Appreciating Strengths….

Traditionally, mostly after the learning event, participants, on a blank page pasted on the back of their colleagues, write the strengths they have observed of that person over the period of their interaction.

But, it was done differently for the 28 participants of the recent community life competence learning event in Guyana in September.

On the morning of the final day, each participant was…

Dear friends, 

Last month I attended the annual conference of the Human Capability Development Association (HCDA) in the Hague. Their research work is rooted in the 'Capabilities approach' of which Amartya Sen, Martha Nussbaum and others are the major architects. 

I just received their last newsletter and the short article on Sen's view on evaluation was really striking for me.

Although this blog is not a direct experience with a local response, I found that what I read…

Today marks World Mental Health Day, a day designed to raise public attention about mental health issues whilst also encouraging open and honest discussion about the topic.

This year’s theme is “investing in mental health” which seems highly apt given that the World Health Organisation estimates that the resources allocated for mental health are “inadequate especially in low resource countries”. “Low- and middle-income countries spend less than two per cent of their health budget on…

Community Action Day

Imelda Village, Midsayap, North Cotabato, Philippines, September 5, 2011Community Action Day

Geographical Location: Midsayap is a first class municipality situated in the province of North Cotabato, Region 12, Philippines. Its geographical coordinates are 7° 11' 27" North, 124° 31' 49" East.  Midsayap has 57 barangays (smallest administrative unit, also Filipino term for villages). Midsayap means “person wearing a…

Despite the fact that major childhood diseases have been identified and modern technology to combat them developed, yet, children in Sierra Leone die in large number from the attacks of these diseases. The adduced reason is deeply rooted in people’s…

Lou Compernolle sent us this as it reflects our principles.

An enterprise in Addis managed to get 90% of its staff to test for HIV in 120 days by using Rapid Results. The head of the consultancy says: 

What’s missing to turn poor places into rich places isn’t more information, money, technology, workshops, programs, evaluation or any of the other things that development organizations normally provide. …

Instead of looking for weaknesses that we can correct, we begin  to look for strengths that we can support.

Instead of looking for opportunities to do things to them or for them, we start to look at how we can learn from them.

With these principles in mind, some volunteers and us brought together  6 youths and 13 adults who resided in the same block to “build a dream” for their…

More recently, a…

It is a widely held belief that religion is the cause of all conflicts, past and present; that religion and peace are simply not compatible.  However, with a vast proportion of the world’s population subscribing to one religion or another, can it really be an issue to ignore?

Baha’i’s believe that “world peace is not only possible but inevitable”, a central tenet to their faith; they put forth a seminal statement in 1985 stating that:…

Background

Jean-Louis Lamboray, chair of the Constellation made an introductory visit to Moscow in May 2010, where UNAIDS Regional Support Team (RST), CSOs and city mayors showed interest to apply the AIDS Competence Process in the Russian context.

Learning events and blended learning

The Blended Learning modules for facilitators on the AIDS Competence Process were translated in Russian. The local facilitators from Moscow,…

SALT - ed

It’s not every day that the family huddles together to speak openly about personal strengths, hopes and fears. And, when such a day occurs; poignant effects are nothing but expected.

That could be the prologue to what…

How-matters.org is featuring two posts today as part of the Girl Effect Blogging Campaign. 

Part 1 discusses how grassroots organizations, as powerful actors that find and reach marginalized girls, are key to unlocking girls’ potential.

Because they are embedded in the communities they…

Stronger, more sustainable community-based organizations can contribute to a more effective and participatory civil society response to the needs of vulnerable people in the developing world.

Donors can support organizations even at the beginning stages of organizational development with an intent to leave groups stronger than when they first entered into partnership. Different types of capacity building activities such as exchange visits and mentoring relationships between…

UN AIDS is mapping the youth networks and organizations in India , which an step towards the framing of New Generation Leadership Strategy of UN AIDS.

We need your support to map the Youth Organizations / Networks / Clubs which are in…

The “beast” had eaten all of the chickens.

That is why the income-generating activity undertaken by this small group in Malawi had not yet seen any profit, they explained. This is also why the group wanted to abandon chicken-rearing in favor of installing a paraffin pump, something that would require much less upkeep, inputs, and security.

What would it take for you to fund this youthful, energetic, but inexperienced group again?

A little faith? Or a lot for that…

Congratulations to all folks associated with the PBS film, Good Fortune, who last night won a News & Documentary Emmy Award! A well-deserved recognition, this is a must-see film for anyone concerned with aid effectiveness.

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Good Fortune is (as of last night) an Emmy-winning PBS documentary that is a provocative exploration of how massive international efforts to alleviate…