Voices from the Narmada River
Leon Mach shares his reflections after a study tour of the Narmada River Valley with Medha Patkar, a community organizer and tireless advocate of “people oriented development”, illustrated by the beautiful photography of Kelsea Schumacher.
Tags: Medha Patkar, Narma River, conservation, development, community, justice, livelihoods, ecosystem services, Sardar Sarovar Dam, globalization.
Water Security in the Sixaola River Basin
The Sixaola River Basin crosses the border between Costa Rica and Panama, and is home to Yorkín and Bribrí communities, raising legal and social challenges for equitable and secure water management. This paper outlines some of these challenges and makes recommendations for reducing human vulnerability to hazards (particularly floods) and for improving relationships among stakeholders.
Chatting about Peace
An interview conducted by Vicky Rossi with Ms Julia Marton-Lefèvre, Rector of the University for Peace, and Prof. Abelardo Brenes who is Head of the Peace Education Programme, University for Peace. The interview originally appeared on the Transnational Foundation for Peace and Future Research website, and was conducted via e-mail.
Measuring Poverty
Measuring Poverty Author: Benjamin Hess Originally Published at Peace and Conflict Monitor on: 10/21/2005 The United Nations has declared in its Millennium Development Goals that it hopes to halve extreme poverty rates between 1990 and 2015. Unfortunately, the aim itself is flawed because it measures extreme poverty in a way that is misleading. Currently, […]
Promoting Gender Equality in Postconflict Liberia: Challenges and Prospects
Horace Nagbe analyzes post-conflict Liberia through a gender lens. By analyzing the post-conflict recovery and development in the country, Nagbe reveals the vast inequalities between men and women. Further, Nagbe discusses the importance of women in the Liberian economy and their efforts in post-conflict reconstruction. Finally, the author presents various suggestions for empowering the women of Liberia and improving the state of the country as a whole.
UN’s Choice: Millennium Development Goals vs. Financial Crisis!
Key words: UN, millennium development goals (MDGs), financial crisis, poverty, economic turbulance, collective security, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
The Systems View of Life: A Science for Sustainable Living
This is the full transcript of Dr Fritjof Capra’s keynote address at the International Forum organized by Earth Charter International and the University for Peace on the theme of “Finding Synergies and Building Bridges: Reorienting Education towards Sustainable Development, Sustainable Consumption, and Global Citizenship” held in
Costa Rica on March 20, 2015, under the framework of the UNESCO Chair on Education for Sustainable Development and the Earth Charter.
The UN’s Intellectual Challenge Today
The future is here, the world is changing, and the United Nations must as well. In view of that, the United Nations Intellectual History Project (UNIHP) nears completion. It identifies three types of challenges for the UN: Intellectual, participatory, and personnel. Louis Emmerij, co-director of the UNIHP, brings us this synopsis of the project and what it means for the UN.
‘Miracle on the Han River’ Evaluated with the Perspective of Amartya Sen: The Development Case of South Korea
Hansoal Park analyzes South Korea’s historical post-war economic development process, known as the ‘Miracle on the Han River’. Shedding light on widespread abuse of labour rights as the means toward economic growth under the 18-year dictatorship of Park Chung Hee, she raises the controversial question of whether human rights repression is helpful for achieving rapid development. Comparing South Korea’s experience with Amartya Sen’s emphasis on ‘Development as Freedom’, Park concludes that “human rights should never be disregarded for the longevity of an authoritarian regime that justifies its actions for the sake of rapid development.”
The Need for Security Sector Reform in Afghanistan to Curb Corruption
This paper, on the basis of available literature and organizations’ experiences, aims to evaluate and analyze the institutional limitations and weaknesses of the police and judicial sector of Afghanistan’s security sector.
Understanding the trends and inadequate practices in the services delivery systems of the Afghan security sector will set the stage for possible policy recommendations to enhance the effectiveness of the sector and curb corruption. Subsequently, identification of effective and feasible policy recommendations to enhance the performance of the Afghan police and judicial sector will enable other service delivery institutions to resourcefully implement development initiatives.