Global Health & Innovation Conference: Unite for Sight

GH/Innovate 2010


Global Health & Innovation Conference

Presented by Unite For Sight, 7th Annual Conference Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA Saturday, April 17 - Sunday, April 18, 2010


Register Today For Lowest Registration Rate (Rate Increases Monthly): http://www.uniteforsight.org/conference



New Call For Social Enterprise Pitches: Do you have an innovative idea or a new program in development? Submit your idea for presentation. Complete details on conference website.

200 speakers, including keynote addresses by Seth Godin, Jacqueline Novogratz, Jeffrey Sachs and Sonia Sachs. Social innovation sessions by CEOs and Directors of Acumen Fund, Partners in Health, WaterPartners, Save The Children, HealthStore Foundation, and many others.

The Global Health & Innovation Conference convenes more than 2,200 students and professionals from 55 countries who are interested in global health and international development, public health, medicine, social entrepreneurship, nonprofits, philanthropy, microfinance, human rights, anthropology, health policy, advocacy, public service, environmental health, and education.

Demographic Shifts Change Political Lines

An article about demography and shifting political lines.

http://mobile.nytimes.com/article?a=495256&f=77

Broaching Birth Control With Afghan Mullahs

An article from the New York Times about Afghan Mullahs participating in discussions about birth control. It's a significant step in the right direction, and goes to show that you need the support of all stakeholders for any sustainable change to take effect, especially in a place like Afghanistan.

Broaching Birth Control With Afghan Mullahs

Afghan religious leaders attended a workshop on birth control, birth spacing and breast feeding in Mazar-i-Sharif last month.

By SABRINA TAVERNISE

Published: November 15, 2009

MAZAR-I-SHARIF, Afghanistan - The mullahs stared silently at the screen. They shifted in their chairs and fiddled with pencils. Koranic verses flashed above them, but the topic was something that made everybody a little uncomfortable.

"A baby should be breast-fed for at least 21 months," said the instructor. "Milk is safe inside the breast. Dust and germs can't get inside."

It was a seminar on birth control, a likely subject for a nation whose fertility rate of 6 children per woman is the highest in Asia. But the audience was unusual: 10 Islamic religious leaders from this city and its suburbs, wearing turbans and sipping tea.

The message was simple. Babies are good, but not too many; wait two years before having another to give your wife's body a chance to recover. Nothing in Islam expressly forbids birth control. But it does emphasize procreation, and mullahs, like leaders of other faiths, consider children to be blessings from God, and are usually the most determined opponents of having fewer of them.

It is an attitude that Afghanistan can no longer afford, in the view of the employees of the nonprofit group that runs the seminars, Marie Stopes International. The high birthrate places a heavy weight on a society where average per capita earnings are about $700 a year. It is also a risk to mothers. Afghanistan is second only to Sierra Leone in maternal mortality rates, which run as high as 8 percent in some areas.

 "If we work hard on this issue, we can rescue our country from misery," said Rahmatuddin Bashardost, a doctor who helps lead the mullahs' classes.

 The mullahs were reluctant participants. Truth be told, they were paid to show up. But surprisingly, they seemed to emerge from the session invigorated.

 "This was a useful and friendly discussion," said Mullah Amruddin, a tall man in a dramatic turban. "If you have too many children and you can't control them, that's bad for Islam."

 Maybe they were so receptive because a mullah led the class, using their own language - scripture from the Koran. Or maybe it was because some attitudes are starting to change.

 Syed Wasem Massoom, 29, a mullah and one of the trainers, said urban Afghans were looking for ways to have fewer children. Afghanistan was changing, he said, especially its cities, and mullahs had better be thinking about these issues.

 "People kept asking us how to have less children," he said.

 Afghan women who work for Marie Stopes, distributing birth control door to door in the country's capital, have also noticed an interest. An overwhelming majority of people are still skeptical of their motives. (Foreign spies! Christian missionaries who want to reduce the Muslim population!) But a growing number are open to the idea.

 "Sometimes they are kind of surprised that this kind of thing exists," said one of the workers, a woman named Aziza.

In 2009 alone, the sale of birth control pills nearly doubled to 11,000 in September from 6,000 packages in January, according to Marie Stopes figures.

 One woman was so happy to have birth control pills that she hugged and kissed Aziza, ripped open a package and swallowed a pill with a gulp of water.

 "She said she didn't want to wait until evening," Aziza said, laughing at the memory. The total number of the woman's children: 17. Three dead, 14 living.

 The most difficult families are ones headed by mullahs. Aziza and her colleagues tread carefully in those households. Mahmouda, another worker, recalled walking into one such house and finding the mullah's wife washing clothes and trying to calm a baby. She signaled silently that Mahmouda should talk in a low voice.

 " 'If my husband finds out, he'll punish me,' " Mahmouda recalled the woman saying. " 'I'm pregnant now. I really need those pills.' "

 Taking birth control in secret is not unusual, the women said. Even Aziza's own husband opposes her using it.

 "He said, 'We are Muslims and God gives us babies,' " she said.

 She lies to him, but with a clear conscience. "I talked to him in a good way," she explained. "I told him about the benefits, but he didn't listen to me."

 Those who oppose it sometimes get violent. Aziza recalled people running her out of a neighborhood in Kabul after she introduced birth control there. They accused her of being on the payroll of the Americans, taking dollars to weaken the country.

 " 'They want to capture Afghanistan,' " she recalled that they said. " 'If the Muslims are many, they won't be able to.' "

 In Mazar-i-Sharif, it is one mullah at a time.

 Mr. Massoom, the mullah trainer, put it most directly. "This is an Islamic country," he said. "If the clerics support this, no one will oppose it."

Sangar Rahimi contributed reporting from Mazar-i-Sharif and Kabul.

Peru has high maternal mortality rate, rights group says - CNN.com

Peru has high maternal mortality rate, rights group says - CNN.com

More about poverty and women's health:

LONDON, England (CNN) -- Pregnant women in Peru are dying at scandalous rates, according to the author of an Amnesty International report into maternal mortality in the South American country.

The report, "Fatal Flaws: Barriers to Maternal Health in Peru" found that hundreds of poor, rural and indigenous pregnant women are dying because they are being denied the same health services as other women in the country.

It also concluded that the government's response to tackling the problem was inadequate.

Peruvian government figures state 185 in every 100,000 women die in childbirth, but the United Nations says the number is much higher, 240 per 100,000, which makes it one of the highest rates of maternal mortality in the Americas.

In wealthy developed nations, only nine women die for every 100,000 births.

The five main causes of pregnancy-related deaths in Peru are hemorrhage, pre-eclampsia, infection, complications following abortion and obstructed birth, according to Peru's Ministry of Health figures.

Amnesty's Peru researcher Nuria Garcia said, in a written statement: "The rates of maternal mortality in Peru are scandalous. The fact that so many women are dying from preventable causes is a human rights violation.

"The Peruvian state is simply ignoring its obligation to provide adequate maternal health care to all women, regardless of who they are and where they live."

Garcia added: "Health services for pregnant women in Peru are like a lottery: If you are poor and indigenous, the chances are you will always lose."

Read the rest of the article on Peru has high maternal mortality rate, rights group says - CNN.com

Why Are Southerners So Fat? - TIME

Why Are Southerners So Fat? - TIME

Thursday, Jul. 09, 2009

Why Are Southerners So Fat?

By Claire Suddath

People from Mississippi are fat. With an adult obesity rate of 33%, Mississippi has gobbled its way to the "chubbiest state" crown for the fifth year in a row, according to a new joint report by Trust for America's Health and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Alabama, West Virginia and Tennessee aren't far behind, with obesity rates over 30%. In fact, eight of the 10 fattest states are in the South. The region famous for its biscuits, barbecue and pecan pies has been struggling with its weight for years — but then again, so has the rest of the country. Wisconsin loves cheese, New Yorkers scarf pizza, and New Englanders have been known to enjoy a crab cake or two. So why is the South so portly?

For one thing, it's poor. Mississippi is not only the fattest state in the nation, but also the poorest, with 21% of its residents living below the poverty line, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Alabama and West Virginia, the second and third fattest states, are tied for fifth poorest. With a poverty rate of 14%, the South is easily the most impoverished region in the country. "When you're poor, you tend to eat more calorie-dense foods because they're cheaper than fruits and vegetables," explains Jeff Levi, executive director of Trust for America. Poor neighborhoods also have fewer grocery stores, even in the rural South. A 2004 study by the University of South Carolina found that most food-shopping options in rural areas fall into the convenience-store category because grocery stores are located too far away. But although poverty puts people at risk for obesity, it doesn't determine their fate. A number of impoverished states — including Montana, Texas and New Mexico — have relatively low levels of obesity. There must be something else. (See the top 10 food trends of 2008.)

Child rape survivor saves 'virgin myth' victims

From CNN:http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/06/04/cnnheroes.betty.makoni/index.html


LONDON, England (CNN) -- Hope was 14 years old when her uncle raped her.

Betty Makoni founded the Girl Child Network to help Zimbabwe's young sexual abuse victims.

"He trapped me to the ground and covered my mouth with his hand," said the 18-year-old from Zimbabwe. "He threatened to kill me if I ever told anybody."
So, she kept quiet.
"After a while people around the villages started saying that I looked pregnant," she said.
Hope was not only pregnant, but her uncle had infected her with HIV.

Like many young girls in Zimbabwe, Hope was the victim of a widely held belief that if a man with HIV or AIDS rapes a virgin he will be cured of his disease. This so-called virgin myth, perpetuated by Zimbabwe's traditional healers, has led to the rape of hundreds of girls, according to UNICEF. Some of those victims are too young to walk, much less protect themselves.

Betty Makoni has fought for nearly a decade to protect her country's young girls from sexual abuse. And she's witnessed some of the worst cases of the myth in action.

"The youngest girl I ever came across was a day-old baby who was raped," said Makoni, 37.
Through her Girl Child Network (GCN), Makoni has helped rescue 35,000 girls from abuse -- including Hope; thousands more have found an empowering community and a public forum in which to speak out.
"Ten girls per day report rape cases," she said. "It means if we keep quiet, at least 3,600 girls per year may just be contracting HIV and AIDS."

Makoni's own tragic experiences fuel her fierce determination.

"I was raped when I was 6 years old," she recalled. Her attacker was a local shopkeeper. Makoni said her mother would not allow her to report the abuse.

"She said, 'Shh, we don't say that in public,' " Makoni remembered. "I had no shoulder to cry on."
Three years later, she witnessed her father murder her mother. In that moment, Makoni said she realized the potentially deadly consequence of a woman's silence.

"I told myself that no girl or woman will suffer the same again," she said.

Believing an education would provide her the best opportunity and means to speak out, Makoni earned two university degrees and became a teacher. While teaching, she noticed that girls were dropping out of school at an alarming rate. She approached her students with an idea.

"I [said] to girls, 'Let's have our own space where we talk and find solutions,' " Makoni said. Girl Child Network was born. Watch Makoni help young girls find safety and empowerment in Zimbabwe »

By the end of the first year, there were 100 GCN clubs throughout Zimbabwe where girls could find support. Makoni said she was not surprised: "Every woman and girl identified with the issues that we were raising," she said.

In 2000, she quit her teaching job to volunteer with GCN full time. "I decided to become an advocate because I walked my own journey to survival," she said.

The following year Makoni successfully procured a piece of land and opened the organization's first empowerment village, designed to provide a haven for girls who have been abused. Girls are either rescued or referred to the village by social services, the police and the community. The healing begins as soon as a girl arrives.

"In the first 72 hours, a girl is provided with emergency medication, reinstatement in school, as well as counseling," said Makoni.

It is important to her that the girls are in charge of their own healing. "It gives them the confidence to transform from victims to leaders," she explained.

The process helped Hope work through the times when she said "I thought my life had come to end."
"They offered all they could ... as I was in a traumatized state," she said. "I really appreciate what [Betty Makoni] has done and is doing in my life."

Today, GCN has grown to 700 girls' clubs and three empowerment villages across Zimbabwe. An estimated 300,000 girls have received assistance.

For those who were at greatest risk, Makoni believes that help was especially critical. "If my organization didn't exist, the 35,000 girls I've saved from rape and abuse could have died by now," she said.
But for Makoni, speaking out came with a high personal cost. In 2008, she was forced to flee her native country. "I left Zimbabwe because my life was in danger as a result of my project being interpreted politically."


Watch Makoni describe her reasons for leaving her homeland »

Today, she lives with her family in the United Kingdom. She still serves as executive director of her organization and shows no signs of slowing down.

GCN has partnered with the DOVE project, a group based in Essex, England, that deals with domestic violence.

"We are now bringing the girls from a local community to the international scene," she said.
Her efforts in Zimbabwe will also be highlighted in an upcoming documentary, Tapestries of Hope.

Makoni says nothing will end her fight for the rights of women and girls. "This is the job I have always wanted to do, because it gives me fulfillment. And in girls I see myself every day."
 
Want to get involved? Check out the Girl Child Network and see how to help.

Iraq's Unspeakable Crime: Mothers Pimping Daughters - TIME

Iraq's Unspeakable Crime: Mothers Pimping Daughters - TIME

Absolutely heartbreaking. It's the women and the children who have to bear the brunt of any wars. This is a definite case in point.

An email from Ricky Lake and Abby Epstein

(I'm copying the email in its entirety for your information).

	February 13, 2009 Dear Friends: Happy 2009!  There is so much great stuff coming up to tell everyone about: Plan a Community Event with Us! Our book YOUR BEST BIRTH by Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein is being published May 1 by Wellness Central and we are organizing events all around the country for the month of May to encourage women to take back the birth experience and raise awareness about their local birth options. Many of you planned or attended grassroots screenings of BoBB, which were tremendously successful to raise awareness and funds for community groups and local chapters of national birth organizations.  We heard countless stories from women who changed their birth plans after seeing the film and hearing Q&A panels afterwards. Our hope is that with similar events for the book, birth advocates and professionals can bring resources and empowerment to the women and parents-to-be in their community. Anytime during the month of May you can host a book event in your home, a local bookstore, yoga studio, baby store, or any venue that will attract pregnant women and parents. We can arrange for to you purchase a stock of books at a 40% discount which can then be sold at your event at retail price, with proceeds to cover event costs or be donated to local birth-related non-profits (any unsold books can be returned and refunded).  We also are preparing for a live web cast of Ricki and Abby discussing the book, which can be shown at the event. We invite you to celebrate the book launch with us by bringing people together to discuss their birth options and introduce them to local providers in your community.  Contact us at info@thebusinessofbeingborn.com for more details. Report From Rio Abby was in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil over the holidays, doing a little shooting for our next DVD, and she reported back on the state of birth options there.  The shocking 93% cesarean rate for the middle class is part of what she found and wrote about in her recent blog post: By all outward appearances, Rio de Janeiro (and Brazil in general) is amazingly baby-friendly.  At the airport, there is a special line for families with children and pregnant women, there are little baby seats attached to the luggage carts when you collect your bags, and on domestic flights there is one bathroom reserved just for women which is very clean and large.  (Can you imagine such civility in US airports?)  The beach in Rio has special baby-friendly areas with shaded diaper stations and roped-off play centers.  Pregnant women proudly stroll the beach at full term wearing tiny little bikinis and new mothers breastfeed everywhere in public.  The entire culture is pretty much baby-crazy and everyone stops you on the street to peer into your stroller and offer some unsolicited advice. But what is most amazingly un-baby friendly about Rio is that a recent medical report shows that Rio’s middle class boasts a cesarean rate of 93%.  Yes, that’s right - 93%. To read the rest of Abby’s Report from Rio click HERE Yes, the 20/20 Segment Did Finally Air! The interview that Ricki and Abby did with Elizabeth Vargas for 20/20 last May aired on January 2nd.  Sorry that we weren’t able to give you a heads-up due to the holidays but you can still watch the segment online HERE.The segment about homebirth and unassisted birth was part of a program about motherhood, which also featured Debra Pascali-Bonaro and her film “Orgasmic Birth.” Birth Documentary Contest with Birth Matters Virginia Birth Matters Virginia was so successful with their screenings of BoBB last year that it has inspired them to create a documentary contest of their own, to encourage short videos about birth that promote an evidence based model of maternity care.  First prize is $1000! Find out about how to submit at this link. AWHONN (Assoc. of Women’s Health, Obstetric and Neo-Natal Nurses) Editorial on Homebirth The current Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic and Neo-Natal Nursing from AWHONN includes an editorial about ACOG and the AMA’s 2008 resolution to lobby against home birth as an option for women and against home birth providers.  The journal’s editor Nancy Lowe looks carefully at research on home birth and responds to the resolution by saying:  To pretend that a normal healthy woman cannot give birth safely without the trappings of a U.S. hospital is not only audacious but also uninformed. Perhaps it is time for a new woman's movement, one that embraces the normalcy of childbirth and puts mothers and babies back on the center stage rather than the system's need to defend the interventionist subculture it has developed and that it must financially support. This system has not improved outcomes for mothers or babies while the cost of care has continued to escalate keeping pace with unnecessary intervention. The recent initiatives of our medical colleagues, the "authorities," simply highlight the painful reality that the "Emperor has no clothes!" To read the full article Click Here. The First 8 Days of Being A Mom – Now Available Originally written in the Netherlands by a team of a midwife, pediatrician, lactation specialist, children’s nurse and moms, Gea Nietsch has translated this Dutch guidebook to English for parents here. Short and simple because you don’t have time to read an encyclopedia when you've just had your baby, this is a practical manual that covers how to take care of the new mom as well as the newborn! Volume discounts are available for health professionals. Books can be purchased at thefirst8days.com. Baby! International Film Festival Screening in Maryland This film festival shows a collection of films at venues all over the US to actively inspire women to perceive birth in a new light. They will be screening BoBB as part of their program on March 21st at 1pm in downtown Silver Spring, MD. Click Here for schedule and ticket information. Midwives Deliver: LA Times Op-Ed by Jennifer Block Just before the holidays our friend and author Jennifer Block wrote a great op-ed for the LA Times called “Midwives Deliver”. If you didn’t get to read it, you can find it by clicking here. BoBB Online Rental We know we’ve said this before, but it IS coming soon.  We promise!  You will be able to rent and watch the film on your own computer in a matter of WEEKS.  This will be a great asset for those of you outside the US where the DVD is not as accessible and shipping times can be long. We will let you know as soon as it is ready and you can pass along to your clients and friends. Give Moby Wrap to a Mom for Valentine's Day Our "Born Free" Moby Wraps make a great Valentine's Day gift and are a safe and comfortable way to carry your baby.  They come in Chocolate and Sand and can be ordered at mobywrap.com. Midwife Carol Leonard's Book Events BoBB participant, Carol Leonard, will be in NYC for two upcoming events, reading from and discussing her new book, "Lady's Hands, Lion's Heart, A Midwife's Saga." February 20 at RealBirth 6:30-8:30 pm, to benefit NewSpace for Women's Health, and February 21 at Bluestockings at 7pm.  Or to order a copy of the book, Click Here. Mayra's Latest Blog Entry For those of you who are following Mayra's pregnancy blog, click HERE to read her latest two entries about finding out the baby's sex, seeing pics at her 21 week ultrasound, and then trying out hypnotherapy. Warmest, Ricki, Abby & BoBB Team

STOP The Provider Conscience Rule

STOP The Provider Conscience Rule
5:00pm (sharp)
TUESDAY
FEBRUARY 3rd
Worcester City Hall

Our Community Speaks Out

On January 20^th, the Bush Administration instituted a midnight regulation known as the Provider Conscience Rule. This rule allows workers in any federally funded health care facility to refuse to do work that offends their religious or personal beliefs – such as providing treatment to transgender people, bisexuals, lesbians, or gays. It may allow providers to deny services such as basic birth control and HIV tests, or even emergency procedures for certain people, if doing so would offend their beliefs.

WE demand the Obama Administration immediately reverse the Provider Conscience Rule.

A brief skit by community members will be followed by a speak out
Confirmed speakers include
Joe O'Brien (Representative James P. McGovern's Office)
Rev Judith Hanlon (Hadwen Park Congregational Church, UCC)
Sara N. B. Connor (Nurse Practitioner, UMASS Care Mobile)
Jesse Pack (Mass Transgender Political Coalition)

Ron Madnick (American Civil Liberties Union)

The White House - Blog Post - Statement released after the President rescinds "Mexico City Policy"

The White House - Blog Post - Statement released after the President rescinds "Mexico City Policy"

Saturday, January 24th, 2009 at 10:12 am

Statement released after the President rescinds "Mexico City Policy"

Yesterday, President Obama rescinded the "Mexico City Policy" and released the following statement:

It is clear that the provisions of the Mexico City Policy are unnecessarily broad and unwarranted under current law, and for the past eight years, they have undermined efforts to promote safe and effective voluntary family planning in developing countries. For these reasons, it is right for us to rescind this policy and restore critical efforts to protect and empower women and promote global economic development.

For too long, international family planning assistance has been used as a political wedge issue, the subject of a back and forth debate that has served only to divide us. I have no desire to continue this stale and fruitless debate.
It is time that we end the politicization of this issue. In the coming weeks, my Administration will initiate a fresh conversation on family planning, working to find areas of common ground to best meet the needs of women and families at home and around the world.
I have directed my staff to reach out to those on all sides of this issue to achieve the goal of reducing unintended pregnancies. They will also work to promote safe motherhood, reduce maternal and infant mortality rates and increase educational and economic opportunities for women and girls.
In addition, I look forward to working with Congress to restore U.S. financial support for the U.N. Population Fund. By resuming funding to UNFPA, the U.S. will be joining 180 other donor nations working collaboratively to reduce poverty, improve the health of women and children, prevent HIV/AIDS and provide family planning assistance to women in 154 countries.

Sources: Obama may quickly reverse abortion policy - CNN.com

Sources: Obama may quickly reverse abortion policy - CNN.com

This is a very interesting story about Obama's decision to reverse the "Mexico City Policy" set by Reagan in the 1980s. If you remember, this is the policy that prevents any organizations that are receiving funds from the US to offer or even discuss abortion.

As with most women's health, this is a contentious issue that is highly politicized. For example, this policy was initiated by Reagan, reversed by Clinton, and then reinstated by Bush.

It will be very interesting to see what the reaction will be.

Here's an interesting statement here "Obama's second full day as president falls on the 36th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion in the United States."

Change for Justice and Democracy in Haiti

Partners In Health
and
Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti

invite you to

Change Haiti Can Believe In
with Matt Damon, Paul Farmer, Linda Dorcena Forry, and Brian Concannon, Jr.
moderated by Amy Goodman

Tuesday, January 27, 2009
5:30 to 7:00 p.m. 

John F. Kennedy Library
Smith Center
Boston, MA

Paul Farmer, co-founder of Partners In Health; actor and activist Matt Damon, who recently visited Haiti to assist victims devastated by hurricanes; Massachusetts State Representative and Haitian American Linda Dorcena Forry; and Brian Concannon, Jr., director of the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti, share their stories of eradicating disease and injustice in one of the world's poorest nations, and discuss how changes in U.S. policy can help to build strength and prosperity. Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now!, moderates.

To register for the event, please visit the Kennedy Library Forums website.
Live webcast will be available at www.pih.org.

Visit the Health and Human Rights Prison Project page to learn about the joint work of Partners In Health and the Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti.

Woman suspected of witchcraft burned alive - CNN.com

In today's news is a story about a woman in Papua New Guinea who was bound, gagged, tied to a log and burnt alive because she was accused of witchcraft. Scapegoating typically takes place when someone is accused to be the reason for someone else's, or her community's, misfortunes. In many cases, if not most, the scapegoatee is a woman.

In Papua New Guinea, the coroner has reported that last year, over 50 people were killed because they were accused of witchcraft.

The article cites this horrifying account:

In a well-publicized case last year, a pregnant woman gave birth to a baby girl while struggling to free herself from a tree. Villagers had dragged the woman from her house and hung her from the tree, accusing her of sorcery after her neighbor suddenly died.

She and the baby survived, according to media reports.

The most telling part of this story lies in the following quote:

In recent years, as AIDS has taken a toll in the nation of 6.7 million people, villagers have blamed suspected witches -- and not the virus -- for the deaths.

According to the United Nations, Papua New Guinea accounts for 90 percent of the Pacific region's HIV cases and is one of four Asia-Pacific countries with an epidemic.

"We've had a number of cases where people were killed because they were accused of spreading HIV or AIDS," Mauba said.

When people are desperate, they will do some crazy things, including torturing and killing people.

Where have we seen this before?

You can read the full article here: Woman suspected of witchcraft burned alive

The Sustainable Development Paradox

Just received this notice from one of the mailing lists I am on. Thought it might be of interest.

The January 2009 issue of the E-Journal of Solidarity, Sustainability, and Nonviolence has been posted. As always, it is open access. Simply click the following link:

The Sustainable Development Paradox
http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisustv05n01.html

A series of articles on "dimensions of sustainable development" is being published. The January 2009 issue shows the impossibility of integrating the social, economic, and political dimensions of sustainable development unless homo economicus becomes homo solidarius.

Please post and/or forward this notice to friends and colleagues who might be interested in the complex issues of human development, international solidarity, and environmental sustainability.
See the archive for links to previously posted issues (annotated with content outlines):

May 2005 to December 2008
http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisust.html

The current economic and environmental crises confirm the importance of the issues we are researching. Any feedback is deeply appreciated.