Hey human, do you know your rights?

Have you ever read the Universal Declaration of Human Rights?

If yes, how about refreshing your memory?

If not,  how about going for a first time experience? It doesn’t take long. It is composed of

30 short articles and you can read it in 370 different languages.

“The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) is a milestone document in the history of human rights. Dra

fted by representatives with different legal and cultural backgrounds from all

regions of the world, the Declaration was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly in Paris on 10 December 1948 as a common standard of achievements for all peoples and all nations. It sets out, for the first time, fundamental human rights to be universally protected.” (UDHR)

If you wish to explore a bit more, check the videos of the commemoration of Human Rights day in 2008 and 2009.

The Milennium Goals and the world’s countries

PAISES is an online tool build by the The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics or IBGE (Portuguese: Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatistica) which allows you to explore the geography and the main facts of most countries in the world. It also includes flags and some photos.

In addition, it presents the performance of those countries in achieving the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals.

To access the online map, click here. Enjoy learning!

Photography as a tool for social change? How?

PhotoVoice is an organisation that encourages “the use of documentary photography by enabling those that have traditionally been the subject of such work to become its creator – to have control over how they are perceived by the rest of the world, while simultaneously learning a new skill which can enhance their lives.” (PhotoVoice’s website)

Take a look at the PhotoVoice film and galleries.

How does PhotoVoice projects bring positive social change ?????

- Promoting SELF-DEVELOPMENT through:

• “Providing a unique means for expression and creativity;
• Enabling vulnerable groups to work through difficulties or trauma that they may have experienced, in a safe and secure workshop environment;
• Encouraging participants to gain confidence in their capabilities and their role in civil society.”

- Promoting ADVOCACY through:

• “Enabling those who are traditionally the subjects of photography to become its creator;
• Giving a voice to those who are too often ignored or silenced;
• Enabling participants to become advocates for change;
• Enabling participants to inform and affect policy on local and international levels.”

- Promoting A BETTER STANDARD OF LIVING for PhotoVoice participants through:

• “Providing training in vocational photography and media skills;
• Supporting particularly talented individuals in pursuing further studies in photography;
• Setting up apprenticeship schemes and work placements in conjunction with other media and training bodies in the project countries;
• Selling and marketing images produced by PhotoVoice participants on their behalf.”

PhotoVoice’s projects have been running “since 1999 [...] working in over 12 different countries with over 1000 beneficiaries, pioneering the use of photography with refugee groups, street children, orphans, the homeless, HIV/ AIDS sufferers and special need groups. Countries that PhotoVoice has worked in include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Vietnam and the United Kingdom.”

PhotoVoice changing communities:

PhotoVoice: childrem in Toronto capturing their environment:

PhotoVoice in Kenya:

PhotoVoice in the lives of participants with spinal cord injury:

Other videos:

- PhotoVoice process

- PhotoVoice at the Youth Action Institute

Picture in this post: www.freedigitalphotos.net

Microfinance. What is it ??

“The microfinance sector is one of the fastest growing multiple bottom-line arenas in the world: an inclusive financial space that brings together social and financial returns within an atmosphere of innovation.” (Microfinance Insights)

“Grameen Bank has reversed the conventional banking wisdom by removing collateral requirement and created a banking system which is based on mutual trust, strict supervision, accountability, participation and creativity. At GB, credit is the entry point and it serves as a catalyst in the overall development process. GB sees credit as an empowering agent, an enabling element in the development of socio-economic conditions of the poor who have been kept outside the banking orbit on the simple ground that they are poor and hence not bankable.

Professor Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank and its Managing Director reasoned that if financial resources can be made available to the poor people at terms and conditions which are appropriate and reasonable, “these millions of small people with their millions of small pursuits can add up to create the biggest development wonder”. This conviction of Professor Yunus had its root in the traditional bank’s structure which has been designed in a way that would never help the poor who constitute the largest segment of the society and the ones who are desperately in need of credit.” (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation)

“Microfinance offers poor people access to basic financial services such as loans, savings, money transfer services and microinsurance. People living in poverty, like everyone else, need a diverse range of financial services to run their businesses, build assets, smooth consumption, and manage risks.

Poor people usually address their need for financial services through a variety of financial relationships, mostly informal. Credit is available from informal moneylenders, but usually at a very high cost to borrowers. Savings services are available through a variety of informal relationships like savings clubs, rotating savings and credit associations, and other mutual savings societies. But these tend to be erratic and somewhat insecure. Traditionally, banks have not considered poor people to be a viable market.

Different types of financial services providers for poor people have emerged – non-government organizations (NGOs); cooperatives; community-based development institutions like self-help groups and credit unions; commercial and state banks; insurance and credit card companies; telecommunications and wire services; post offices; and other points of sale – offering new possibilities.

These providers have increased their product offerings and improved their methodologies and services over time, as poor people proved their ability to repay loans, and their desire to save. In many institutions, there are multiple loan products providing working capital for small businesses, larger loans for durable goods, loans for children’s education and to cover emergencies. Safe, secure deposit services have been particularly well received by poor clients, but in some countries NGO microfinance institutions are not permitted to collect deposits.

Remittances and money transfers are used by many poor people as a safe way to send money home. Banking through mobile phones (mobile banking) makes financial services even more convenient, and safer, and enables greater outreach to more people living in isolated areas.Financial services for poor people have proven to be a powerful instrument for reducing poverty, enabling them to build assets, increase incomes, and reduce their vulnerability to economic stress.” (CGAP)

You might be asking yourself…

… Aren’t poor people too poor to save?

… Who Are the Clients of Microfinance?

… Does Microfinance Help Poor People?

… When Is Microcredit Not the Answer?

Check out the links on the right side of this blog for more resources.

Corruption around the world

“Corruption not only affects business relationships but poses a considerable risk inside an enterprise. This report documents many cases of managers, majority shareholders and other actors inside corporations who abuse their entrusted powers for personal gain, to the detriment of owners, investors, employees and society at large. Executives, for example, may focus opportunistically on securing generous payouts to themselves, rather than on long-term profi tability and sustainability – a phenomenon that has been identifi ed as an important factor in the current fi nancial crisis. Majority owners may try to leverage their infl uence on corporate strategy to expropriate smaller shareholders through ’self-dealing’ and similar practices. The benefits of majority control are estimated to exceed 30 per cent of equity value in countries such as Austria, Italy, Mexico and Turkey. They amount to as much as 60 per cent or so of equity value in the Czech Republic and Brazil, raising serious concerns about checks on the powers of these actors.”

(Global Corruption Report 2009, p.17)

“Countries such as Brazil, China and India already boast some of the world’s largest markets, and their companies play an increasingly active and important role in global business. As this report documents, encouraging efforts are under way to update many aspects of regulatory and governance standards in these countries. Nevertheless, these efforts need to be deepened and extended beyond the ‘first in class’ companies. Firms from India, China and Brazil are regarded by their peers as among the most corrupt when doing business abroad.“

(Global Corruption Report 2009, p.29)

Would you like to increase your awareness about corruption in the world ? Access Transparency International – the global coalition against corruption.

Check out the Integrity Awards Winners from past years.

Read the Global Corruption Barometer 2009.

If you know other interesting sources about this topic, please leave a comment sharing it.

How rich are you?

Where do you stand globally ??? How RICH  are you ???

Yes! How rich is the question because if you can read it and access the internet you might be richer than maaaaaaany people in this world. Do you want to know HOW MUCH ??? I invite you to check this website:

“The Global Rich List calculations are based on figures from the World Bank Development Research Group. “

If you have not seen the video posted on October 26th, check it out as well.

Pro-Poor Tourism. Do you know what it is?

One of the modules I have been taking at the University of Nottingham is “Managing and Marketing Tourism”. The lecturer is the Prof. Scott McCabe who has just launched the book “Marketing Communications in Tourism and Hospitality”. During one of the lectures he presented the following video which made me to research about this topic.

Feel free to navigate and read more on the links on the right side of this blog.

What is pro-poor tourism?

“Pro-Poor Tourism (PPT) is tourism that results in increased net benefits for poor people. PPT is not a specific product or niche sector but an approach to tourism development and management. It enhances the linkages between tourism businesses and poor people, so that tourism’s contribution to poverty reduction is increased and poor people are able to participate more effectively in product development. Links with many different types of ‘the poor’ need to be considered: staff, neighbouring communities, land-holders, producers of food, fuel and other suppliers, operators of micro tourism businesses, craft-makers, other users of tourism infrastructure (roads) and resources (water) etc. There are many types of pro poor tourism strategies, ranging from increasing local employment to building mechanisms for consultation. Any type of company can be involved in pro-poor tourism – a small lodge, an urban hotel, a tour operator, an infrastructure developer. The critical factor is not the type of company or the type of tourism, but that an increase in the net benefits that go to poor people can be demonstrated.” (www.propoortourism.org.uk)

The differences within countries

The United Nations Development Programme has a tool that presents some statistics and comparisons regarding many development indicators.

If you are interested, take a look at the website: Human Development Trends 2005

The presentation number 6 – Differences shows that the income difference WITHIN Namibia is like BETWEEN the richest and the poorest countries of the world. Curiously I decided to compare Namibia to my country: Brazil. Bellow you can see this comparison. Even though Brazil has a higher child survival percentage, the difference between the 20% richer and 20% poorer is very big, almost like Namibia.

Are you curious about your country ? Go to the website, watch it, and make your comparisons.