Latest posts by Silvia Viñas from September, 2012
Guatemala: Profiting from Catastrophes
Kevin from the Guatemala Solidarity Network blog points readers to an article by Danilo Valladares published in Inter Press Service about “‘big disaster business’ – profiting from catastrophes.” In a country as vulnerable to natural disasters as Guatemala, a “state of public calamity” is frequently declared – to the joy...
Uruguay: Legislators Move Forward Bill to Depenalize Abortion
After 14 hours of intense debate, Uruguay’s Chamber of Deputies voted 50 to 49 in favor of depenalizing abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy. Twitter was abuzz during the whole day as Uruguayans shared their opinions on abortion and the bill under debate.
Documentary on Salvadoran ‘Guerrilleras’ Turns to Crowdfunding
Photographers Rebecka Bíró (Sweden/Spain) and Victoria Montero (Argentina) have teamed up to create 'Guerrilleras' a documentary and photography project about the experience of women in the guerrilla during the Salvadoran Civil War (1980-1992).
Venezuela: Electoral TwitCam
Journalist and Global Voices contributor Luis Carlos Díaz [es] is streaming “Electoral TwitCams” to discuss the upcoming Venezuelan elections. You can watch the first video stream [es] and tune in today [es], at 8:00pm local time in Venezuela, for his second live stream [es].
Chile: Interview with Poderopedia Founder
Jessica Weiss from IJNet interviewed Miguel Paz, founder of Poderopedia [es], a data journalism project which seeks to reveal links among members of Chile's elite: Poderopedia's team will collect and verify data from an array of sources, including news sites, public databases and information disclosed by other companies and institutions....
El Salvador: Reflecting on the Future of Blogs
Like many netizens around the world, Salvadoran bloggers are discussing the future of blogs. Prompted by a blogger who has decided to put his blog "on hold", bloggers Fernando Marroquin and David Mejía react to the changing Salvadoran blogosphere.
Mexico: #YoSoy132 Tackles Media Democratization
The Mexican youth movement #YoSoy132 has presented a document on media democratization. Marco Antonio Gómez Lovera in the blog Vivir México [es] outlines and analyses the group's proposals.
Video: Mini-Documentaries Showcase Venezuelan Artists
Through their YouTube account, the creative team Mostro Contenidos has released a documentary series called 'Memorabilia', where they present a collection of short interviews with Venezuelan personalities who have stood out -nationally and internationally- in film, entertainment, and the arts.
Panama: Interview on Struggle over Naso Territory
Intercontinental Cry shares a video interview with Adolfo Villagra of the Naso indigenous community in Panama: Tensions are mounting in the indigenous Naso territory in Bocas del Toro province, western Panama, where protestors have blocked access to the Bonyic Hydroelectric project, a 30MW dam currently under construction on the banks...
Colombia: A Love Poem for Bogotá
British writer Vicki Kellaway shares a love poem for Bogotá (Colombia's capital) in her blog Banana Skin Flip Flops.
Latin American Women as Key Development Partners
Moms, students, working professionals and women from all walks of life are the driving force behind a gender revolution that has made huge contributions to our region’s prosperity. In Americas Quarterly, João Pedro Azevedo and Louise J. Cord write about how Latin American women are driving the region's prosperity.
Argentina: Online News Sites Embrace Social Media
The Argentine Journalism Forum (FOPEA [es] for its initials in Spanish) presented the results of a survey of more than 70 online news editors in Argentina. Some of the survey's conclusions [es] refer to the use of social networks: 94% of online media editors think that social networks favor journalistic...
Chile: Reforesting Patagonia through Social Media
Reforest Patagonia has managed to plant 100,000 native-species trees thanks to its creative social media donation campaign, ”Create Your Own Forest.” […] Reforest Patagonia’s main campaigning tool is its online platform, i.e. its virtual forest, which lets individuals and companies plant trees in Patagonia thanks to a small contribution. Anna Heim from The...
The LGBT Community in El Salvador
Danielle Mackey has written a three-part series on recent historical moments (from 2009 to the present) for the LGBT community in El Salvador. Read part I, part II, and part III in her blog Grit and Grace.
Argentina: Blog Covers Trial for Crimes Against Humanity
The blog Juicio V Cuerpo Ejército Bahía Blanca [es] has been following a trial over crimes against humanity committed in the city of Bahía Blanca during Argentina's military dictatorship. In the blog you can read a detailed report about the case [es] and the victims [es]. You can also follow...
Venezuela's 2012 Election Guide
AS/COA (Americas Society/Council of the Americas) has put together an election guide for Venezuela's upcoming presidential election on October 7, 2012. The guide includes a section on social media: During the 2012 election, social media will play an important role. Twitter has one of its largest user bases in Venezuela, where there are also...
Ecuadorian Views on Assange Asylum Case
The government’s attitude and journalists’ blatant disregard for their code of professional conduct makes it impossible for us to consider Ecuador as a haven of freedom of expression. Nor can the diplomatic asylum granted Assange be taken as evidence of this. Eduardo Varas writes in the post “The Assange Case: the...
Uruguayan Netizens in Numbers
Gabriel Budiño from the blog DTodo1Poco [es] summarizes some of the key findings in the ninth edition of an investigation [es] entitled ‘Profile of the Uruguayan Netizen.’ Facebook users [in Uruguay] now number more than 1.2 million, 140,000 Uruguayans have a Twitter account and 150,000 publish in blogs.
Colombia: Is the Vice Presidency Still Necessary?
[…] in the case of Colombia, the decision to annul the vice presidency should not be based on personal contention. The vice president’s future must be determined based on whether the position places a heavy fiscal burden on taxpayers and its real impact in the decision-making process. Global Voices contributor...
Costa Rica: Shaken Bloggers Share Earthquake Stories
Now that the shaking after Costa Rica's 7.6-magnitude earthquake on September 5, 2012 has stopped, Costa Rican netizens are using their blogs to share their experiences during the quake.
Mujeres Mundi, “What is the Role of Women in Your Society?”
In the first part of this interview, Xaviera Medina told us about her blog, Mujeres Mundi, where she publishes interviews with women around the world. In this second part, Xaviera talks about the importance of sharing these interviews with people that speak other languages. She also talks about a project entitled "What is the role of women in your society?"
