 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
By Ellen Hernandez and Katie Bercegeay *
MARRAKECH (IDN) – Upon hearing the words “Hamdullah wa inshallah,” Mark Apel is transported as if in a time capsule to the many times he and Yossef Ben-Meir, President of the High Atlas Foundation (HAF), uttered them in gratitude for the food set before them or in hope for something good to come of their efforts as Peace Corps Volunteers. “It makes you more mindful of the moment,” he remarked in a recent interview conducted by Yossef for HAF.
By Ramu Damodaran
The writer is Chief of the United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI), an initiative that aligns institutions of higher education with the UN. The following article was published on the UNAI website.
NEW YORK (IDN) – An old college friend, Pramesh Ratnakar, shared with me William Butler Yeats’s recollection of his first meeting, at the age of 37, with James Joyce, who was 20. Yeats felt the meeting had gone off well and he had “conquered” Joyce until the younger writer asked him how old he was. When told, Joyce replied “it’s too late now. I wish we had met when you were younger.”
By Morgane Wirtz*
This year, hundreds of migrants and asylum seekers settled in Tunisia have packed up to risk their lives again in Libya. For them, "It is better to die for something than to live for nothing".
BRUSSELS (IDN) – It is a large white house with blue shutters in Al-Maharas, a small town in central Tunisia. The ground is immaculate. The rooms are empty. Through the open windows, we hear the sea. The scent of seaweed and sea salt tickles our nostrils. If we close our eyes, it feels like we are on vacation. If we close our eyes.
Viewpoint by Vijay Prashad and Zoe PC
This article was produced by Globetrotter, a project of the Independent Media Institute.
NORTHAMPTON, Massachusetts (IDN) – Not much, apart from football, unites the Colombian people. If a 2014 Interior Ministry survey called “The Power of Football” is to be believed, then 94 percent of the Colombian population say that football is either important or very important. Patrocinio Bonilla—called Patrón—was on the side of those who believed that football was very important, indeed essential. Patrón was murdered on August 11, 2020.
By Caroline Mwanga
NEW YORK (IDN) – As country lockdowns to prevent the spread of COVID-19 pandemic come to an end, an immediate priority is the fate of 30 million children who may never return to school, warns a United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) report.
With this in view, former world leaders, economists and educationalists say in a letter to the Group of Twenty (G20) nations and other countries: "We cannot stand by and allow these young people to be robbed of their education and a fair chance in life." They urge them to take action to prevent the global health crisis creating a "COVID generation" – leaving tens of millions of children with no hope of education.
By Jeffrey Moyo
MUSINA, South Africa (IDN) – His three teenage children play home-made paper ball on the dusty streets of Musina, exercise books scattered on the veranda of their rented home in the South African border town with Zimbabwe. Yet Gerald Gava, the children's 47-year old father, lies on a reed mat spread on the veranda, apparently with nothing to do after he stopped working three months ago as the lockdown took toll on the construction company that employed him.
Gava, who is a migrant from Zimbabwe, said even his children have had to remain home as schools also shut down, thanks to the coronavirus that has pounded the entire globe.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK (IDN) – “Feminism: Our Bodies, Our Truths” will take centre stage at the upcoming South African Book Fair taking place virtually from September 11-13 at the culmination of South Africa’s National Book Week.
Featured speakers include Mishumo Maduma, Terry-Ann Adams, Jen Thorpe and Anelile Gibixego in discussion with Dr Alma-Nalisha Cele on how women’s bodies filter their life experiences and can be tools for conformity or resistance.
UN Academic Impact Talks to Students from Several Countries
By Santo D. Banerjee
NEW YORK (IDN) – COVID-19 pandemic has forced more than 1.5 billion students in 165 countries out of school, enforcing the global academic community to explore new ways of teaching and learning, including distance and online education, according to UNESCO estimates.
This has proven challenging for both students and educators, who have to deal with the emotional, physical and economic difficulties posed by the illness while doing their part to help curb the spread of the virus, notes United Nations Academic Impact (UNAI).
By Narin B. Stassis
The writer currently serves as the Vice Chair of the Committee on Teaching About the UN. She is a former Director of Curriculum and Instruction, a lifelong Educator, and holds a Master's degree in International Education from Lesley University.
NEW YORK (IDN) – The United Nations was created with a determination "to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war". As the world body celebrates its 75th anniversary this year, the Committee on Teaching About the United Nations (CTAUN), convened a conference, "War No More", co-sponsored by the Permanent Mission of Korea to the United Nations.
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network
NEW YORK (IDN) — Zimbabwe is experimenting with a bold attempt to make parents prioritize education and bring down drop-out rates.
Harare has amended its laws to make the first 12 years of schooling compulsory. Children are now required by law to stay in school for an extra five years to 16 years of age.
It is also now an offence to expel children on the grounds of pregnancy or non-payment of fees.
IDN-InDepthNews offers news analyses, features, reports and viewpoints that impact the world and its peoples. It has been online since 2009. Its network spans countries around the world.