The residents of Gaza have used tunnels to get around the 2007 Israeli-led economic blockade that took effect after Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip. One use, according to Global Post, is to smuggle in orders of KFC.
- Source: Globalpost
News Rounds: Malarial mosquitoes like smelly socks, Iraq is unraveling, Africa’s child malnutrition costs $25 billion and more |
Malaria mosquitoes drawn to smelly socks, scientists say (LA Times) – Mosquitoes infected with the malaria parasite are significantly more attracted to human odors — in this case smelly socks — than are uninfected mosquitoes, researchers say.
Yes, Iraq Is Unraveling (Foreign Policy) – Iraq is a basket case these days, and none of its problems came out of the blue.
Africa’s Child Malnutrition Costs $25 Billion Annually (VOA) — Sub-Saharan Africa has some of the world’s highest rates of chronic malnutrition among children. Now, the United Nations children’s agency has put a price tag on it: $25 billion a year.
What universal child care does for Norway (Globe and Mail) – Norway is ranked No. 1 in the world for productivity, measured by GDP per total hours worke. And some experts say it is the country’s generous social safety net that deserves a lot of the credit.
Microcredit helps small businesses buck the system in Madagascar (IRIN) – Microfinance is seen as a vehicle to help Madagascar attain some of its Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), particularly the goal on eradicating extreme poverty.
Climate Change Is Happening… So What? (Inter Press) – Seven in 10 U.S. citizens believe climate change is real and happening now. Yet most have never even contacted a government official about the issue, let alone volunteered with an environmental organisation or taken other action.
Feed the World: Bugs |
Jokes naturally followed the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation’s new report extolling the virtues of eating bugs.
The most popular tweet was a variant on “Let them eat cake.” Others pointed to the scene in the Disney movie the Lion King where Timon and Pumba introduce bugs to Simba. They assure Simba that bugs are “slimy, yet satisfying.”
It’s all in good fun and probably got more people to pay closer attention to an issue (hunger) in a report that would have otherwise only been discussed within development wonk circles.
Setting aside jokes and a gross-out-factor, bugs turn out to be a pretty awesome food. They pack some real protein punch and are better for the environment as compared to cows, pigs and chickens.
The Economist shows how: Continue reading
Seattle’s GiveBIG seeks collaboration amid the competitive chaos of our day of giving |
Today is the annual GiveBIG event in Seattle, a massive online giving spree sponsored by the Seattle Foundation aimed at raising money for good causes and for fostering a broader “collective” identity and appreciation for this region’s many charitable and humanitarian endeavors.
“GiveBIG is an opportunity to focus on the collective work we are doing to build a healthy community,” said Mary Grace Roske, spokeswoman for the Seattle Foundation. “It’s a day to come together.”
It’s also a day that drives many people nuts due to all the competing demands for attention from the 1,400 non-profit organizations hoping to get you to donate during GiveBIG – thanks to the event’s promise to ‘stretch’ donations (not quite matching, but adding to donations, up to $25,000) and its random Golden Ticket award.
- Joy Portella
“I recently returned from a weeklong vacation to find my email inbox clogged with more than a dozen appeals from nonprofits pleading for donations on May 15. Feeling overwhelmed, I did what many people in my position might: I deleted everything,” wrote Joy Portella, in a guest column for the Seattle Times entitled Has Seattle Foundation’s GiveBIG campaign gotten too big?
Egypt: The dark side of social media |
It shouldn’t be too surprising that social media can be a force for bad as well as good. Inter Press reports on how social media, which was credited for helping launch the ‘Arab Spring’ revolution in Egypt, is now being used by some to foment rumors, undermine opponents by spreading lies and to incite violence.
- Source: Ipsnews
Scientific American: Here’s why you should worry about one case of polio in Somalia |
My buddy Christine Gorman explains why one case of polio showing up in Somalia is so worrisome.
- Source: Scientificamerican
US government MIA on global polio campaign |
Historian David Oshinsky writes:
Since 1988, the number of new polio cases worldwide has plummeted from 350,000 cases to 223 last year. With only 26 so far in 2013, we have the smallest number of cases in the fewest countries ever, creating a dramatic opportunity for eradication. India, for example, was recently declared polio-free following an intensive effort to root out the disease.
Yet one important piece of the puzzle is currently missing: the United States.
- Source: Rollcall
Economist to Africa: If you’re so resource rich, why are so many Africans poor? |
This the point Kofi Annan has been making lately – that Africa’s vast natural resources are not getting translated into common benefits.
- Source: Economist
