[promoted by BooMan. I’m going to be at a Pat Murphy fundraiser for a few hours. He’s the man, please consider tossing in your own contribution. Also, please use this thread for any other project ideas you have and don’t forget to toss in your ideas in The Booman Tribune Electoral Politics Project.]
Hi everyone, just a quick reminder that beginning next Tuesday, August 1st, our group project will begin to highlight the Top Ten Underreported Stories as compiled by the United Nations.
A quick thank you to the diarists who volunteered to tackle these diverse topics, feel free to use this thread as a pit stop to check-in on your progress.
Dates and daily topic summaries listed below the fold…
- Tuesday, August 1st by olivia – Liberia: Development challenges top agenda as the nation recovers from years of civil strife – BooTrib Diary
- Thursday, August 3rd by vieravisionary – DR of Congo: As the country moves boldly towards historic vote, humanitarian concerns continue to demand attention – BooTrib Diary: Part I, Part II
- Friday, August 4th by Nanette – Lost in migration: Asylum seekers face challenges amid efforts to stem flows of illegal migrants – BooTrib Diary
- Sunday, August 6th by Kahli – Protracted refugee situations: Millions caught in limbo, with no solutions in sight – BooTrib Diary
- Monday, August 7th by Poeschek – South Asian earthquake: Relief effort saves lives, stems losses, but reconstruction tasks loom large – BooTrib Diary
- Tuesday, August 8th by Man Eegee – Behind bars, beyond justice: An untold story of children in conflict with the law – BooTrib Diary
- Wednesday, August 9th by Captain Future – From water wars to bridges of cooperation: Exploring the peace-building potential of a shared resource – BooTrib Diary
- Thursday, August 10th by ejmw – Côte d’Ivoire: A strike away from igniting violence amidst a faltering peace process – BooTrib Diary
- Friday, August 11th by ask – Somalia: Security vacuum compounding effects of drought – BooTrib Diary
- Saturday, August 12th by [DIARIST NEEDED] – Nepal’s hidden tragedy: Children caught in the conflict
Spread the word, perhaps we can get some attention from other blogs. I’ve also sent an email to a couple of UN contacts to alert them of the project.
Paz
For the prison system diary, I’ve been doing research on specific case studies spanning different continents to show the similarities of situations that arise when the rule of law is not clear-cut wrt age of detainees. The findings are maddening/sad, to say the least.
How about the rest of you?
At this point I’ve loosely organized the diary by including a bit of the history of Liberia considering it’s connection to the US and the Freed slaves, highlighting the major crises that have occurred, and giving a sense of the present state (possibly organized around the determinants of health). Also trying to identify actionable items to include.
If anyone w/ an interest in Liberia has any suggestions or comments please feel free to let me know.
I’m trying to figure out an action item for my topic too, but it’s difficult when there’s not a specific country it relates. I’m looking forward to seeing your diary!
Hey all,
I’ve done a lot of reading about Côte d’Ivoire in the past couple weeks, in particular a lot of the history about how they got to where they are now, and news articles on current events there. It’s pretty fascinating.
One tip that I can offer that I’m really glad I did early on, is to go to google news, do a search on relevant terms and then scroll to the bottom of the results…you’ll see something that says:
If you add a custom section, then every time you hit google news, you can see the latest few articles that have come out that are relevant to your topic.
I didn’t know they had that feature with GoogleNews, that’ll come in handy when I’m looking for the latest immigration-related atrocity. Sounds like you’re finding some good info on the Côte d’Ivoire. paz amigo
Hey all! I have done a lot of reading on the earthquake and there is a lot of depressing material, but a surprising amount of hope too. I’m always amazed by what people can endure and wonder if I would have the same courage under the circumstances.
in, Poeschek. I see articles about that region’s recovery efforts every now and then, usually the depressing stuff. Glad to see you’ve unearthed some of the more positive aspects too as the people rebuild their lives. paz
Hi Man Ee,
Hope you and all are well.
I will have a problem with the schedule. On vacation in Norway now, happen to be at a PC tonight (almost midnight here). Off again tomorrow to the cabin at the coast – no PC until I’m back in the US on 8 August. Can you put me last – OK with everyone else after me to move up one day?
I was wondering about that. Hope you’re having a great vacation. I don’t mind moving up a day.
Great.
Or we could simply have a break one day, and tag my entry on at the end.
actually work better, I’ll change the schedule to reflect it.
Oh. Heh… um. Well it’s a good thing that I do some of my best work… in fact, some of all my work, under pressure ;).
I do have the piece mapped out in my head though, I just need to look up some stuff and then put it all together. I’ll be ready! Real soon now.
PhD in Procrastination so I know the feeling. Just wanted to put this up so it was on our collective radar screens. I tend to write most of my diaries in my head long before I type them anyways 🙂
Overwhelmed by the scope and breadth of the refugee problem. Trying to figure how to condense information into diary size. Sad stuff.
so many heart-wrenching stories to be found. Aside from the physical damage war inflicts, there is a humanitarian displacement that also occurs, sometimes separating families and/or leaving them in terrible conditions. Thank you for taking on that difficult topic.
I have been able to do a lot of research and I am finding some interesting things about the Congo. I will be ready on August 3rd.
I’m interested to see how we each color our diaries with our perspectives/voices. As someone with little knowledge of the Congo I look forward to your contribution. paz
It may sound dopey but in Bucks we know that one of Fitzpatrick’s tricks is to get people to call Patrick “Pat.” It’s a way of diminishing him. So please refer to him as he refers to himself in all his campaign activity.
uh…I call him Pat.
Which is cool. I’m just saying don’t do it in forums like this. It helps Fitzpatrick, who is trying to portray Patrick as a lightweight. Don’t adopt the GOP’s language – especially when it’s designed to demean Patrick Murphy.
In preparation for my water diary I’ve been drinking a lot of water. A LOT. It’s a Method approach. I want to know what it feels like to BE water.
Okay, I’m sleep deprived, but I’ve got a queston before my DSL gives out again: is there something we should all put in the titles of our diaries to indicate they’re part of this project?
you have regular access to a bathroom 🙂
I was thinking about that. How about “UN10:” followed by the summary title?
Thanks for the chuckle!
I am slipping in here to thank you and all who are participating. I look forward to reading your work.
I noticed that some have mentioned some sort of action that might be taken. I would really appreciate that – no matter how small the action might be.
UN10–I’ll go with that. Are we the un-10 now?
but we’ll have to form a 10able alliance first. [groan]
Can’t. Wait. For. the Weekend.
This is a great project, you all. Special props to you, Manny, for this, I didn’t see it when you proposed it.
I’ve been working on a diary related to kids’ incarceration (e.g. how our the juvey penal system is becoming what passes for mental health care for an increasing number of kids). It’s related to your topic, but will have a different emphasis most likely, with a couple of specific examples. This is one of my series on mental health and kids. I’ll defer it to a bit later in the year, as the UN-related diary will be a great link.