Stories from 5 January 2012
Central America: LibreBus Project Presents its Documentary
During May of 2011, the LibreBus collective project traveled by bus across the streets of five different Central America countries looking to share their knowledge with enthusiasts of open culture. Now, a documentary showing the different interactions that took place during the tour is available online.
Rwanda: How Free Eggs Affected Farmers
A View From the Cave explains how free eggs for communities in Kigali, Rwanda from a church in Atlanta affected farmers: “However, the influx of eggs meant that prices suddenly dropped due to large supply of freely distributed eggs. Farmers who sold eggs in the market could no longer compete…”
Cuba: State of the Blogosphere
Regina Coulya takes issue with blog graphs that do not paint an authentic picture of the Cuban blogosphere, saying: “The lack of real spaces (not virtual) to freely issue an opinion independent of the government, has resulted in the polarization of the most visible blogs made in Cuba. They reflect...
Puerto Rico: Emigration Nation?
“Over a 6-year period, covering 2005 to 2010, more than 178,000 of My Brethren left Our Island, a reported 28,000 in 2010 alone”: Gil the Jenius wonders “what…this historic reversal of Our population dynamic mean[s].”
Trinidad & Tobago: Culture of Corruption
Upon hearing news that the country may be about to embark upon a massive public sector investment program, aka_lol says: “I don’t expect the Government to be able to spend 24 billion in 2012 unless the wheels of the economy are greased with corruption. That is how things work in...
Africa: Recapping Mighty African's 2011
Mighty Africa blogs about his highlights and lowlights in 2011: “After 10 years in the USA, I returned home to Ghana. I abandoned my dream of going home with the US’ money, the lure of creating impact in Ghana was too large. And I could make money doing it. The...
Trinidad & Tobago: Oath of Office
Afra Raymond reports that “the former Minister of Finance…is once again in the news, due to her dispute with the Integrity Commission as well as her expected testimony at the next session of the Colman Commission.”
Jamaica: Portia in Power
Jamaica Salt says of the outcome of the recent national elections: “It’s not surprising she won after the debacle of the one term Bruce Golding JLP government”, while B.C. Pires quips that God is the new Jamaican Prime Minister.
Ghana: Help Fundraise for Quadriplegic
Gayle asks friends, visitors, readers to help fundraise for quadriplegic in Ghana: “We know many of you support worthy causes, especially if you are connected with Ghana already. However, we're hoping you may be able to help out supporting our brother (literally).”
Africa: 2012: Africa's Election Trail
Jemilla looks at Africa's election trail in 2012: “Youssou Ndour – world renowned Senegalese musician – just announced his candidature for Senegal's presidential election on February 26, 2012! I'll admit, the first person I thought of when I read the news was Wyclef Jean who put in a similar bid...
Nigeria: Protests, Fuel Subsidy Removal and the Role of Social Media
Victoria discusses protests, fuel subsidy removal and the role of social media in Nigeria: “Follow #occupynigeria for just a couple minutes and you'll see precisely what I'm talking about — in a highly mobile country of more than 150 million, tweets are coming in so fast at times its almost...
Kenya: When History Caught Up With Kenyan Lawyer
John Kamau says that history has caught up with Nancy Baraza, the Kenyan lawyer who wants to be deputy chief justice: “History caught up with Nancy Baraza this week. It will soon catch up with many others aspiring for high office.”
China 2011: From Jasmine Crackdowns to Grassroots Uprisings
From the crackdowns on any Jasmine revolution and grassroots uprisings, to debates about future development models, 2011 was another eventful year for China. Oiwan Lam rounds up.
Bolivia: Netizens Defend Blogger's Creative Commons Licensed Work
Netizens are speaking out against website elSistema [es] for copyrighting a post by blogger Pablo Rivero which he had published under a Creative Commons license in his personal blog [es]. Mario Duran Chuquimia is covering the issue in his blog [es] and through his Facebook account [es].
El Salvador: Blogger Challenges Youth to Transform Country
Fernando Marroquin says [es] youth in El Salvador talk too much -about politics, governance, etc.– but do too little or nothing to change the situation: “We don't act, we are spectators with bad seats”. He concludes his post by challenging other young Salvadorans to join him in taking action to...
Brazil: Domestic Work in Transition
Brazilian society is seeing a transition in domestic work, a type of employment that is deeply connected to issues such as social inclusion, bad work conditions, social hierarchies, gender inequalities and empowerment. Catch a glimpse of this debate.
Iraq: 162,000 People Killed
Iraqi Mojo says about 162,000 people were killed in Iraq up to the end of last year (2011). They include 114,212 civilians, according to Iraq Body Count, an anti-war group. Click here for the details.
Philippines: Ailing Economy Welcomes 2012
Jose Carlos Maningat calls for a rethinking of the ailing Philippine economy come 2012: “For a change, can we also discuss social justice? Can we move forward to pressing concerns on food sovereignty, corporate land-grabbing and resource plunder?”
Philippines: Vacation at Camiguin
I Wander goes to vacation in the southern Philippine island of Camiguin, “also known as the “island of fire” due to the presence of not one, or two but seven volcanoes in just 230 square kilometers of land!”
Southeast Asia: The Great Floods of 2011
Storms battered the Southeast Asian region in 2011 which caused heavy flooding in many countries, displaced thousands of residents and workers, destroyed millions worth of agricultural crops, and killed more than 2,000 people. Global Voices was able to report the impact of some of these flood disasters in the past year.
Russia: Demographic Crisis Means “No One Left To Draft”
Russia is endowed with some of the greatest stores of natural resources in the world and yet the demographic crisis that has plagued the country since the fall of the Soviet Union may leave Russia without a youth to defend their homeland.
