by Jordan Denari of What Kids Can Do
Click here to read the full article.
WAITSFIELD, VERMONT -- Armenian and Azerbaijani youth typically don’t have much in common, aside from their mutual feelings of mistrust. For years, they have seen their countries in violent conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh territory. But with the help of a program funded by the U.S. State Department, some of these young people have come together around a shared interest: using film and social media to create social change.
The program, Developing Online Tools for Civic Outreach and Mobilization (DOTCOM), is run by Project Harmony International. Based in Vermont, it connects high schoolers from the U.S., Armenia, and Azerbaijan.
DOTCOM’s first goal is to teach these young people to harness film and social media to address social issues and effect change. Just as important, the program hopes to begin to resolve conflicts among Armenian and Azerbaijani youth.
The first goal saw ready success. The program’s 90 youth participants learned effective methods of communication, posted short films, and blogged about social issues that are important to them. At a four-week summer 2009 conference in Washington, D.C. and Vermont, 30 of them--10 from each country--received a crash course in filmmaking. Each student received a Flip camera to use at the conference and then bring back home to continue making films. In small groups, the students created short public service announcements (PSAs) about social issues including children’s rights, media censorship, and the environment.
The challenges of conflict resolution
Whether the program achieved its goal of conflict resolution is “less definite,” according to Katie, one of the American participants.
The territorial conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has rendered dialogue between citizens of the two countries “legally impermissible and socially objectionable,” according to DOTCOM program director Elizabeth Metraux. “It’s been an enormous challenge to get students talking and to break down those hugely embedded stereotypes of the other,” she said. At the beginning of the conference, she noted, some of the Armenian and Azerbaijani students would not even make eye contact with each other.
Tessa, another American participant, was initially surprised that dialogue between the Armenian and Azerbaijani youth proved so difficult. The conference pushed her and a number of other American students, she said, to analyze their idealistic views of overcoming conflicts. Reality, she concluded, was “far from, ‘Oh, we can dance around and be happy together!’”
“We kind of agreed not to talk about the [territorial] conflict,” said Katie. “It was kind of put on the back burner.”
Talking and blogging about the conflict was not just difficult, but potentially dangerous. While the students were at the July DOTCOM conference, two young bloggers were detained in Azerbaijan for speaking out against the government.
“There are so many topics that we can’t officially discuss or run an assignment on, in terms of responding to certain political questions,” Elizabeth Metraux explained. “You want to encourage that kind of discourse on political issues. But you really have to measure that against the reality that the government is certainly not opposed to throwing people in jail, regardless of their age.”
Keep reading at What Kids Can Do..
Monday, February 15, 2010
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Twitter Diplomacy
Can new media help break the Armenia-Azerbaijan information blockade?
by Onnik Krikorian
February 2010
This is the fourth in a series of reports on relations between ethnic Azeris and Armenians that belie the tension between the two countries. Previous multimedia reports focused on villages and urban districts in Georgia where Azeris and Armenians co-exist. In this analysis Onnik Krikorian explores how new media tools could foster ties between the two groups. You can learn more about this project and see more photos and video at TOL's Steady State blog.
A week before Azerbaijani youth activists and video bloggers Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli were arrested in July in Baku, an Armenian hundreds of kilometers away in Yerevan posted a YouTube video on his Facebook page.
The video, by Hajizade, introduced subscribers of the young Azerbaijani activist’s online video channel to the now-vacant Armenian church in Azerbaijan’s capital. The message was simple. It was a virtual hand of friendship extended across a closed border and a 15-year-old cease-fire line.
For Armenian Facebook users, this was their first exposure to an image of the “enemy” at odds with that usually portrayed in local media. With a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict seemingly as elusive as ever, Armenians and Azerbaijanis are unable to visit each other’s country or communicate through traditional means such as telephone or mail. Media in both countries frequently self-censor or fall back on government propaganda when it comes to reporting on the other nation.
Keep reading at Transitions Online..
by Onnik Krikorian
February 2010
This is the fourth in a series of reports on relations between ethnic Azeris and Armenians that belie the tension between the two countries. Previous multimedia reports focused on villages and urban districts in Georgia where Azeris and Armenians co-exist. In this analysis Onnik Krikorian explores how new media tools could foster ties between the two groups. You can learn more about this project and see more photos and video at TOL's Steady State blog.
A week before Azerbaijani youth activists and video bloggers Adnan Hajizade and Emin Milli were arrested in July in Baku, an Armenian hundreds of kilometers away in Yerevan posted a YouTube video on his Facebook page.
The video, by Hajizade, introduced subscribers of the young Azerbaijani activist’s online video channel to the now-vacant Armenian church in Azerbaijan’s capital. The message was simple. It was a virtual hand of friendship extended across a closed border and a 15-year-old cease-fire line.
For Armenian Facebook users, this was their first exposure to an image of the “enemy” at odds with that usually portrayed in local media. With a peaceful resolution to the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict seemingly as elusive as ever, Armenians and Azerbaijanis are unable to visit each other’s country or communicate through traditional means such as telephone or mail. Media in both countries frequently self-censor or fall back on government propaganda when it comes to reporting on the other nation.
Keep reading at Transitions Online..
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
A Web of Peace
Journalist Onnik Krikorian recently published a terrific article about social media and conflict resolution in the South Caucasus. Part of the article, which cites the DOTCOM program, is included below. Check out the full text here.
A Web of Peace
by: Onnik Krikorian
November 27, 2009
In the 15 years since a ceasefire agreement put the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh on hold, various peace proposals have faltered. But if Armenia’s first president was even forced to resign over talk of a concessionary deal by nationalist hardliners in his government opposed to a compromise settlement, the main obstacle in recent years has been public opinion.
Bellicose rhetoric directed against Armenians in Azerbaijan has become common and recently even spilled out into something as trivial as Eurovision, while political forces in Armenia on both sides of the divide have recklessly exploited the conflict to either maintain or come to power. Meanwhile, the local media continues to perpetuate negative stereotypes of the "enemy" while propaganda and misinformation has drowned out what little genuine discussion did exist.
New generations of Armenians and Azerbaijanis are also unable to remember a time when both lived side by side together in peace, sometimes even intermarrying, with nationalistic rhetoric becoming increasingly effective in post-Soviet societies where tolerance and critical independent thinking is discouraged to justify usually undemocratic systems of governance. Some even consider alternative or moderate views on the conflict as tantamount to treason.
Keep reading..
A Web of Peace
by: Onnik Krikorian
November 27, 2009
In the 15 years since a ceasefire agreement put the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan over the disputed territory of Nagorno Karabakh on hold, various peace proposals have faltered. But if Armenia’s first president was even forced to resign over talk of a concessionary deal by nationalist hardliners in his government opposed to a compromise settlement, the main obstacle in recent years has been public opinion.
Bellicose rhetoric directed against Armenians in Azerbaijan has become common and recently even spilled out into something as trivial as Eurovision, while political forces in Armenia on both sides of the divide have recklessly exploited the conflict to either maintain or come to power. Meanwhile, the local media continues to perpetuate negative stereotypes of the "enemy" while propaganda and misinformation has drowned out what little genuine discussion did exist.
New generations of Armenians and Azerbaijanis are also unable to remember a time when both lived side by side together in peace, sometimes even intermarrying, with nationalistic rhetoric becoming increasingly effective in post-Soviet societies where tolerance and critical independent thinking is discouraged to justify usually undemocratic systems of governance. Some even consider alternative or moderate views on the conflict as tantamount to treason.
Keep reading..
Friday, November 20, 2009
Convention on the Rights of a Child Turns Twenty
UNICEF’s State of The World’s Children report commemorates 20 years of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
NEW YORK, 19 November 2009 – A special edition issue of UNICEF's flagship The State of the World's Children report, tracking the impact of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the challenges that remain, was released today on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the Convention’s adoption by the UN General Assembly.
View report: The State of the World's Children report
“The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most ratified human rights treaty in human history,” said UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman. “It has transformed the way children are viewed and treated throughout the world.”
The Convention has 193 ratifications, the process by which countries decide to be bound by the articles of an international treaty. It articulates a set of universal children’s rights, such as the right to an identity, a name and a nationality, the right to an education, and rights to the highest possible standards of health and protection from abuse and exploitation.
These rights are based on four core principles – non-discrimination; the best interest of the child as primary consideration in matters that affect them; rights to life, survival and development, and respect for the views of children.
Keep reading..
NEW YORK, 19 November 2009 – A special edition issue of UNICEF's flagship The State of the World's Children report, tracking the impact of the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the challenges that remain, was released today on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the Convention’s adoption by the UN General Assembly.
View report: The State of the World's Children report
“The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most ratified human rights treaty in human history,” said UNICEF Executive Director Ann M. Veneman. “It has transformed the way children are viewed and treated throughout the world.”
The Convention has 193 ratifications, the process by which countries decide to be bound by the articles of an international treaty. It articulates a set of universal children’s rights, such as the right to an identity, a name and a nationality, the right to an education, and rights to the highest possible standards of health and protection from abuse and exploitation.
These rights are based on four core principles – non-discrimination; the best interest of the child as primary consideration in matters that affect them; rights to life, survival and development, and respect for the views of children.
Keep reading..
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Interview with Global Voices Co-founder Rebecca MacKinnon
Great interview with Global Voices Online co-founder Rebecca MacKinnon, written by J.D. Lasica.
International bloggers network offers alternative perspectives on events around the world
Since 2005, the international bloggers network Global Voices has been one of the shining success stories in citizen media: a community of more than 200 bloggers around the world who offer perspectives frequently not heard in the traditional media.
Founded by former CNN Beijing and Tokyo Bureau Chief Rebecca MacKinnon and technologist and Africa expert Ethan Zuckerman while they were both fellows at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University (both are friends), the nonprofit organization with no physical offices offers reports and translations from blogs and citizen media everywhere.
I caught up with Rebecca several months ago to get an overview of the organization's efforts. Global Voices' importance and reach have grown even more pronounced during 2009 with the street demonstrations in Iran. Regular followers of Global Voices have been able to get a first-hand glimpse of events in all corners of the globe, from Africa and Southeast Asia to Oceana and South America. See their Special Coverage section and Top 10 video posts of 2009.
Rebecca, who also teaches journalism at the University of Hong Kong, describes Global Voices as a site where the editors curate the best of what bloggers are saying outside the Western blogosphere. "Where are the most interesting Middle Eastern and African bloggers and what are they talking about? What are Chinese bloggers saying?" The site's bottom-line goal is to curate the most interesting conversations that will give you a different perspective on what's happening around the world.
She also describes the goals of two Global Voices projects:
• Rising Voices: "One of the problems with blogs around the world is that bloggers tend to be the elites in many societies," she says. So, with help from the Knight Foundation, they set up Rising Voices to give small grants to citizens groups around the world in disadvantaged communities to help people create citizen media, particularly blogs and videoblogs.
• Global Voices Advocacy: One problem is that when bloggers around the world start to speak out, some repressive governments have blocked sites and domain and put people in jail for blogging. The Advocacy arm of Global Voices advocates for the rights and interests of those bloggers.
Global Voices content is now translated by grassroots supporters into more than 15 languages.
Looking down the road, Rebecca says Global Voices is continuing to look at professional-amateur journalism partnerships. "How do we help professional journalists connect better with this global convnersation that's taking place? How can they collaborate with bloggers to get stories out that aren't getting reported?"
You should add a Global Voices RSS feed to your news reader — it's a project that's giving voice to people in some of the most disadvantaged spots on the globe.
Check out more great articles like this at www.socialbrite.org.
Giving international bloggers a global voice from JD Lasica on Vimeo.
International bloggers network offers alternative perspectives on events around the world
Since 2005, the international bloggers network Global Voices has been one of the shining success stories in citizen media: a community of more than 200 bloggers around the world who offer perspectives frequently not heard in the traditional media.
Founded by former CNN Beijing and Tokyo Bureau Chief Rebecca MacKinnon and technologist and Africa expert Ethan Zuckerman while they were both fellows at the Berkman Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University (both are friends), the nonprofit organization with no physical offices offers reports and translations from blogs and citizen media everywhere.
I caught up with Rebecca several months ago to get an overview of the organization's efforts. Global Voices' importance and reach have grown even more pronounced during 2009 with the street demonstrations in Iran. Regular followers of Global Voices have been able to get a first-hand glimpse of events in all corners of the globe, from Africa and Southeast Asia to Oceana and South America. See their Special Coverage section and Top 10 video posts of 2009.
Rebecca, who also teaches journalism at the University of Hong Kong, describes Global Voices as a site where the editors curate the best of what bloggers are saying outside the Western blogosphere. "Where are the most interesting Middle Eastern and African bloggers and what are they talking about? What are Chinese bloggers saying?" The site's bottom-line goal is to curate the most interesting conversations that will give you a different perspective on what's happening around the world.
She also describes the goals of two Global Voices projects:
• Rising Voices: "One of the problems with blogs around the world is that bloggers tend to be the elites in many societies," she says. So, with help from the Knight Foundation, they set up Rising Voices to give small grants to citizens groups around the world in disadvantaged communities to help people create citizen media, particularly blogs and videoblogs.
• Global Voices Advocacy: One problem is that when bloggers around the world start to speak out, some repressive governments have blocked sites and domain and put people in jail for blogging. The Advocacy arm of Global Voices advocates for the rights and interests of those bloggers.
Global Voices content is now translated by grassroots supporters into more than 15 languages.
Looking down the road, Rebecca says Global Voices is continuing to look at professional-amateur journalism partnerships. "How do we help professional journalists connect better with this global convnersation that's taking place? How can they collaborate with bloggers to get stories out that aren't getting reported?"
You should add a Global Voices RSS feed to your news reader — it's a project that's giving voice to people in some of the most disadvantaged spots on the globe.
Check out more great articles like this at www.socialbrite.org.
Saturday, October 17, 2009
Youth Gather to Discuss Social Media for Nonviolent Change
Alliance of Youth Movements Looks to Social Media for Nonviolent Change
By: Daniel Farber
The Alliance of Youth Movements, a non-profit that focuses on effecting nonviolent change through 21st century tools, is holding its second annual Summit in Mexico City this week. The Summit will explore how technology, and the emergence of social networks, can help end violence in Latin America and other regions.
Jared Cohen, who serves on the U.S. Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff, said the Summit is an “illustrative example of 21st century statecraft.” Applying modern technologies as a means to catalyze social movements around the world is critical, he added.
"My recent technology delegation trips hosted by the State Department in both Iraq and just the last two days in Mexico City have shown me first hand the power that mobile is going to be in populations where virtual everyone has cell phones but relatively few have broadband access. We are already starting to see great case studies how SMS can be used to let anyone anonymously report violence, corruption and drug trafficking," said Jason Liebman, CEO of Howcast and a co-founder of the Alliance of Youth Movements.
The AYM Summit is sponsored by Causecast.org, Edelman, Facebook, Gen Next, Google, Hi5, Howcast Media, MTV, MySpace, PepsiCo, Univision Interactive Media, Inc., the U.S. Department of State, WordPress.com and YouTube.
You can tune into a webcast of the proceedings for the two-day event starting October 15.
By: Daniel Farber
The Alliance of Youth Movements, a non-profit that focuses on effecting nonviolent change through 21st century tools, is holding its second annual Summit in Mexico City this week. The Summit will explore how technology, and the emergence of social networks, can help end violence in Latin America and other regions.
Jared Cohen, who serves on the U.S. Secretary of State’s Policy Planning Staff, said the Summit is an “illustrative example of 21st century statecraft.” Applying modern technologies as a means to catalyze social movements around the world is critical, he added.
"My recent technology delegation trips hosted by the State Department in both Iraq and just the last two days in Mexico City have shown me first hand the power that mobile is going to be in populations where virtual everyone has cell phones but relatively few have broadband access. We are already starting to see great case studies how SMS can be used to let anyone anonymously report violence, corruption and drug trafficking," said Jason Liebman, CEO of Howcast and a co-founder of the Alliance of Youth Movements.
The AYM Summit is sponsored by Causecast.org, Edelman, Facebook, Gen Next, Google, Hi5, Howcast Media, MTV, MySpace, PepsiCo, Univision Interactive Media, Inc., the U.S. Department of State, WordPress.com and YouTube.
You can tune into a webcast of the proceedings for the two-day event starting October 15.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Human Rights Education in Schools
Way to go, OSCE.. this is long long overdue.
OSCE/ODIHR Launches Book on Human Rights Education for Schools
WARSAW, 2 October 2009 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and several partner organizations launched a resource book today on human rights education for primary and secondary schools and teacher training institutions featuring 101 examples of good practices.
The book, "Human Rights Education in the School Systems of Europe, Central Asia and North America: A Compendium of Good Practice", was presented in the margins of the OSCE's annual human rights conference, the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting.
ODIHR created the book together with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Council of Europe, and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
"Education on human rights is vital for a democratic society as it promotes equality, empowerment and participation as well as conflict prevention and resolution," said Ambassador Janez Lenarcic, director of ODIHR.
He added that human rights education is an important means to develop societies in which the human rights of all are respected, protected and fulfilled.
"We hope that this publication will inspire new initiatives in human rights education and encourage further implementation of those already in place," Lenarcic said.
The book includes descriptions of successful education initiatives in the fields of human rights and democratic citizenship education, as well as education for mutual respect and understanding from Europe, North America and Central Asia.
It covers key elements of successful human rights education such as normative frameworks, the learning environment, teaching and learning tools, professional development for educators and evaluation.
The publication is available on the OSCE website.
The full version, including numerous examples of teaching materials, will be available both online and on CD-Rom in December.
OSCE/ODIHR Launches Book on Human Rights Education for Schools
WARSAW, 2 October 2009 - The OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) and several partner organizations launched a resource book today on human rights education for primary and secondary schools and teacher training institutions featuring 101 examples of good practices.
The book, "Human Rights Education in the School Systems of Europe, Central Asia and North America: A Compendium of Good Practice", was presented in the margins of the OSCE's annual human rights conference, the Human Dimension Implementation Meeting.
ODIHR created the book together with the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Council of Europe, and the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.
"Education on human rights is vital for a democratic society as it promotes equality, empowerment and participation as well as conflict prevention and resolution," said Ambassador Janez Lenarcic, director of ODIHR.
He added that human rights education is an important means to develop societies in which the human rights of all are respected, protected and fulfilled.
"We hope that this publication will inspire new initiatives in human rights education and encourage further implementation of those already in place," Lenarcic said.
The book includes descriptions of successful education initiatives in the fields of human rights and democratic citizenship education, as well as education for mutual respect and understanding from Europe, North America and Central Asia.
It covers key elements of successful human rights education such as normative frameworks, the learning environment, teaching and learning tools, professional development for educators and evaluation.
The publication is available on the OSCE website.
The full version, including numerous examples of teaching materials, will be available both online and on CD-Rom in December.
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