A recent event held by the Society for International Development in Washington, DC highlighted the SEVIR program, a joint venture of NASA and USAID. Started in 2004 the program provides essential geospatial and earth-based observations to developing countries in Central America, Africa and the Himalayas. This information is used to monitor environmental impacts and natural disaster damages.
Science experts help convert the raw data into a usable form that governments and non-governmental organizations can use. USAID provides the developmental expertise to assist in directing this information to useful topics and applicable to issues confronting developing nations. SERVIR provides information in the following areas of interest for developing nations: water, weather, biodiversity, climate, disasters, ecosystems, and air and health quality.
USAID also assists the host governments to build technological capacity. The program’s goal is for host governments to assume responsibility for the scientific data and application. In order to support this self-sustaining aspect, the program implementers work closely with the host nations.
NASA and USAID signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2011 that expanded SERVIR’s programs to include food security, climate change, and environmental and energy management.
NASA and USAID also partner with the State Department and Nike on LAUNCH, a program encouraging technology innovation in the private and public sectors to help create a better world. In April the LAUNCH partners held a conference focusing on sustainable material development. Under this call for technological innovation, individuals or teams may submit project ideas. Those selected will participate in a creative immersion project with funding opportunities.
Previous recipients of LAUNCH support include projects for clean water, renewable energy, and biodegradable vaccination needles, and future projects supported by NASA and USAID feature the promotion of education in the sciences.
The SID Washington event focused on SERVIR’s projects in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan region. The Himalayan regional node, launched in 2010, provides satellite imagery of rural, mountain areas previously unavailable. Countries served by the Himalayan regional node include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.
– Callie D. Coleman
Sources: NASA, SIDW, Nike Inc.
Photo: Engadget
Is Somalia the Next Tourist Hotspot?
Business is booming in Mogadishu, the capital of war-torn Somalia. This economic renaissance of sorts might come as a surprise considering the recent history of the nation, which has suffered from political instability and terrorist insurgency for the past twenty years.
However, after the people of Somalia elected their own president to represent them just last year, the economy of the nation has already shown considerable signs of steady improvement. On top of this, Somalia’s recently adopted provisional constitution, which has been praised as “one of the top legal documents in the world,” has had a powerful impact on the Somalian economy as well. According to many Somalian businessmen, peace inevitably leads to prosperity.
Bashir Osman, a real estate developer, knows that he took a huge risk by buying land for a luxury beach resort in Mogadishu, but he also is very confident that his investment will pay off. “[The tourists] were so excited when they saw how Mogadishu looks like, how beautiful city we have, how beautiful beach we have and that is what we want to show them again and again,” Osman tells.
Many believe that the economic resurgence in Somalia is not only because of businessmen like Osman but also because of the diaspora returning to rebuild the country. Somalian citizens who escaped the country to avoid the violence and political upheaval that plagued the last two decades are now coming back to reshape Mogadishu and other major cities.
The recent success of Somalia’s economy is not only found in the real estate sector but also in the telecommunications and aviation industry, further facilitating Mogadishu as a tourist hotspot. The nation’s economy is supported by aid from donor governments; Somalia’s pending success story is a testament to the vitality of these programs.
– Sagar Desai
Sources: Xinhua, CNN
Photo: Go Africa
Khaled Hosseini Fights Poverty in Afghanistan
His novels have tugged at the heartstrings of millions around the world. Throughout his eight-year writing career, renowned author Khalid Hosseini has enchanted his readers with the moving, powerful stories of characters like Amir in The Kite Runner, Laila and Mariam in A Thousand Splendid Suns, and Abdullah in his latest novel, And the Mountains Echoed. But Hosseini’s successes do not end at the tip of his pen. Since 2006, he has extended his work to his native Afghanistan not as a novelist, but as a humanitarian.
Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan in 1965. After a communist coup brought bloodshed and anarchy to the country, Hosseini’s family sought political asylum in the US in 1980, where Hosseini has lived since. He practiced as a physician in California until he began his career as a writer with the release of The Kite Runner in 2005. In 2006, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) named Hosseini a Goodwill Envoy, taking him back to Afghanistan to work with millions attempting to rebuild their lives. In 2007, inspired by his work with the UN, Hosseini started a foundation in his name dedicated to helping the people of Afghanistan.
The Khaled Hosseini Foundation (TKHF) is a nonprofit organization based in San Jose, CA that works with the UNHCR to create shelters as well as employment and educational opportunities for refugees, women and children in Afghanistan. To date, approximately 5.7 million Afghani refugees have returned to Afghanistan. Many of the homeless, these refugees have faced harsh summers and cold winters that have claimed the lives of thousands. And when looking for schooling or employment that could allow the population to rebuild, many Afghans have hit a dead-end.
TKHF came to help by focusing on building homes and infrastructure for those living without shelter, supporting the creation of jobs, and promoting and funding schools for girls and boys whose futures had seemed bleak. By 2012, TKHF provided over $650,000 to the UNHCR to build shelters for Afghanistan’s homeless. Through Trust in Education and the Afghan Friends Network, TKHF funded the education of hundreds of children. And through Markets for Afghan Artisans, TKHF is able to promote an array of jewelry, bookmarks, and purses handcrafted by Afghan women living as refugees in Pakistan, helping to keep these women employed.
Find out ways to get involved and join in Hosseini’s effort here.
– Lina Saud
Sources: Khaled Hosseini Foundation, UNHCR
Photo: The Guardian
What is the Millennium Water Alliance?
Formed in 2003, the Millennium Water Alliance is a collaboration of U.S. based non-governmental organizations working in water and sanitation. The organization is designed to offer sustainable solutions to water access through knowledge, advocacy and collaborative programming. The work of the organization aims to reach the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of halving the proportion of people without safe access to water and sanitation.
The MWA creates field programs that are a coordinated effort between member NGOs to strategically address water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in vulnerable countries. Major programs by the MWA include operations in Africa and Central America. These collaborative programs allow separate NGOs to provide their own distinct strengths and ideas into one mission that is designed for maximum efficiency and long-term effectiveness.
The MWA program in Kenya, for instance, improves WASH to reduce negative impacts that come from the severe droughts and floods in the target areas. It builds the water supply in vulnerable areas of the country using low-cost, resilient technologies like rainwater harvesting facilities and improved simple water storage tanks. The program also focuses on promoting better household water treatment and safe storage techniques.
Until 2009 the MWA was run by member organizations, but the expansion of the organization’s consortium programs led to the hiring of a full time program director. Since then, the MWA’s staff has increased to a total of four full-time employees, two part-time employees, and several consultants in the U.S. and abroad.
Thanks in part to the MWA, the world met the MDG target of halving the proportion of people without access to improved sources of water by 2010, five years ahead of schedule. According to the U.N. MDG website, “between 1990 and 2010 more than two billion people gained access to improved drinking water sources.”
But the global WASH crisis continues to be an issue. Based on UNICEF’s 2013 statistics, 2.5 billion people lack improved sanitation facilities, and 768 million people still use unsafe drinking water sources. Lack of access to WASH leads to decreased productivity due to illness and labor wasted with hours spent carrying water from place to place. The work of the MWA needs to continue for the furthering of global sustainable development.
– Kirsten Harris
Source: Millennium Water Alliance, United Nations, UNICEF
Malnutrition in India
Naturally, these figures vary greatly between states, with the state lagging most behind, Bihar, reporting 82% of children being undernourished, including 26% severely. Intriguingly though, the richest states do not necessarily correlate to the most successful in combating child malnutrition. Even in Delhi, nearly half of children are reported as undernourished. This is a reflection of other factors besides income and high growth rates that play a significant role in child nourishment, including public provisions of healthcare, water, and food security.
Despite programs and policies designed to alleviate this issue, a lack of proper governmental supervision and implementation has led to India recording the highest rates globally of stunted growth, malnourishment, and anemia in children. Equally devastating though is that malnourishment not only weakens those who suffer it physically but mentally as well.
A recent global study of children in developing regions showed significant differences in learning ability based on nutrition levels. And where learning is secondary to surviving, malnutrition places youth at a severe disadvantage across the board. And, like physical stunting, there comes a point in a child’s development where it is too late to reverse the effects.
For India as a nation, tackling malnutrition is the first step in improving the outlook of society as a whole.
– David Wilson
Sources: Indian Express, The Hindu, Silicon India
Photo: Flickr
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and Hunger Program
Whenever and wherever there is a tragedy, the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) and Hunger Program (PHP) are there to help. These groups are part of the Compassion, Peace and Justice Ministry of the Presbyterian Church and serve all people, regardless of ethnicity, religion or political belief.
The Presbyterian Church remains neutral with its financial backing. The organization does not support its programs with federal funding. Rather, the Disaster Assistance and Hunger Program are funded mainly by a yearly congregation offering the “One Great Hour of Sharing.” Although the PDA and PHP are run by the same organization, they each serve different functions for those in need.
The Presbyterian Disaster Assistance program focuses on bringing emergency and refugee services to communities impacted by catastrophe. If resettlement is deemed necessary, the PDA ensures that these people find homes in the United States. Staff members and volunteers work with the Action by Churches Together (ACT Alliance) and these communities to implement training and preparation strategies for future disasters and assist in-home repairs and other forms of sustainable development.
The other half of this important organization, the Presbyterian Hunger Program, works to distribute healthy and “culturally appropriate” foods to people all over the world who are food insecure. PHP raises awareness about how our everyday actions can have a global impact. According to the Hunger Program, once Americans feel connected with impoverished communities, they will begin to comprehend the causes of hunger and malnutrition.
Although the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance and Hunger Program are part of a religious organization, the group maintains that it will help all types of people. By working with other organizations like United Nations, National Voluntary Agencies Active in Disaster, World Food Program, Red Cross and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to ensure that those affected by catastrophe or hunger are reached.
– Mary Penn
Sources: InterAction, Presbyterian Mission Agency
Photo: Wired
5 Steps to Increased Economic Development in Africa
Recently, Nigeria’s Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala gave a speech at the International Institute for Strategic Studies outlining the steps that need to be taken to improve economic development in Africa by creating jobs and reducing unemployment. Here are the five steps Okonjo-Iweala outlined for creating economic growth in Africa and developing jobs for young people across the continent.
– Jordan Kline
Sources: Visualizing, The Guardian, Achieve in Africa
Photo: UN
5 Facts About World Hunger
When most people think of world hunger, they picture the emaciated children shown on television commercials or news footage of refugees lining up for food rations. The media portrays hunger as a dire emergency directly resulting from natural disasters, war, or some other kind of unrest. These graphic examples of acute hunger do portray actual people and circumstances, but they fail to account for 92 percent of the world’s hungry who suffer from chronic undernourishment rather than food emergencies. Though the number of people living with chronic hunger has decreased by 130 million people over the past two decades, one in eight people in the world still goes to bed hungry each night. Listed below are five facts about world hunger.
5 Facts About World Hunger
– Katie Bandera
Sources: WFP, World Hunger
How is NASA Related to Development?
A recent event held by the Society for International Development in Washington, DC highlighted the SEVIR program, a joint venture of NASA and USAID. Started in 2004 the program provides essential geospatial and earth-based observations to developing countries in Central America, Africa and the Himalayas. This information is used to monitor environmental impacts and natural disaster damages.
Science experts help convert the raw data into a usable form that governments and non-governmental organizations can use. USAID provides the developmental expertise to assist in directing this information to useful topics and applicable to issues confronting developing nations. SERVIR provides information in the following areas of interest for developing nations: water, weather, biodiversity, climate, disasters, ecosystems, and air and health quality.
USAID also assists the host governments to build technological capacity. The program’s goal is for host governments to assume responsibility for the scientific data and application. In order to support this self-sustaining aspect, the program implementers work closely with the host nations.
NASA and USAID signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) in 2011 that expanded SERVIR’s programs to include food security, climate change, and environmental and energy management.
NASA and USAID also partner with the State Department and Nike on LAUNCH, a program encouraging technology innovation in the private and public sectors to help create a better world. In April the LAUNCH partners held a conference focusing on sustainable material development. Under this call for technological innovation, individuals or teams may submit project ideas. Those selected will participate in a creative immersion project with funding opportunities.
Previous recipients of LAUNCH support include projects for clean water, renewable energy, and biodegradable vaccination needles, and future projects supported by NASA and USAID feature the promotion of education in the sciences.
The SID Washington event focused on SERVIR’s projects in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan region. The Himalayan regional node, launched in 2010, provides satellite imagery of rural, mountain areas previously unavailable. Countries served by the Himalayan regional node include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.
– Callie D. Coleman
Sources: NASA, SIDW, Nike Inc.
Photo: Engadget
Can GM Crops Save the World?
The question of whether the food we eat should be engineered by scientists, and sold to farmers by tremendously wealthy corporations is a controversial topic. Owen Paterson, an MP and Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs from the United Kingdom has recently pleaded his case for supporting GM crops: “The farmer benefits. The consumer benefits. The environment benefits.”
The top chemical industries and their vocal supporters are proposing that the use of GM crops could produce more food for the world, thus ending world hunger. Can genetically modified crops revolutionize farming worldwide and end global hunger?
In the short term, revamping farms to produce high yielding GM crops could result in more food. However, GM crops require long term reliance on pesticides and machinery, which might be too expensive for an african farmer living on less than a dollar a day. Not only that, but the seed itself can be very expensive, since GM companies have made it illegal to save seeds to plant next season. That means that farmers in Africa, 80% of whom currently save their seeds, would need to start paying for them. Esther Bett, a Kenyan farmer, also points out that “farmers in America can only make a living from GM crops if they have big farms, covering hundreds of hectares.” She also informs us that in Kenya “we can feed hundreds of families off the same area of land using our own seed and techniques, and many different crops.”
When addressing the needs of the world’s poor, it is important to listen to what they have to say. Africans already have traditional methods of farming that have been developed over generations. Over the course of thousands of years, a variety of seeds has been bred to thrive in diverse environments, and to resist the regional blights that are unique to Africa. The genetically modified crops that have been developed so far are actually quite limited in the kinds of pests that they are resistant to. There are different farming practices to suit different environments, and crops that thrive in certain regions may not fare so well in others. According to a long term study, farmers in Ethiopia who conserved their soil and water by farming on compost-treated land were more food secure than their neighbors who relied on imported seeds, fertilizers, and pesticides. It was not genetic engineering, but ingenious breeding techniques that have resulted in new strains of hardy plants like drought tolerant corn, which is used by thousands of African farmers who enjoy 30% higher yields.
What if entire continents were to replace their heirloom seed stock with a single strain of GM crop? Such heavy reliance on one type of crop could be a disaster waiting to happen, if that crop were to fail due to blight or climate change. A new study from Food and Water Watch, an NGO focused on food and water safety and sustainability, has recently discovered that over time the widespread use of herbicides on GM crops has caused weeds to develop tolerance. The last thing that impoverished farmers need are superweeds! As of now, the only thing that can be done about herbicide resistant weeds is to use more herbicide.
– Jennifer Bills
Sources: Express, The Borgen Project, The Guardian, Co Exist, Third World Network, The Guardian
More than a Ball: Alive and Kicking
Sports play an essential role in the development of children. They provide structure and help teach hard work and discipline. For underprivileged kids, it may be one of the only healthy releases from the difficult lives they have. For kids in Africa, the sport that supplies this release is football, known as soccer to Americans. Yet many African children live in environments where sports equipment – such as soccer balls – is not affordable or accessible.
Thanks to Alive and Kicking, these kids have not had to worry about how they can play soccer. The only legitimate manufacturer of sports balls in Africa, Alive and Kicking has provided over 500,000 balls to impoverished children. Their impact goes far beyond simply producing sporting equipment. Below are the positive impacts Alive and Kicking has on the people of Africa.
Alive and Kicking continues to make a profound impact in Ghana, Kenya, and Zambia. But they need help. Donations are instrumental in funding the production of sports balls. A generous donation of 100 dollars would provide eight soccer balls for school systems and communities, impacting the lives of many children. A much more modest donation of 15 dollars provides a child with a ball. These gifts may be small but will play an important role in a child’s life. For more information, visit Alive and Kicking’s website.
– William Norris
Sources: Alive and Kicking, CNN
Sources: Globo