Oct 19
Chances are, if you haven’t been living under a rock for the past month, you’ve heard about Occupy Wall Street – a burgeoning movement that protests against economic inequality and corporate greed and has spread not only around the country but around the world. Although the concrete goals of the protestors are not completely clear, …
Sep 23
Uganda Skimming over the New York Times this morning, I noted that the first article in their global edition was regarding the outrage that Oxfam is uncovering about Ugandan settlers being displaced on behalf of the Ugandan government and an international organization. Despite being a catchy headline on a leading newspaper, unfortunately these practices are …
Sep 16
Today, I was forwarded a Youtube clip from a friend only titled “Greenpeace”. While I was expecting a video of protesters waving signs on a dingy boat out in the Aleutian Islands, I instead got a cacophony of foul language and brief clips of international people on telephones. I had no idea what where it …
Sep 14
En un esfuerzo de reducir el trafico de drogras, muchos paises han recurrido a la erradicacion forzada de cultivos ilegales. Existen dos principales maneras en las que la erradicacion forzada toma lugar: fumigacion aerea o eliminacion por tierra. En teoria, se assume que la erradicacion de estos cultivos permitira y detendra el trafico de drogas. …
Aug 24
Members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, also known as PETA, have gone to extreme measures to get their animal rights messages across to the public in the past. As the largest animal rights organization in the world, with millions of members and supporters, PETA has managed to attain many successful and high-profile …
Aug 11
On Tuesday afternoon I gave a webinar presentation on voluntourism, or volunteer tourism, and though it is now available on the SISGI Group Institute for Social Change website, I thought I would give a quick summary of it for those of you who couldn’t attend (or didn’t know about it). Voluntourism is the combination of …
Jul 01
As I sat down to take my final exam for my Molecular Biology course today, I took a second to reflect on my past few days. I had spent a majority of those days at the library, sacrificing things like socialization, exercise, sleep, and even food. It was an experience that most students can relate …
Jun 29
Every now and then I read an article that I simply have to share with someone; so, today I share it with you! The article in this case is about Lapu-Lapu, a city in the Philippines which has taken an interesting route to promote ecotourism: recruiting students to act as ‘ecotourism police’ who report people they …
Jun 24
President Obama’s announcement on Wednesday night of his intention to withdraw around 33,000 troops from Afghanistan by the end of next summer is a much-needed precursor to the end of our military engagement there. The nation-building that needs to be done in Afghanistan is not something we are able to make happen with the sword: …
Jun 16
Earlier this week, Ryan wrote about the difference between providing technical assistance to a one-dimensional problem and making a change that has a more sustainable impact. Digging a well in an area without access to clean water, for example, is a great solution to the simple problem of not having clean water. However, that one …
