Catching Up

I finally got through a major backlog of posts in my google reader, and wanted to share some of the most-interesting links here. The video and interactive map, in particular, make for a nice study break / procrastination tool if you, like me, are in the middle of midterms...

-I love maps. Especially interactive maps. Check out this map of migration, where you can select a country and see the migration patterns.

-The Clinton Global Initiative celebrities poke fun at themselves courtesy of Funny or Die (h/t A View From the Cave)

-I've been working on a couple of projects on Malawi, and Ken Opalo has some good links on the encroaching dictatorship of President Mutharika

-Jeffrey Sachs defends (and clarifies) the Millennium Villages Project, as an additional $72 million is committed to the project (full disclosure: my program is very closely associated with MVP, and if I survive these midterms there is a good chance I will be working in one of these villages next summer)

-Kenya at War - the Kenyan military has crossed into Somalia to combat Al-Shabab

-Why is the US sending troops to hunt down the LRA? It is something an old college comrade has been advocating for for years, but why now? Danger Room notes that it could be to stop a massive new assault by the LRA on civilians

-2 posts on working on-the-ground in aid/development: Tales from the Hood and WhyDev

-In general, I love A Window to Ghana and Africa, but this post in particular struck me. Maybe it was this line:

And finally, I’d advise you hang out with passionate people, if you can’t find any, may be, you can start with cutting out negative people. The people who have a million reasons why it can’t be done. Or who understand all the challenges there on the way and so advise you to take it easy. Once you cut them off, you can see more clearly.

What we need to succeed is not OUT there. It is IN us. You need to block out all the noise and passionately follow where your heart leads you.

LIVE NOW.

I've said it before, but it is such passionate people that is making my graduate school experience special.


-Finally... I've mentioned this before, but if you are interested in development issues you need to be checking Poverty Matters regularly. If climate change is more your style, be sure to check out the Earth Institute's blogs.