000 people/day. These systems have found good applications for air
conditioning and laundry also and a few demonstration plants have recently been
installed. A total of around 80 concentrating systems of different capacities covering
25,000 sq.m. of dish area are functioning in the country, largely for cooking
purpose. During 2010, 15 such systems were sanctioned covering a dish area of
around 3000 sq.m. See Scheffler Community Kitchen
December 2010 - U.S.
Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu recently announced a Notice of
Intent (NOI) to fund up to $50 million to test and demonstrate innovative
technologies. The funding will support testing at the Nevada National Security
Site, which will be used as a proving ground for cutting-edge solar technologies.
Projects at the site will be
deployed at a large enough scale to provide data for utility-scale
installations, which are typically grid-connected projects of more than 20 megawatts.
Technologies to be tested include concentrating solar thermal and concentrating
photovoltaics.
The demonstration program is
designed to link DOE's advanced technology development programs and full-scale
commercial efforts to advance utility-scale solar. It complements the
Department of the Interior's 24 Solar Energy Study Areas on public lands in the
southwest
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/solar/newsletter/detail.cfm/articleId=95
Solar
Program adds online multimedia resource
December 2010 - The U.S.
Department of Energy's Solar Energy Technologies Program recently added an
online gallery of multimedia resources. The gallery is a centralized location
where site users can find current solar photos, video, B-roll, graphics,
charts, and animations that highlight and illustrate a range of solar
technologies.
These multimedia resources are
critical communication tools to educate stakeholders on the benefits of
renewable energy and build awareness about solar advancements. The site will
provide the media, educators, policymakers, and the general public with easy
access to multimedia assets to help tell the story of solar to a wider
audience. The new solar multimedia gallery can be accessed at www.eeremultimedia.energy.gov/solar/
http://apps1.eere.energy.gov/solar/newsletter/detail.cfm/articleId=75
Wild
Indian rhinos find new ground in Himalayan foothills
The year-long process of
procuring tranquilizers, radio-collars and other equipment needed to move the
two rhinos – one adult and one juvenile – paid off in late December after a
specially trained team released the pair in Manas National Park located on the
Himalayan foothills.
The rhinos, which are
currently listed as Vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of
Nature (IUCN), were moved to Manas from the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in
specially designed crates. The nearby Pobitora sanctuary has accumulated the
world’s highest density of rhinos, with over
http://wwf.panda.org/?198654/Wild-Indian-rhinos-find-new-ground-in-Himalayan-foothills
Typical tilapia is currently
rated as unsustainable in WWF seafood guides due to issues with harmful
environmental effects including chemical use, waste spilling into waterways,
risks of disease and escapes and weak regulation of aquaculture in many
producing areas.
“The moving towards
certification classification was set up to give consumers the ability to
identify and support fisheries and fish farms that have signed up to achieve
the highest standards of sustainable production,” said Dr Mark Powell, WWF
International Global Seafood Leader.
Tilapia is the world’s second
most important farmed fish, and
“The benefits we expect from
certification are international recognition of all the efforts we have made in
developing a socially and environmentally sound aquaculture model,” said
Anne-Laurence Huillery, Sustainability Manager for Regal Springs, the leading
tilapia producer in
FoEME's "Good Water
Neighbors" project brought together mayors and municipal representatives
from the Tamar Regional Council (Israel) and the South Ghors Governorate
(Jordan) twice during the month of December, first in Jordan and then in
Israel. The delegations visited local ecotourism initiatives and discussed
future cooperation on local sustainable agriculture.
Both sides concluded that they
are interested in follow up meetings. Cooperation to promote the opening of a
new border crossing - at the
UN -
World Interfaith Harmony Week, first week in February
The first week of February of
each year has been designated World Interfaith Harmony Week by the United
Nations. First proposed in 2010 by HM King Abdullah II of
We invite you to join URI
members around the world in celebrating the launch of this annual observance. Download
our
Interfaith Harmony Week tool card for a list of ideas for bringing people
together across religious barriers and building interfaith trust and
understanding in your community. Post your activities to the World Interfaith Harmony Week website and send stories
and photos to newsdesk@uri.org so your actions are added to the collective
whole.
11 January _
The administration will actively
support religious circles in
http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/90001/90776/90882/7256059.html
100-dollar
laptops bring in distant kids
By Ranjit Devraj
In 2005 Sethi began her
programme and by 2008 the demand for computer training had grown to a point
where Sethi could establish Unified Developmental and Academic Activities
Network (UDAAN) to run computer education programmes in schools based on
courses designed by the National Council of Education Research and Training.
“The state-run schools [some
of which actually had computers allocated to them] showed little interest in
the programme citing the usual reasons - no electricity, no teachers or no
permission from higher authorities to enter into a partnership,” said Sethi. UDAAN, however, moved on. A partnership with
So far, more than one million
‘XO’ laptops - each costing 100 U.S. dollars - have been distributed under the
OLPC programme to children in the developing world.
http://ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=54065
January 7 - The
Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, has designated the National Institute
of Adult Continuing Education (United Kingdom) and Infocentro Foundation
(Venezuela) as the laureates of the 2010 UNESCO King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa
Prize for the Use of Information and Communication Technologies in Education. The winners of the prize were selected
on the recommendation of an international jury. This year's theme was “Digital
Literacy: Preparing Adult Learners for Lifelong Learning and Flexible
Employment”,
The National Institute for Adult
Continuing Education (NIACE) is the leading non-governmental organization
promoting the interests of adult learners in
The Infocentro Foundation was
selected for its project “Technological Literacy for Older Adults”. The
Foundation is supported by the Venezuela Ministry of Popular Power for Science
and Technology, providing free access to information technology infrastructure
to enable adults and other users in achieving lifelong learning. Through 680
education infocentres established across the country, the foundation aims to
enable adult learners to move from basic computer literacy to more advanced ICT
skills. Infocentro Foundation has enabled almost one million individuals,
including those with disabilities, to develop technology literacy skills.
The Director-General will
present the Prize – a diploma and US$25,000 – to each of the laureates at a
ceremony on 12 January, 2011 at UNESCO Headquarters in
http://www.ei-ie.org/en/news/show.php?id=1469&theme=vocational&country=global
USAID
awards EDC $75 million to improve education in
Specifically, EDC aims to
improve children’s learning environments by repairing and equipping schools,
enhance the skills of
D-RASATI will begin with a nationwide
assessment of the needs of each public school, which will be incorporated into
a comprehensive action plan. The program will also establish a monitoring and
evaluation system to ensure high-quality performance.
EDC will lead the effort in
partnership with the
http://www.edc.org/newsroom/press_releases/usaid_awards_edc_75_million_improve_education_lebanon
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Good News Agency is published in English
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