Stories from February, 2010
Voces Bolivianas: Carnival And Jaqi Aru
Eduardo Avila of Rising Voices grantee Voces Bolivianas project talks with the Bolivian periodical Los Tiempos about the project and the emergence of Jaqui-Aru, a virtual community promoting the use of Aymara on the Internet. Bloggers of Voces Bolivianas also share there experiences, images and videos of the recent carnival festivities.
Ceasefire Liberia: Liberian Citizen Journalists Counter Inaccurate Media Reporting
Vice magazine has sent a letter of apology to the Liberian Government for the forced exoticism and inaccuracies of a recent series of web documentaries published in their site. This is a victory for the Liberians and this was possible because of the citizen journalists who raised their voices.
Abidjan Blog Camps: Cocoa, Avenue Afrique And Abidjan Barcamp
Things are not always as it seems and there are stories behind stories. People read many news everyday and are usually influenced by these reports. There is hardly any effort to fact check by a common person. But blogging and citizen journalism can make a difference. The bloggers of Ivory Coast discuss about cocoa and fare trade, a new website called Avenue Afrique, the second Edition of Barcamp Abidjan and many more issues.
Featured Blogger: Saki Golafale
“Liberia is good at history making,” says Saki Golafale, one of the members of Ceasefire Liberia, citing the fact that his country was one of the first independent nations in Sub-Saharan Africa, as well as was the country that elected the female president on the continent. However, Saki also strongly believes that the Liberian people continue to make their own history after years of civil war, and he wants the whole world to know it.
Foko Bloggers Shine In The Best Of Malagasy Blogs Contest
On February 1st, 2010 the The Best Of Malagasy Blogs (BOMBS) 2009 awards were announced. We have the pleasure to inform you that several bloggers from Foko, the Rising Voices grantee in Madagascar, won the awards.
Nomad Green: Mongolia – A Disaster In The Making
Mongolia is witnessing the fiercest winter in living memory and adding to the misery decreasing foodstock may leave approximately 20 million farm animals frozen to death before Spring. Livestock being the main source of economy of the country, this points to a larger catastrophe. The citizen journalists of Nomad Green project provides some background of the disaster.
Featured Blogger: Nora Catalina Urquijo
Back in 2005, Nora Catalina Urquijo already had a blog on MSN Live Spaces, but says about her early days blogging, “what I didn't know was the power that a blog had.” Nearly two years later after joining the HiperBarrio project in the La Loma neighborhood in Medellin, Colombia, Nora Catalina has found out firsthand what its power can do for her, for her neighborhood, and for others.
EWAMT: 112 Yemeni Women Received Citizen Media Training
The first phase of the project ‘Empowerment of Women Activists in Media Techniques‘ has been completed. In spite of technical challenges like frequent electricity outages and slow internet, the project trained 112 female bloggers surpassing the target of 100 participants. A certificate distribution ceremony for active bloggers will take place this month.
HiperBarrio Is Now A ‘Nonprofit Corporation’
Hiperbarrio, the Rising Voices grantee from Colombia has achieved a new feat. After going through many bureaucratic hurdles Hiperbarrio got its legal identity- it is now a nonprofit corporation. This will allow the organization to continue to grow as they can be hired by public and private institutions for outreach activities.
