Jul 18
In an interesting move to encourage economic development, Cambodia recently opened its first stock exchange, the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX). What part of that is interesting, you may be wondering? Well, currently there are no stocks to trade, no companies listed, which makes this the smallest stock exchange in the world. It’s sort of …
Jul 15
It should come as no surprise that prostitution is a dangerous, yet pervasive, profession for individuals around the globe. Whether involvement is due to free-will or force the consequences can be detrimental or deadly. It exists in many forms and individuals, most of the time women and children, enter this lifestyle for a variety of …
Jul 11
There are currently one billion people around the world who are hungry. With inefficient farming practices, poor distribution, record high food prices, and a global population that’s expected to reach over nine billion by 2050, food security is a huge challenge worldwide. Plain and simple: current methods aren’t working, and changes must be made in …
Jul 11
It seems that the revolutionary spirit of the Arab Spring has spread from North Africa and the Middle East all the way to troubled Belarus in Eastern Europe. Belarus has been called “Europe’s Last Dictatorship” ever since 1994, when the “Last Dictator” Alexander Lukashenko came to power in a highly contested election. In a distinct …
Jul 07
On January 12, 2010, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck Haiti and left its capital city of Port-au-Prince in complete ruins. More than 200,000 people died, and an even greater number were left homeless. A little over a year later on March 11, 2011, an 8.9 magnitude earthquake (and subsequent tsunami) hit Japan, but there was …
Jul 06
The president of Myanmar (formerly Burma) announced an interesting way to fight poverty and increase economic development in the countryside: a sustainable microfinance system. Microfinance, for those of you that don’t know, is a system in which low-income clients and others who do not have access to banking services are given loans with the assumption …
Jul 05
A few weeks ago I was walking in New York City without direction nor destination. By a series of fortunate events, I unexpectedly came across a really good conference held at the New York Center for Architecture. The conferece was discussing the winner of the Buckminster Fuller Challenge (from the Buckminster Institute). The Buckminster Fuller …
Jul 04
Since this is a holiday weekend, I thought I would post something a bit more lighthearted: a Youtube video about voluntourism and sustainable travel in Laos. Voluntourism, or volunteer tourism, has gained a lot of popularity in recent years as tourists search for ways to have a unique vacation experience and give back to the …
Jul 04
In September 2000, the United Nations established eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in hopes of improving social and economic conditions in the world’s poorest countries. The MDGs have caused governments around the world to rally together in a global partnership to make significant progress in some of the most challenging areas in the developing world. The …
Jul 01
Yesterday I facilitated a webinar on Culture, Conflict and Violence against Women: A Focus Sex Trafficking. I raised several issues regarding the vast differences experienced by victims of the sex trafficking industry, particularly as it pertains to culture, gender dynamics and power differentials. I recommended that governmental bodies and non-profit agencies reevaluate motives, revise legislation …
