This week I re-entered an aid “institution” after five years of working with small foundations and local groups.

After just two short days, I can’t help but be reminded of why I left.

I am once again surrounded by smart, driven, committed people. But unfortunately they are largely a group of people who are also exhausted, overwhelmed, and discouraged by fighting while propagating the very organizations in which they serve. From my still outsider’s perspective, it’s as if the…

THE COLD WITHIN

 By James Patrick Kinney

 

Six humans trapped by happenstance

 In dark and bitter cold

 Each one possessed a stick of wood,

 Or so the story's told.

 

Their dying fire in need of logs,

 The first woman held hers back.

 For on the faces around the fire,

 She noticed one was black.

 

The next man looking cross the way,

 Saw one not of his church,

 And couldn't bring himself…

The annual expressions of gratitude from the U.S.’ Thanksgiving holiday now subsided, I share a poem I wrote yesterday about how hard it is at times to be genuinely grateful.

Over the past year, I have been fortunate enough to live rent-free, staying with friends and family. But that has also meant that I have been someone’s houseguest.

After I wrote this reflection, I wondered: Is there a parallel to be drawn with those at the…

The Guyana Faith-and HIV Coalition along with Group 2 in support of the Community Life Competence process as a mean of stimulating local response and ownership by communities did a workshop with the Miss Guyana African queen Pageant delegates to stimulate their WOT and WOW towards their concerns using their strengths.

In terms of introduction of participants we used “ I am like this food …..  because …..” to stimulate their feelings towards the workshop and helped participants…

The GuyanaFaith-and HIV Coalition  with Group 2 in support of the Community Life Competence process held a sensitization workshop for the youths of the Wesleyan Church to stimulate their Way of Thinking and Ways of Working towards some social Stigmas.   

Introduction of participants using a fruit to indicate their personality and helped participants to feel comfortable, relaxed and a part of a community that knows each other.

 …

The Guyana Faith-and HIV Coalition with Group 2 in support of the Community Life Competence process held a sensitization workshop for approximately 50 Patients from five different regions who participated in  the workshop  at the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs, Amerindian Hostel to stimulate their Way of Thinking and Ways of Working towards on the topic sexual offences.            

 Exercise 1 - Hopes and…

The Guyana Faith-and HIV Coalition in support of the Community Life Competence process as a mean of stimulating local response and ownership by communities did a workshop with the trainee prison officers who will soon be appointed, Assistant Prison Officers. The officers focused on discipline as it relates to their family, home and work communities.

During the half day’s learning experience, 28 participants were introduced to five exercise steps, while participating…

Group 1 conducted its first SALT visit with a group of very shy young workers from Denmor Manufacturing Company in Guyana, a member of the Guyana Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (GBCHA).

We knew in advance that the group we were to meet would be reticent and that we may experience a challenge in reaching our objectives of "LISTENING" and "LEARNING". The group was large, so we split into two (13 each) with two facilitators to each sub-group.

We conducted the "Hopes and Concerns"…

The Guyana Faith-and HIV Coalition with group 2 in support of the Community Life Competence process as a mean of stimulating local response and ownership by communities did a workshop with two youth groups to stimulate their WOT and WOW towards their concerns using their strengths.

Introduction of participants using the weather inside to stimulate their feelings towards the workshop and helped participants to feel comfortable, relaxed and a part of a community that knows each…

There I was, together with Farellia, our coach from Madagascar. My first time Ghana. The challenge: facilitate a 4-day workshop on Food Security in West Africa with prominent church leaders and advocacy experts in the region. And we had to facilitate in English and French! The participants generally visit a lot of conferences, often dominated by Power Point shows and…

The RIGHTS Commission comprises three commissions: Women and Gender Equality, Rights of the Child and the Indigenous Peoples’ Commission. At a recent meeting of the executives it was discerned that there was tension among the staff including between senior management and subordinates.

Members of the senior management team agreed to an exercise to stimulate ‘team spirit’ among staff. Exercises of the Community Life Competence Process, was used to achieve the intended goal of…

When those in authority become too involved in the community's life, the community becomes dependent and see themselves as recipients of welfare and help. Working in a community with a good mix of low, middle and high income group, it is natural that that rich sees themselves as superior and powerful. They take charge of leadership positions and make decisions they deem to be helpful for the whole community.

I was invited by the Residents Commiittee (RC) to make a presentation to this…

I am very concerned about the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the world and even more concerned about the 4 new infections per day that is occurring in my country, I hope that my group can transfer what we have learned from the 6 blended learning modules to the various communities that we target to do our salt visits, keeping in mind we will also be learning new things from these communities to make us even more salty.It's as one of my group members said we need to pass the salt,so as we embark on our…

We* spent a second day visiting four different places in the the Tohoku disaster area.  I'll just talk about two.



Eight months ago today the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown hit Japan.  Back in the tsunami area of Miyagi Prefecture, I impressed with the extent of clean-up and it is still hard to look at the extensive damage. 



We started the day meeting with Watanabe-san, the volunteer coordinator in Minami-Sanriku-cho.  Watanabe-san was born in Sendai, and was…

This was one of the exercise to be completed in Module 2 of the Blended Learning. I wote down in my notebook "I want to live in a society that is peaceful and clean." I have information and the skills needed to ensure that this can happen, even skills to help others live in a peaceful and clean world."

Did I really mean this? Of course I cared about the state of our society, but did I really want to devote my life to this cause? My conclusion was that even if it was a personal…

During the CLC Workshop UNAIDS hosted in September, 2011. I did my first dream building exercise..we were given about 10 minutes to do this .....this is what I drew:

My dream spoke of having easy, readily available access to Mental Health support / services for everyone.......of having no taboo / stigma  when accessing mental health support / services .....of…

This post first appeared on HUMNews for World Pneumonia Day. 

"Hillary Clinton unveils initiative on clean cooking stoves," was among last year’s highlights at the Millennium Development Goals Summit. But what has become of The Global Alliance…

Weathering a slew of bad experiences, 24-year-old Korey Anthony Chisholm has been able to take the negatives in his life and turn them into positives, displaying resilience beyond his years. Korey is no ordinary young man. In fact, if he had allowed what life has thrown at him to get the better of him he would not have been here today. But instead he planted his feet firmly on the ground, seemingly made stronger by adversity.



Brutally raped by two men at the age of 16, becoming…