Photo: World Fairtrade Day by John Sargent. Flickr/CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 Anyone who buys, sells or stocks goods that have achieved Fairtrade certification are not engaging in a ‘simple’ or ‘neutral’ act. Quite to the contrary, it is ENTIRELY political. Fairtrade Ireland, founded as the Irish Fair Trade Network (IFTN), in
The experiences of people seeking refuge are near impossible to understand for those of us whose lives have never been disrupted by conflict. Who do we turn to then, to make sense of such suffering? Salman Rushdie suggests that it is, “A poet’s work … to name the unnameable,” and
Ellen Brennan’s blog was a runner up in the 2015 Trinity College Dublin and developmenteducation.ie Development Issues blog series. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. When I was 5 years old I made my first trip abroad to Nogales, Mexico, only one hour from my home in the US. Up until that point I had
Picture tour of the Garden Compound: Lusaka, Zambia
Zingalume compound is one of the biggest ‘compounds’ (shanty town) located in the western part of Zambia’s capital Lusaka. Zingalume is home to a cross-section of Lusaka society including, civil servants, industry-labourers, marketeers, public bus drivers, retirees among others. An ordinary household in Zingalume compound can consist of between 4 and 10 family members
As ever, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is that the MDG Goal to increase the population with access to safe drinking water was met in 2012. But, the bad news is that the focus on ‘safe’ water hides a major issue. People (here read predominantly women)
Divided into 3 school textbooks that are 30-50 pages in length and free to download, they are packed with facts, figures and activities on distinctive themes on Africa and how these relate to young people in Ireland. The three meta themes explored – are 1) water 2) food, land and
“If you want to take action from Ireland on the issues that cause poverty and injustice around the world, then this is the booklet for you! Maybe you’ve spent some time in a developing country, and it changed the way you see the world and inspired you to do more
The Global Citizen Award is a personal development award that enables returned volunteers to share their overseas experiences and continue to make a difference to global justice issues at home
During the month of August I volunteered with an organisation based on the island of Lesbos which gives legal advice to people seeking refugee status. Many refugees find their way to the island due to its proximity to mainland Turkey which you can see from the beach, about 8km from
Is the status of a country’s democratic health a fair measure of human development gains? What about when we test this idea against the case of homelessness? A final-five finalist in the 2018 Trinity College Dublin and developmenteducation.ie development issues series, Ghalya Farahat argues it’s time to de-link the idea that
Below are responses to the HIV and AIDS pandemic from: Civil Society The Zambian Government A traditional leader, Chieftainess Mwenda Irish Aid Civil Society in Zambia: A Response The view of Women for Change on the pandemic The fight against HIV and AIDS can only be undertaken successfully when there
Data and debate. An initial reflection from Indian writer and activist Arundhati Roy: ‘Whatever it is, coronavirus has made the mighty kneel and brought the world to a halt like nothing else could. Our minds are still racing back and forth, longing for a return to “normality”, trying to stitch
Dora-Olivia Vicol explores the findings from recent research about health misinformation and Covid-19 by fact-checkers Africa Check, Full Fact and Chequeado
developmenteducation.ie’s Gina Dorso and Aoife Mc Donald share 8 takeaways from a major civil society event exploring ideas for a Just Recovery from COVID-19 based on the Sustainable Development Goals
There is much debate about the image of the continent of Africa and how is portrayed, particularly in the media.One recent article by Femi Adewunmi in the business publication ‘How we made it in Africa’ reports on a BBC Africa Debate held in Kampala, Uganda debating the theme: Africa‘s international
This week marks the 100th post since we launched the developmenteducation.ie blog just over a year ago. Thanks to all our readers and contributors for the lively discussions and debates. Sparks did fly. Disagreement was had. Long may it continue! To mark the occasion we have launched an exciting quarterly
As you log out of ‘Hotmail’ you are redirected to MSN news homepage. I don’t often take much notice of the contents of the page, however, on this occasion the new Forbes listing of the richest people on the planet caught my eye. Turns out, it was very interesting!
Migration is a human rights issue. The universal declaration of human rights outlines that humans have a right to social security, a right to work, a right to an adequate standard of living and a right to an education. People who find themselves in countries where these rights are not
Toni Pyke reflects on breastfeeding, Feminism and social media during World Breastfeeding Week 2016 (1 – 7 August). ……………………………………………….. In what continues to be popularly referred to as the ‘developed’ ‘North’ or ‘West,’ we take it for granted that we have the freedom to exercise our democratic rights – rights
It’s early August and the summer break is well and truly underway: schools are closed; politicians take some much needed respite…
All have lived in the north-eastern city of Chongjin, the third-largest city and one which is closed to foreigners. All have fled their country – the two teenage lovers who dated in secret, a woman doctor, a homeless boy, a loyal factory worker and her rebellious teenage daughter. Despite each
The Teaching and Activities Guide is designed for use alongside the microsite ‘Climate Change is About…Water’. Material on the microsite can be followed in a sequential order, and projected as a presentation if desired. It also has discrete thematic chapters – or single entries, essays, videos etc. This guide has
This briefing includes: An update on the Ebola virus outbreak, previous outbreaks and information on how the virus is transmitted Background information on ‘Patient zero’ 7 key facts Concern’s response in Sierra Leone and Liberia
Currently, we are (over)dependent on fossil fuels to heat our homes, run our cars, power our offices, industry and manufacturing, and respond to our insatiable desire to power all of our electrical goods
Whenever ethical consumption is mentioned, the first thing that crosses many people’s minds is ‘fair trade’. But ethical consumption is about much more than fair trade products. It is about consciously evaluating the consumption choices you make – deciding whether or not to buy locally-produced products versus imported ones, whether
Marjorie Laville-Pain of 80:20 interviewed Fr. Michael J. Kelly in Zambia for www.developmenteducation.ie. During the interview Michael talks to her about what motivates him to continue his work in the area – the motivation and dignity of those infected and affected by the pandemic. He discusses how he believes the pandemic should be tackled
Debating societies are more than simply training grounds for public speaking. Ghalya Farahat looks back on a recent debate about feminism and the Middle East that took place in Trinity College Dublin.
This module explores the basic shape of our world today: it highlights a range of key issues and challenges, how we see them and how others see them; it also explores key debates
Here’s a short article I wrote on ‘food dumping’ that is cross-posted from Eco-Age, an online UK magazine which covers a wide range of areas including ecological analysis, socially responsible shopping and sustainable fashion. It looks at how food aid doesn’t always do what it is supposed to, with often