Stories about Youth from January, 2009
Malaysia: Criteria for adding friends on Facebook
Suanie from Malaysia writes her criteria in approving friend requests on popular social networking site Facebook.
Kazakhstan: World MBA Tour Comes to Almaty
Adam writes about the World MBA Tour, the world’s best and biggest business school fairs, which will take place in Almaty, the biggest city of Kazakhstan, early March this year.
Estonia: Skinheads
Itching for Eestimaa writes about Estonian skinheads – the “purposefully/prematurely bald” young people: “I secretly ponder what is the position of the baldheaded on persons of Mediterranean background. Did we spend too much time in the kiln of the creator or were we baked just right? In any case, we...
USA: Blogging their Dreams of Citizenship
More than 655,000 people participated in an online vote about which issues activist website Change.org should focus on in 2009. Thanks to campaigning from bloggers and immigrant activists, passing a law that would create a path for undocumented students to gain legal residence in the United States was selected as one of the top 10 priorities.
Trinidad & Tobago: The Fourth Summit of the Peoples
Trinidad and Tobago sees the launch of a new blog about “the upcoming fourth Summit of the Peoples, the alternative to the fifth installment of the Summit of the Americas conferences…where emerging…voices from the Caribbean—farmers and fisherfolk, anti-smelter and gender activists—can connect with themselves and others across the globe, and...
Trinidad & Tobago, Bahamas: Start at Home
While Alien in the Caribbean [Trinidad & Tobago] encourages those with dysfunctional families to finally break free, Doing Theology from the Caribbean [Bahamas] suggests that peacemaking begins at home.
Japan: Coming of age in 2009
Every year, on the second Monday of January, in the neighbourhood of every city hall of Japan, one can see young men wearing the hakama (typical Japanese trousers) and women dressed up in furisode (long sleeved kimono, traditionally worn by unmarried girls). On that particular day, in fact, since 1946,...
Bangladesh: Drug Users And HIV
HIV infections are on the rise in Dhaka city, the capital of Bangladesh. Photo Journalist Monirul Alam posts a photo in his Photoblog showing street drug users injecting with used syringes.
China: Does the government still concern about the “kidney stone babies”?
The coverage of the tainted milk scandal in China has been gradually faded away from the mass media with the bankruptcy of Sanlu company. In December 2008, the Chinese government comes up with an initial compensation plan, however, to some victims’ disappointment. And according to Hong Kong's newspapers’ report (Mingpao),...
Uruguay: How the Changes in OLPC Will Affect the Country
Pablo Flores of the Plan Ceibal blog [es] writes about how the changes in the One Laptop Per Child project will affect Uruguay, which has been participating through the distribution of thousands of XO laptops to the country's children.
Israel: IDF Operating a Moral War in Gaza?
Bloggers have been defending the IDF which has been highly criticized for operating an unjust war in Gaza. Many choose to highlight facts which are not necessarily presented in mainstream news on its fighting techniques - minimizing civilian casualties by using precise missile technology, calling homes and dropping warning leaflets, while focusing on the target: weakening Hamas, destroying their artillery and ability to fire missiles into Israeli territory.
Philippines: Helping flood victims through Plurk and blogs
Filipino bloggers have organized a feeding program for the benefit of flood victims in south Philippines. They announced their project through Plurk and other social networking sites.
Barbados, U.S.A.: Name Calling
“You going soon be inundated with children name D'Barack and Shabama and LaBama and such. Time to nip that in the bud”: Barbadian diaspora blogger Jdid wants Barack Obama to adjust his government's priorities.
China: A school with 3 kids
Rob from Black and white cat translated a Xinhua feature on a school in Guangxi mountain area, in which there is only 1 teacher and 3 children.
Southeast Asia: Ship of dreams and friendship
Take a luxury cruise liner, fill it with some 300 vibrant youths from Southeast Asia and Japan, stir in cultural agenda and social interactions. The result: a strong bond and lifetime friendship. This is the story of the Ship for Southeast Asian Youth Programme.
Azerbaijan: Civil Society, Opposition Groups Unite as Referendum Approaches
Better known for their bitter divisions and rivalries, civil society and opposition groups in Azerbaijan are slowly uniting as a national referendum aimed at removing the presidential two-term limit approaches. Perceived by many as a threat to democratization in the former Soviet republic and accompanied by a ban on foreign broadcasting in the country, blogs and social networking sites are being used to protest the impending vote.
Guyana: Speaking Up
“Last August during a Carifesta event, I witnessed what was akin to a public scolding of a young woman who dared to ask a panel of older Caribbean writers and educators why young people were not invited to be panelists for a discussion on the condition of the Caribbean. She...
U.S. Virgin Islands: Students to Attend Inauguration
News of St. John reports that “three students from the Gifft Hill School will be on hand when Barack Obama takes the oath of President next Tuesday.”
Brunei: A New Education System
Brunei bloggers are debating about a new education system which is now being implemented in stages. Described as the 21st Century National Education System, the new program aims to prepare students to meet the new global challenges.
Egypt: Airport Policeman Captured Throwing Bag at Toddler
Award winning Egyptian blogger Wael Abbas posted a video taken by a tourist at an airport in Egypt, where a policeman is seen throwing a bag at a crowd and hitting a toddler.
Brazil: “Lightness, harmony and joy in the Middle East”
Brazilian photographer and designer Marcos Pacheco [pt] has uploaded amazing pictures of Jordan. “The result of my trip through Jordan, near Gaza, where once again there is now deadly war, is in these image. I hope you like “Jordan” the visual essay. There are lightness, harmony and joy in the...
