The idea of turning trash into treasure is possible when one considers what waste materials can produce. Recent scientific discoveries involving trash and coal waste could have mixed implications for millions of waste pickers and coal energy consumption in the least developed and developing countries.
Plastic-Eating Enzymes
In 2016, a team of Japanese researchers discovered a solution to purging rubbish from rubbish itself. From a trash dump, they uncovered a combination of enzymes capable of consuming polyethylene terephthalate (PET) — plastic material used to create common consumer items such as drink bottles.
This year, scientists have “improved the enzyme,” says University of Portsmouth, U.K. Professor John McGeehan. While the team originally intended to just examine the atomic structure of the bacterium discovered back in 2016, they accidentally reinvigorated it.
This reinvigoration created a now “mutant enzyme” to degrade PET. The supercharged enzyme can reportedly break down plastic in a matter of days, and the renewed compound can degenerate the integrity of plastic with 20 percent higher efficiency than the original bacteria — Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6.
While many are interested in applying the discovery to clean up the world’s oceans, this can have undecidedly good or bad implications for waste pickers in Cambodia that earn between $0.98 and $1.23 a day, and the 1.5 million to four million waste pickers in India.
Waste Pickers
Waste pickers often sort and separate recyclable waste, such as consumer plastics with PET, and sell them to scrap dealers, creating a recycling supply chain. In one sample of 150 Indian waste pickers, 94 percent claim it is their only viable source of income with no alternatives.
For a nation that produces 62 million tons of waste per year, India recycles up to 70 percent of all PET bottles. In comparison, the Environmental Protection Agency reported the United States produced 254 million tons of trash in 2013 with recycling rates between 31 and 34 percent.
A mutant microbe actually might seem like a threat to waste pickers who depend on the economic opportunity of trash picking, since the microbe would supposedly dampen their product’s value. Plastic-eating enzymes, however, could aid the notoriously unsafe and inadequate waste management practices that render public health challenges in the least developed countries.
The Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management cites near absent sanitary landfills exist in the least developed countries where 26 percent of solid waste streams are considered recyclable.
Trash-Eating Bacteria
Mutant trash-eating bacteria could serve as a boon to public health — the United Nations reports an estimate of 1,000 deaths per day for children under the age of five due to unsafe water, insufficient sanitation and lack of hygiene. Children are most vulnerable to diseases such as hepatitis, dysentery and cholera since many play and swim in squalid waters filled with trash and toxins from landfills.
A natural terminating agent, such as a plastic-eating enzyme, provides some hope for an opportunity for unequipped landfills in the least developed countries.
Impact of Building Materials
Researchers at Washington State University are also in the business of turning trash into treasure via building materials.
Funded by the United States Department of Transportation, scientists are en route to creating concrete from coal fly ash — a byproduct from coal electricity generation usually considered waste. Coal fly ash derives from burnt coal residue, a wispy particulate containing unburnt carbon that usually just flies in the air with no practical use.
Scientists were able to enact a chemical bonding method in which atoms and molecules in coal fly ash are manipulated and combined with calcium oxide and sodium silicate, which results in an inorganic polymer more durable than cement. Standard cement creation accounts for 5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Coal Fly Ash’s Benefits
It is projected that in 2040 the developing world will make up 65 percent of the world’s energy consumption; in addition, the International Energy Agency expects coal energy used for electricity to increase by 33 percent during the same year.
What otherwise would contribute to air pollution through carbon emission or being stowed in a landfill, coal fly ash transformed into concrete could benefit developing countries such as China, India and South Africa. China is the world leader in coal energy consumption with 3.9 billion tons used in 2017; South Africa, in 2012, was first in coal energy used for electricity at 93 percent; and in the same year, China ranked third at 79 percent and India sixth at 68 percent.
In Botswana, Andre Boje, CEO of coal mining company Minergy Limited, states that “developing nations, such as those in Africa are unable to rely on renewable energy sources.” Therefore, there is demand for more coal energy as a safer alternative to firewood and kerosene, the latter on which 620 million Africans still rely and an estimated 1,634 die per day due to indoor air pollution.
Turning Trash Into Treasure
While the continued use of coal energy usage remains a contentious issue in the global community in regard to environmental safety, attaining technology with the potential to enable recycling coal fly ash for concrete poses at least some additional redeeming qualities in coal energy for developing countries.
Be it for waste pickers, children forging a playground from a trash heap or environmental friendliness, recent developments in science and technology radiate gleams of potential for a modified waste picker industry, safer living conditions and a cleaner environment for impoverished global citizens.
– Thomas Benjamin
Photo: Flickr
5 Initiatives to Reduce the Child Mortality Rate in Nepal
Reducing the child mortality rate in Nepal has been a top priority for the past several decades. In 1967, there were 285 deaths per 1,000 births that has decreased immensely to only 34 deaths per 1,000 births. The government of Nepal has taken significant steps towards decreasing child mortality in their country.
National Vitamin A Program
In the 1990s, 2 to 8 percent of preschool-aged children had xerophthalmia or an extreme vitamin A deficiency. To combat this, the government of Nepal implemented the National Vitamin A program or NVAP.
This program delivered two rounds of Vitamin A a year to children in priority districts of the country that had a Vitamin A deficiency. From the years 1995 to 2000, this program decreased child mortality by 50 percent.
Chlorhexidine Program
In 2009, the government of Nepal (with USAID) implemented a chlorhexidine program in their country. The government advocated for this program and set it into the daily lives of many throughout the country.
Ever since this decision, the organization has trained healthcare workers and procured chlorhexidine tubes with the help of the Chlorhexidine Working Group. This program is estimated to have saved 9,600 infant lives since it began and will continue to help decrease child mortality in the country.
The Female Community Health Volunteer Program
This program was started in Nepal in the late 1980s to increase the outreach of health practices through volunteer workers. One of the main goals of this program is to decrease the under-5 mortality rate in Nepal.
The Female Community Health Volunteer Program aims to promote the use of certain health practices and educated on preventative health practices. The work done by the volunteers in this program has greatly decreased child mortality rate in Nepal.
Zinc Implementation
In 2005, USAID was requested by the Ministry of Health and Population to help integrate zinc into the government’s diarrhea management program. Their work has contributed to a 16 percent increase in zinc use in the country in only 3 years.
Zinc supplements can reduce the time of persistent diarrhea by around 25 percent. Diarrhea is one of the leading causes of child mortality in Nepal, with 12 percent of children five and younger experiencing the condition. Zinc supplements have decreased child mortality rate in Nepal.
Skilled Birth Attendance
Skilled birth attendance has become more prevalent throughout the country in health facilities and birthing centers; in fact, about 65 percent of deliveries in Nepal are now assisted by SBAs.
Making this care so available to women giving birth has been an incentive for females to go in for check-ups and discuss the possible complications that could occur during delivery. These conversations have not only had a positive effect on decreasing maternal deaths, but they have also decreased child mortality in the country.
Although addressing the child mortality rate in Nepal is still a work in progress, the government has made great strides towards combating such a horrible phenomenon. The implementation of each of these programs has saved many lives in Nepal and will continue to do so.
– Ronni Winter
Photo: Flickr
Scientific Discoveries Could Impact Waste Pickers and Coal Energy Usage
The idea of turning trash into treasure is possible when one considers what waste materials can produce. Recent scientific discoveries involving trash and coal waste could have mixed implications for millions of waste pickers and coal energy consumption in the least developed and developing countries.
Plastic-Eating Enzymes
In 2016, a team of Japanese researchers discovered a solution to purging rubbish from rubbish itself. From a trash dump, they uncovered a combination of enzymes capable of consuming polyethylene terephthalate (PET) — plastic material used to create common consumer items such as drink bottles.
This year, scientists have “improved the enzyme,” says University of Portsmouth, U.K. Professor John McGeehan. While the team originally intended to just examine the atomic structure of the bacterium discovered back in 2016, they accidentally reinvigorated it.
This reinvigoration created a now “mutant enzyme” to degrade PET. The supercharged enzyme can reportedly break down plastic in a matter of days, and the renewed compound can degenerate the integrity of plastic with 20 percent higher efficiency than the original bacteria — Ideonella sakaiensis 201-F6.
While many are interested in applying the discovery to clean up the world’s oceans, this can have undecidedly good or bad implications for waste pickers in Cambodia that earn between $0.98 and $1.23 a day, and the 1.5 million to four million waste pickers in India.
Waste Pickers
Waste pickers often sort and separate recyclable waste, such as consumer plastics with PET, and sell them to scrap dealers, creating a recycling supply chain. In one sample of 150 Indian waste pickers, 94 percent claim it is their only viable source of income with no alternatives.
For a nation that produces 62 million tons of waste per year, India recycles up to 70 percent of all PET bottles. In comparison, the Environmental Protection Agency reported the United States produced 254 million tons of trash in 2013 with recycling rates between 31 and 34 percent.
A mutant microbe actually might seem like a threat to waste pickers who depend on the economic opportunity of trash picking, since the microbe would supposedly dampen their product’s value. Plastic-eating enzymes, however, could aid the notoriously unsafe and inadequate waste management practices that render public health challenges in the least developed countries.
The Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management cites near absent sanitary landfills exist in the least developed countries where 26 percent of solid waste streams are considered recyclable.
Trash-Eating Bacteria
Mutant trash-eating bacteria could serve as a boon to public health — the United Nations reports an estimate of 1,000 deaths per day for children under the age of five due to unsafe water, insufficient sanitation and lack of hygiene. Children are most vulnerable to diseases such as hepatitis, dysentery and cholera since many play and swim in squalid waters filled with trash and toxins from landfills.
A natural terminating agent, such as a plastic-eating enzyme, provides some hope for an opportunity for unequipped landfills in the least developed countries.
Impact of Building Materials
Researchers at Washington State University are also in the business of turning trash into treasure via building materials.
Funded by the United States Department of Transportation, scientists are en route to creating concrete from coal fly ash — a byproduct from coal electricity generation usually considered waste. Coal fly ash derives from burnt coal residue, a wispy particulate containing unburnt carbon that usually just flies in the air with no practical use.
Scientists were able to enact a chemical bonding method in which atoms and molecules in coal fly ash are manipulated and combined with calcium oxide and sodium silicate, which results in an inorganic polymer more durable than cement. Standard cement creation accounts for 5 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.
Coal Fly Ash’s Benefits
It is projected that in 2040 the developing world will make up 65 percent of the world’s energy consumption; in addition, the International Energy Agency expects coal energy used for electricity to increase by 33 percent during the same year.
What otherwise would contribute to air pollution through carbon emission or being stowed in a landfill, coal fly ash transformed into concrete could benefit developing countries such as China, India and South Africa. China is the world leader in coal energy consumption with 3.9 billion tons used in 2017; South Africa, in 2012, was first in coal energy used for electricity at 93 percent; and in the same year, China ranked third at 79 percent and India sixth at 68 percent.
In Botswana, Andre Boje, CEO of coal mining company Minergy Limited, states that “developing nations, such as those in Africa are unable to rely on renewable energy sources.” Therefore, there is demand for more coal energy as a safer alternative to firewood and kerosene, the latter on which 620 million Africans still rely and an estimated 1,634 die per day due to indoor air pollution.
Turning Trash Into Treasure
While the continued use of coal energy usage remains a contentious issue in the global community in regard to environmental safety, attaining technology with the potential to enable recycling coal fly ash for concrete poses at least some additional redeeming qualities in coal energy for developing countries.
Be it for waste pickers, children forging a playground from a trash heap or environmental friendliness, recent developments in science and technology radiate gleams of potential for a modified waste picker industry, safer living conditions and a cleaner environment for impoverished global citizens.
– Thomas Benjamin
Photo: Flickr
Bold and Bright: Renewable Energy in Africa
Africa is a goldmine of resources, yet reliable electricity is only available to 30 percent of its population. For many Africans, expensive diesel generators are the only solution to the constant blackouts, costing some countries up to five percent of their GDP.
Increasing Renewable Energy Resources
Without a steady source of electricity, students have a difficult time studying at night, businesses are restricted by the cost of generators, and countries face economic stress. As of 2016, 80 percent of South African energy came from coal, but Africa has developed numerous renewable energy projects as the nation works towards improving accessibility.
The Blue Energy Group-led Nzema Solar Power Station, for example, will raise Ghana’s generating capacity by 6 percent. By its completion, it is expected to supply 20 percent of the government’s energy goal. The Taiba Ndiaye Wind Project in Senegal builds a 158-megawatt wind farm to provide an affordable energy source for the 40 percent of the population still left without electricity.
African countries are aiming to increase their renewable energy usage; Morocco, for instance, hopes to derive 40 percent of its energy from renewable resources. South Africa partnered with 27 renewable energy producers to generate electricity for its people. Accomplishments like these have been made throughout the continent, allowing renewable energy in Africa to slowly gain a foothold.
The International Renewable Energy Agency
The International Renewable Energy Agency (IREA) recorded 61,000 jobs created by the renewable energy sector in 2017 alone. Thousands of Africans are being employed in technology installation, sales and construction.
According to IREA, the renewable energy industry creates more jobs than the coal industry. Solar PV itself “creates more than twice the number of jobs per unit of electricity generation compared with coal or natural gas.” Employment is an important benefit of renewable energy, considering African unemployment rates reach up to 46 percent.
Other Energy Sources in Africa
Yet, coal and natural gas discoveries are still being made. Around 30 percent of the world’s gas and oil discoveries between 2010 and 2014 were made in Sub-Saharan Africa. And while these discoveries do help towards improving energy accessibility, their long-term effects on climate change may be harmful, especially for poorer populations.
Decreased crop yields may cause a 12 percent increase in food prices by 2030, a haunting statistic with Africa’s undernourishment rates being one of the highest in the world.
Decreased water accessibility, increased risk of malaria and diarrhea and increased natural disasters may all arise from climate change. Flooding and desertification are already becoming prevalent in certain parts of southern and west Africa, demonstrating the importance of renewable energy in Africa.
Renewable Energy in Africa
Renewable energy in Africa has high potential, especially with the amount of constant sunlight it receives. A report by GSMA stated that solar energy has a potential of 656,700 TWh.
With this mass of resources, Africa would be able to independently source its energy rather than rely on other countries to do so. New and existing renewable energy projects push Africa in a sustainable direction while encouraging economic development.
Renewable energy also aids the impoverished through increased jobs and improved electricity access. All in all, Africa’s energy movement is a success story in the making.
– Massarath Fatima
Photo: Flickr
Urbanizing from Scratch: Ordos Kangbashi, China’s “Ghost City”
Somewhere along the desert steppe of Inner Mongolia, the skyline of Ordos Kangbashi currently perforates an otherwise flat horizon. The city’s superstructures – lustrous monoliths of urban development following a local mining boom – have stood quietly since its 2004 inception, waiting.
China’s New City Project
It is one of the many new city projects that China has put into motion, but is particularly prolific due to the ambition of its size and architecture. Intended to welcome at least a million inhabitants, Ordos Kangbashi boasts countless high-end facilities and tourist hotspots, but its isolated geography and exorbitant property costs initially left it occupied by only thousands. With whole streets empty for years, the metropolis has done little but repose upon an infertile land, shiny and alien.
So the narrative goes. Despite Ordos Kangbashi commonly being referred to as a modern ghost town in the past, recent reports reveal that the city simply needed time. Ordos Kangbashi currently has a growing full-time population of 153,000, with more than 4,500 businesses in operation.
Economic Diversification
A large portion of the city’s residents are country people encouraged to urbanize in order to diversify China’s economy. The rural villages speckled throughout the Ordos region have historically struggled against sandstorms, limited natural resources and poor infrastructure. With the advent of Ordos Kangbashi, locals have the opportunity to be lifted out of poverty by relocating to the city with the acceptance of a hefty compensation package.
The Ordos government’s goal is to build the tax base to ensure the continued success of ex-farmers. With proper urban education, healthcare and targeted programmes, rural transplants will ideally be able to integrate with city life and become self-sufficient.
Opportunities Near or Far
There are some that do not wish to move to the city. Those that elect to remain in their villages are still able to take advantage of the new opportunities available. The Ordos-based Elion Resource Group, for example, has invested more than $4.4 billion into addressing desertification. They, along with local government forces, mobilize by teaching farmers effective agricultural methods, providing healthy crop seeds and promoting eco-restoration as a means of job creation.
“I couldn’t imagine before that I can earn 6,000 yuan ($900) per month,” said Wu Zhihua, 60, a local farmer. By receiving liquorice seedlings and selling the mature plants at market price, Wu generates extra income while the seedlings help fix drifting sand in the environment.
Barren to Growth
Greening the region benefits far-flung desert dwellers and Ordos Kangbashi residents alike. The number of sandstorm occurrences has fallen from 50 in 1988 to only one in 2016. Approximately 102,000 villagers have already been alleviated from poverty as a direct result, and the city is transforming its barren environment from a detriment into a boon.
Ordos Kangbashi’s skyscrapers have developed a unique symbiosis with the surrounding pastoral terrain. Due to the lack of an existing urban population, city resources have been readily allocated to rural-dwellers instead to the benefit of everyone.
It remains to be seen if this will be a successful model for other prebuilt metropolises, but Ordos Kangbashi currently has expelled its ghosts with a rare mutualism — its heartbeat continuing for the foreseeable future.
– Yumi Wilson
Photo: Flickr
Crossroads: Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Nigeria
In many ways, the situation of the Niger River can be taken to characterize the country that bears its name, Nigeria. In the Igbo language — a large ethnic group in Nigeria — the river’s name means “great water,” and this name is substantially representative of Nigeria. Not only does Nigeria contain a large portion of the river, but it boasts the largest economy in Africa; thus, the nation could be said to be a “great water” in the large economic sea of the African continent.
But in Africa, an expansive and diverse continent with a wide variety of living conditions, how does Nigeria rank in its citizens’ quality of life? Is Nigeria’s economic progress translating into better living conditions for its people? Here are the top 10 facts about living conditions in Nigeria which aim to shed some light on these questions.
Top 10 Facts About Living Conditions in Nigeria
Crossroads
These top 10 facts about living conditions in Nigeria indicate that like many developing economies, Nigeria is a country at a crossroad. In Nigeria there is palpable wealth, modern cities, and at the same time, distressed rural areas complete with violence. Yet, after weathering a recent a recent economic downturn, Nigeria may very well push forward towards a brighter future for all its citizens.
– William Menchaca
Photo: Flickr
The Present and Future of Sustainable Energy in Mozambique
The energy sector is beginning to sink its claws into a stabilizing Mozambique for good or for bad. ExxonMobil is one of the largest contributors to government projects in this African country. They are planning the largest infrastructure project in modern African history. The Government of Mozambique estimates that revenues generated from natural gas sales could have huge benefits for the country. If properly managed this could be a great moment in the history of Mozambique. Until that day, much of the country lives without access to the power grid or even power. That does not mean the people are simply waiting for something to happen. Sustainable energy in Mozambique is on the rise thanks to domestic and foreign support.
Power Situation in Mozambique
Despite Mozambique having the highest energy production potential in Africa, only 34 percent of its population has access to power. This is due to the high cost of coal, natural gas and oil. In the upcoming years, it is estimated that coal, oil, natural gas and sustainable energy sources will provide 44 percent of the power for Mozambique. Right now hydroelectric energy powers most of the country, alongside government funded sustainable energy projects for rural areas. In 2014, it was estimated that only five percent of the rural population had access to power. To help connect the rural population to the power grid or provide them with power, Mozambique’s government began to fund sustainable energy projects led by the Mozambique Energy Institute (Fundo de energia or FUNAE).
Solar energy
The African-European Union renewable energy program states that the solar energy potential of Mozambique is large and unexploited. It has the potential of producing 2.7 gigawatts a year. Due to this E.U. nations and international organizations are working with FUNAE and Mozambique’s government-owned energy company Electricity of Mozambique (EDM) to exploit this resource and increase sustainable energy in Mozambique.
The World Bank, United Nations and the Belgian government all are working towards increasing the funding of solar-powered mini-grids for rural villages. These mini-grids are not connected to the main power grid of Mozambique. They are self-sustaining power units that power only small villages or homes. It is estimated that these individual power stations help produce 2.2 megawatts of energy. Through this program, the government also hopes to supply up to 50,000 solar-powered refrigerators to the rural population.
Government Support
Sustainable energy in Mozambique received a huge support from the Mozambique government. By 2030, the government pledged nearly $500 million to investments in sustainable energy in Mozambique. The investment outline details increased investment into Mozambique’s already booming hydroelectric sector and expanding the growing solar sector. The Mozambique government stated that hydroelectric and solar projects between 2014 and 2015 helped to provide power to 201 villages, 669 schools, 623 health centers and 77 public buildings, reaching an estimated 3.7 million people. By the end of their investment, the government hopes to reach 332 villages more.
The balance of power in Mozambique looks like it could be tipped in either direction. It is hard for a struggling economy to ignore their vast reserves of oil, coal and natural gas. Many people from rural areas still use charcoal, wood and manure as fuels to cook and warm their homes. It is satisfying to know that the government still takes renewable, clean, and sustainable energy seriously. Even if the entire nation will not “go green” at once, they are building the infrastructure to make it there one day.
– Nick DeMarco
Photo: Flickr
Five Incredible Memoirs About Overcoming Poverty
The problems in developing countries are often viewed as too big to find solutions. Because of this, many people are deterred from putting in seemingly futile efforts to alleviate a problem. But, they are more likely to join the fight when they learn the individual names and faces of those living under such conditions. These five memoirs about overcoming poverty highlight success stories and seek to mobilize people with a renewed sense of hope.
5 Memoirs About Overcoming Poverty
All the authors in these five memoirs about overcoming poverty have discovered important lessons about global issues through real-life experiences. They write about them in the hopes that people will no longer be complacent in the face of a problem that, contrary to what some might believe, can be solved.
– Sabrina Dubbert
Photo: Flickr
Cutting Hair Is Helping to End Poverty in Cambodia
According to the World Bank, although the poverty rate in Cambodia dropped from 47.8 percent in 2007 to 13.5 percent in 2014, 4.5 million people are dangerously close to falling back into poverty. Luckily, Hair Aid, an Australian humanitarian group, is working to help decrease and end poverty in Cambodia.
Hair Aid sends teams of volunteer hairdressers to places like Cambodia in order to teach many of people living in poverty how to cut hair, giving them an opportunity to learn a skill and reduce poverty in that area. Not only does Hair Aid recruit volunteer hairdressers and send them to locations all over the world but they have also been recruiting volunteer hairdressers to work with other local community organizations that help those in need.
Hair Aid’s Currently Changing Cambodia with Hair Cuts
In August 2018, Hair Aid partnered with Cambodian Children’s Fund (CCF) to teach a course in Steung Meanchey for five days. Hair Aid volunteers describe one function of this humanitarian group as a way to empower the Cambodian people, teaching them skills as a way to start micro businesses in order to support themselves and feed their families. It’s a way to end poverty in Cambodia by providing opportunities to help fight against this epidemic.
Hair Aid also provided essential tools for a popular CCF hairdresser, Granny Thim. This 73-year-old hairdresser used only a pair of kitchen scissors to cut hair within the community. Impressed by Thim, Hair Aid provided the correct and needed tools for her so she can continue her passion, work and skill for cutting hair.
A Hair Aid hairdresser from Brisbane, Bronwyn Ball, also volunteered in Cambodia to help fight against poverty, after seeing the impact hairdressing can have in creating new opportunities for many women and children who are in the sex trade industry.
According to the Australian Broadcast Corporation or ABC News, Ball states that it’s not just about teaching them how to cut hair for the purpose of creating a sustainable income, but it also “gives them hope.” Hair Aid not only gives these women and young girls a certificate and graduation ceremony but they also give them hope for the future.
She also praised Australian celebrity and hair salon owner Tabatha Coffey, star of her own American TV series called Tabatha Takes Over. Coffey has joined and supported Hair Aid, and since Coffey’s series is about helping reinvent failing hair salon businesses, she was able to put to use other skills than just hair cutting tips. She was able to provide business advice for the trainees, helping rid poverty in Cambodia by teaching the Cambodian people a trade and a way to sustain it.
Other Organizations Continue to Help Fight Poverty in Cambodia
While CCF and Hair Aid continue to offer support and training to the Cambodian people, other organizations are doing the same. Helping Hands, for example, aims to provide training opportunities for the people in the country, building pride and dignity for many families and communities to end poverty in Cambodia.
Helping Hands works with village chiefs, community elders, parents and teachers with the purpose of changing priorities in the Cambodian people. This includes operating schools, providing breakfast, running agriculture training and educational programs and teaching mothers and caretakers about nutrition as well as household hygiene issues.
The Group for Research and Technology Exchanges (GRET) works to provide access to services and water systems, including access to piped water and sanitation, by creating programs to help improve conditions in the area. They also increase small-scale farmers’ income and protect the environment as well as indigenous communities, not only helping to find solutions to land conflicts but also improve crop yield and give access to agricultural water.
Hairdressing is an opportunity for the people of Cambodia to not only feed their families and themselves but also help end poverty in Cambodia. Hair Aid, CCF and other organizations are continuing to support and assist the Cambodian people, hoping to end the poverty epidemic and to improve conditions throughout the country.
– Charlene Frett
Photo: Flickr
Two Organizations Bettering Girls’ Education in Grenada
In Grenada, education does not differ much between boys and girls. The gender parity index (GPI) was only 0.98 in 2015, which means that there was only a slightly larger number of boys, compared to girls, enrolled in primary and secondary education in Grenada. However, because violence against women and girls is a big issue in Grenada, girls are often deprived of the education they deserve and need in order to survive.
There are several organizations and individuals who are working to better girls’ education in Grenada. These organizations assist girls through helping to implement effective programming for their education, as well as giving them resources to use whenever needed.
The Girl Guides Association of Grenada
Girl guiding was introduced to Grenada in 1925 when the first Guide company was established at the Church of England High School. Guiding is now very active in Grenada, mostly through schools, with a few through churches and communities. In 2017, there were more than two thousand girl guides helping young Grenadian girls recognize their full potential.
Kisha Miller has been a member of this organization and a girl guide for the past 20 years. She is now a Unit Leader and an Assistant District Commissioner at Boca secondary school in Grenada. Miller believes that education can be used to change how women are treated in her country, especially in terms of gender-based violence.
Miller also believes that non-formal education is important for girls. She is excited to use the Voices Against Violence curriculum in her country, which will provide her with the tools to start important conversations about the main causes of violence against women and girls with the group of 35 girls she teaches, as well as with all the girls within the Girl Guides Association of Grenada.
Room to Read Accelerator
This organization was established to spread their knowledge of girls’ education to a wider audience in order to maximize their impact around the world. The focus of this offshoot of Room to Read is to offer technical assistance and to share resources and expertise by providing training materials, workshops, periodic support and monitoring. These projects typically last two to three years and will provide girls with all the support and necessities they need to progress through school.
In 2015, Room to Read Accelerator started a three-year long partnership with Grenada. This partnership is through Grenada’s Ministry of Education, Human Resource Development and Grenada Schools, Inc. Their goal is to design a wide-reaching, cost-effective and sustainable program by 2018 that forms good reading habits and skills at all 56 of Grenada’s government primary schools. This program will benefit 11,000 students throughout this Caribbean country.
Organizations, like the Girl Guides Association of Grenada and Room to Read Accelerator, provide girls with the knowledge and tools to be able to progress successfully through school, as well as have what they need to succeed in life. Girls’ education in Grenada has been enormously improved by these establishments because of the large number of girl guides that are in Grenada and the large impact that the Room to Read Accelerator program has had on Grenadian students.
– Megan Maxwell
Photo: Flickr
Top 10 Facts About Hunger in Bolivia
Bolivia is a landlocked, plurinational South American country, sharing a border with five other South American countries. It continues to address issues of both poverty and hunger.
10 Facts About Hunger in Bolivia
The World Food Programme in Bolivia
WFP has a four-pronged approach in Bolivia: resilience building, nutrition, indigenous farmer support, and capacity strengthening. Resilience building includes cash assistance; and activities such as small animal husbandry, fish production and handicrafts.
Nutrition support has included studies employed by the Ministry of Health and Sports to develop undernutrition and obesity strategies, as well as a Restaurant Week campaign focused on the consumption of nutritious local food products.
Small-scale Indigenous farmers experiencing food insecurity have received cash assistance and education addressing techniques, entrepreneurship and e-commerce.
Capacity strengthening has focused on developing digital information tools for the food system, including the online platform ICCOM that was integrated into governmental websites, providing food security data at all levels—municipal and community, departmental and national.
The WFP’s 2023 Annual Country Report for Bolivia noted direct assistance to over 30,000 people with an indirect benefit to four million people via national programs and policies. In 2023, the first year of a five-year strategic plan (2023-2027) was implemented, with one target being SDG 2. WFP’s many accomplishments include reaching over 17,000 food-insecure people in several areas, construction of water assets in 22 municipalities, installation of satellite internet connections in rural communities and e-commerce training. Their work has incorporated a gender approach to increase economic empowerment for women. Support has included a multi-year grant from the European Union and a grant from the Russian Federation.
– Staff Reports
Photo: Pixabay
Updated: August 5, 2024