Thinking global climate change, acting...?

Reflecting on observations of the 2011 UN Climate Change Negotiations in Durban, South Africa, this blog ventures into the realms of planetary scale and grassroots action.  It begs the question, how do we reconnote "climate change" to be a force of empowerment and action, rather than of despair and disregard?

Katie Nelson
Reflective vingettes
After coming back to the States and having some time to digest over the holidays, I’m still sorting out lessons from my experiences at the climate change conference in Durban.  Below are a few vignettes of what I’ve been chewing on. Global governance is not democratic Of the 194 countries...
Not all carbon is created equal
Through the Durban Climate Change Negotiations story I’ve referred to countries’ rank in current global carbon emissions.   (e.g. China recently surpassing the U.S. to be the world’s largest carbon emitter).  However, I recently came across an article in the Guardian that paints the...
End results
The international climate talks were extended over the weekend as countries attempted to save face and hammer out a deal before wrapping up here Durban.  After three all-night sessions, passionate exchanges, and even a last minute huddle to agree on the details, exhausted negotiators announced...
The NGO Monitor

This blog is a platform for critique and conversation about grassroots humanitarian efforts for education, particularly in East Africa and South Asia.  It seeks to: advocate for the local voices being affected by large-scale and grassroots development strategies, profile non-governmental organizations and individual work, and to act as a research journal.

Jordan Pescrillo
The New Oil
The one thing that slipped my mind as I planned my research in Nepal: power cuts. In comparison to my last visit, there is a schedule for the daily power cuts. They of course are not the same everyday but at least they do not cut out whenever the Nepal Electric Authority feels like it. But it got...
I'm going to Kathmandu
As I write, I must say that my butt is unbelievably numb. I had no idea how ambitious this trip was until I am 8 hours into my 15 hour layover in Doha, Qatar. Qatar I have traveled along the foggy, almost spooky, eight hour train ride across the rusty, jerky train tracks of New York State. I have...
Full Circle
In four days, I am embarking on my second journey to Nepal. Since I traveled there in 2009, I have been planning my trip back, or rather scheming my next trip back. In order to pay for the research, travel expenses and most importantly, research assistant, I applied for a CIIS Grant and Kahr's...
From the Streets to the Internet

As political, cultural and social protests are popping up around the world, it is undeniable that the "old school" style of protesting with signs and banners has changed. This blog will analyze the use of social media in these current movements and how it is impacting the way activists, social groups and institutions organize themselves and communicate.

Bond Longley
Online Trolls: Bloggers Beware
Type into Google or any other search engine ‘Social Media’ with ‘Occupy Wall Street’ or ‘Egyptian Revolution’ and I assure you there will be dozens of articles on how social media is changing the game of protesting. It is true that social media is giving the bottom power to communicate relative to...
Media Censorship in the U.S., What's Next?
When the revolution in Egypt sprang up in January of 2011, it was obvious to most of the world the reason. Years of government corruption and oppressive behavior as well as the brutality of the police lead to a variety of protestors from different socio-economic and religious backgrounds demanding...
We are all Khaled Said
What sparked my interest in social media as a form of digitally fueled activism was an incident that happened in June of 2010 and is accredited for stimulating the revolution in Cairo. On June 6, 2010 Khaled Mohamed Saeed, a young Egyptian man, died after being arrested by Egyptian police for...
Moving Down the Pipeline

This blog will explore the issues and debates that have surfaced because of the pipeline that is planned to be an extension of the Keystone project.  This pipeline is called "Keystone XL" and the pipe itself will run from Alberta to southern Texas.  There have been protests in both Ottawa and Washington D.C. as well as across the United States. 

The pipeline was intruded on wildlife as well as human territory.  Government officials have been working hard, it seems, to cover up the issues the pipe has already caused, but opposers of the pipeline bring these stories to the media. 

Katherine Pierce
This Just In...
I just recieved this email!  Looks like we have done it!Just moments ago, President Obama denied TransCanada’s permit request to build the Keystone XL export pipeline. It’s hard to express the magnitude of this announcement. Never in recent memory has Big Oil been told, “No.” And for that, we’...
Obama Caving
The Keystone XL proposal has made it through the House of Respresentatives, "as a result of a decidedly undemocratic collaboration between Big Oil and its favorite donees in the GOP."  This article pleads for an act from the public to stop Obama from making a rushed decision.  The...
Selective Articulation Much?
The Huffington Post recently published an article that surfaced all the negative, to say the least, aspects of Keystone XL.  This article carefully walks through the current heated debates between the U.S. government and TransCanada and opposition.  Something I have been noticing after...
Heat Behind the Headlines

Climate science is undeniable yet journalists still get the story wrong. Whether it's proffering consumerist solutions or ignoring the global ethics of the climate crisis, news media portray an ideology of technology and individualism. It's time to take a look behind the headlines to find out how scientists frame themselves for media representation and who's getting the story straight.

Steve Knight
Let's Occupy News Media
Newspapers seem to convey totality – journalists say they consider all sides of a story and the New York Times motto is “All the News That’s Fit to Print” – that implies there is nothing else. Read through some climate change articles and it's clear that's far from the truth. To be fair,...
Low Expectations, Low Results
One thing i have noticed about coverage of United Nations climate change conferences is that U.S. newspapers tend to set the bar low, perhaps so people aren't outraged by lack of progress. The talks in Durban prove my point. A New York Times article on November 28 neatly sums it up with the...
Bill McKibben: Hyper-Individualism Blinds Us To Climate Injustice
Of the 18 articles quoting McKibben I analyzed, only two articles go beyond the consumerist solutions, include comprehensive coverage of McKibben’s messages, treat him like an expert, and convey global consciousness. Perhaps the most important aspect of a fair socially-conscious article is...
The Feather and the Gavel

Native American communities suffer from an array of issues, but one of the most unknown is within the law enforcement agencies and the states within which they live. This blog will discuss some of the main issues of the problem with a unique inside perspective of Akwesasne, a Mohawk territory with 5 borders.

Chelsea Francis
Can an Indian steal LAND?!
Native American people have been fighting hard for hundreds of years, since contact basically, to reclaim their traditional lands that were taken from them by force and extermination. Much more in recent decades, we are beginning to see a stronger fight to reclaim those territories that once...
Should you have to sue for justice?
Do you think that after a murder, or a murder for your loved one to be exact, there should be a full out investigation on what happened? I would think, but what if the FBI failed to adequately investigate, or if they just flat out failed to investigate entirely? How would you, as an American...
I think we have an answer… Part II
As the second part to my second series of blogs, I am going to continue on with my attempt at reporting an answer as to why Indian Country is so fragmented in its law enforcement agencies.  In my last post I discussed an article that brought into light the many pieces of legislature and...
Dark Green

This blog aims to provide readers with a clearer understanding of the full realm of actions being taken by global citizens in the name of environmentalism by focusing on the “underside” of the environmental movement through critical analysis of issues like greenwashing, ecoterrorism, and radical environmentalism.

Chelsea Alexander
Ever Heard of Greenwashers Consulting?
Greenwashers is a documentary film by Bret Malley which was first released last year. It is truly the first film of its kind, as it tackles the truths of greenwashing head-on in a variety of comedic, satirical, and shocking ways, through a "mash-up of real commercials, live events, examples, and...
It's Not Easy Being Green!
Ahh yes, Kermit, everyone's favorite frog. I'm not sure how pleased devoted Muppets fans would be if they saw the way Kermit is being exploited in this commercial for Ford. A few weeks ago, I presented an Introduction to Greenwashing which covered some of the basic forms that greenwashing can take...
The Environmental Side of the Occupy Movement
With the Occupy protests still going strong, many are taking a more critical look at the actual issues the movement is addressing. Although the environmental aspects of the Occupy movement may not be at the forefront of mainstream media attention, they are playing a significant role in the demands...
Denormalizing Malaria

In this blogspace I am examining free-market influences on disease-response efforts in Kenya and the South Indian state of Kerala. My critique reveals the economic pressures, socio-historical factors and political interests which have allowed Kerala to largely meet the medical needs of its citizens while hindering Kenyan attempts to decrease malaria rates.

Paige Veidenheimer
Anti-Communist Resentment in the 21rst Century
When analyzing what is not in the media, we see a fear of societal transition away from profit-oriented Capitalism towards people-oriented Socialism A lack of media coverage of my topic indicates that it is not in the best interest of Western media outlets to lend attention (and thereby legitimacy...
Exotic, Rare and Defying all Norms... so where's the Media?
International and particularly western media outlets have failed to cover the story of extremely low malaria rates in the poor south Indian state of Kerala.We know that Kerala has been ruled since independence by left-leaning governments which have developed locally-based malaria response...
Grassroots Politics, Sound Health Care
Kerala demonstrates that investment in human betterment is ultimately an investment in the development of the state. Kerala stands out from the rest of India and the developing world for that matter because its citizens are well educated, organized and highly politically active; Kerala consistently...
Green Living...North Country Style

The forms of sustainble living in Upstate New York are vastly diverse, yet largely unknown. Weave blogger Annie Hopkins is investigating the underreported "green living" stories, news, and accomplishments found in the North Country.

Annie Hopkins
Green Consumption
Tis the season for…more shopping? The holiday season is upon us and slowly our days are dwindling to get “the best deals in town,” the 25-50% off in stores, and free shipping! Just what every consumer needs; things and stuff and trinkets. This season, you have a choice to stand up for environmental...
Green Consumption
Tis the season for…more shopping? The holiday season is upon us and slowly our days are dwindling to get “the best deals in town,” the 25-50% off in stores, and free shipping! Just what every consumer needs; things and stuff and trinkets. This season, you have a choice to stand up for environmental...
The Blending of the Ecosystem
  The Blending of our Ecosystem Separating two countries, offering strength and dedication when needed, the St. Lawrence River is a continuous spectacle in Upstate New York. Being so close to the river, I have watched the St. Lawrence University Men’s and Women’s Crew teams battle for the...
The Drilling Generation

This blog shifts the debate about drilling for energy away from the economic framework that has flowed in and out of the political realm and sheds light on the environmental and social health effects of this addiction – effects that should change the political and social debate entirely.

Matt Ruscio
Redrawing The World's Energy Map Is Not The Answer
Technology is redrawing the world’s energy picture, yet is this the right technology?In a New York Times articles, it states that in the past few years, natural gas and hydrofracking for oil shale preserves have entered the picture as a viable alternative to foreign oil and possible a “bridge fuel...
The Muppet Agenda
On the Fox Business network last week, “Follow the Money” host Eric Bolling spent ten minutes of his show blasting the newly released The Muppets movie, calling it a perfect example of “Liberal Hollywood”Seriously? (Link to movie on Media Matters)The movie depicts three Muppet fans, who recently...
Renewable Help (Harm Principle Modernized Pt. II)
I recently wrote about The Harm Principle and how there are relationships between the foundation of Mill’s theory and the potential of a new case of crimes against peace within the United Nations: ecocide. However, does this theory hold true throughout the United States three branches of government...
Tourism Gone Astray?

Using the specific examples of the Maasai of Kenya and the Māori of New Zealand, this blog deconstructs how Western perceptions influence the tourist activity of cultural performances and the displayed indigenous people's identities.

Isabel Borman
Whose interests do these representation serve?
Now that the representations have been established, the important question is how they relate to the Maori today and who's interest its serves. In the article, "Maasai Warrior Troupe Visits Poole," the efforts of Maasai to raise money from Westerners for their village in Kenya is discussed....
The combined results
Two main patterns have been identified throughout the 60 articles analyzed.  The first is the use of colonial language.  Words like “tribal,” “primitive,” “savage,” “traditional,” “customary,” were counted as such.  The second identified pattern was the use of stereotypical...
The Maori are warriors to this day...?
A total of 16 articles about the Maori were found on the BBC website in the advanced search parameters.  The most distinguished pattern is not surprisingly the haka.  Having already gone into detail about the haka in a prior post, I will provide some examples of its use on BBC and its...
Voices of the 'Indignados': 15-M and Beyond

This blog features interviews with members of Spain's "indignados" movement, which began on May 15, 2011 when the people of Spain took to the streets to demand economic justice and a real voice in a truly democratic system. 

Marina Llorente
Asamblea de Arganzuela
El grupo de comunicación de la Asamblea de Arganzuela, distrito de la ciudad de Madrid, nos explican los orígenes del movimiento 15-M asi como su influencia en los movimientos asamblearios nacidos en la mayoria de las cuidades y pueblos del estado español en los últimos meses. La entrevista tuvo...
India: Land, Life, Learning

Ten students and two professors from St. Lawrence University recently spent three weeks travelling and studying in India with a focus on the challenges facing Indian farmers.  The trip was funded by the university's Mellon Foundation Grant For Environmental Education Initiative.  This blog is the result of their work. 

IndiaMellonTrip 
Grains of Despair: Sand Mining in India
            Driving the rural streets of India, a common sight is massive sand-filled trucks.  With just a touch of research, it is quickly revealed that the trucks are carrying the product of illegal, indiscriminate sand mining operations...
CECOEDECON
CECOEDECON brought into view the core of humanity, where women, men and children fight the daily battles of poverty, water shortage, malnutrition, and patriarchy, and, with the help of the inspiring NGO, come out with community-driven smiles and conviction.  Too often in my travels have I seen...
Natural Rubber Industry in the Global Context
India is the third largest rubber producer behind Thailand and Indonesia, respectively. Each year, Indian rubber tappers cut slits in the trunks of millions of Hevea brasiliensis trees and collect the white slippery liquid in their pails. Once it has dried, the concentrated latex is sold in sheet...
Feminicide in Ciudad Juarez

The Clinic on Human Rights, an undergraduate project at St. Lawrence University, focuses on the mass killings of women on the border.

SLU Clinic on Human Rights 
Solidarity Among Students: Reactions to the Police Shooting and Injuring a Juarez Student
Through our Clinic, we have had many opportunities to skype and connect with people currently at the border. This has allowed our class a way to form a very real and human connection to the violence that is going on in Juarez. One of our Skype sessions was with Angel Estrada, Director of the film "...
Case Studies of Feminicide
Inter-American Court of Human Rights: Cotton Fields Sentence As part of the Clinic's work, and with the help of Dr. Martha Chew-Sanchez, we were privileged enough to be able to speak with a variety of people in, and around Juarez. Some, who had been directly impacted by the systematic killings....
Feminicide in Ciudad Juarez
In our clinic, we have been focusing on feminicide in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico as a case study of the effects of globalization on human rights. In order to understand a complex situation such as the one on the ground in Juarez, it is crucial to be familiar with some background information.  About...
The Poverty Report

Urban poverty affects too many people to ignore.  Weave blogger Steve Peraza is exploring the problem's many dimensions and thinking through possible ways to solve it.

Steve Peraza
The Politics of the Poverty Line Revisited, Pt. I
A little more than a year ago, I wrote about the Census Bureau's effort to redraw the poverty line and the political clashes it might cause. Now the Bureau has worked out the kinks in their new formula and plans to reassess poverty statistics. Great timing, no? As thousands of Americans protest...
Reporting Poverty
As farsighted Americans focus on problems abroad, those beneath their noses worsen. As of late, however, the national media has begun to cover the social issues troubling the United States, especially poverty. What has prompted this change and how long will it last? Indeed, much of the attention...
Credible but not Confirmed
When airplanes flew into the Twin Towers, I was in Boston, visiting a friend at Tufts University. I watched the tragedy unfold on TV, the whole time thinking “my friends must be freaking out right now.” I couldn’t return to Manhattan for several days, but when I did, my shuttle bus brought me to...
Colombia's Displaced

Estella Hefti writes about political violence in Colombia with a special focus on the underreported issue of internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Estella Hefti
FTA vote Wednesday: Where's the discussion on the 5.2 million IDPs?
No U.S.-Colombia FTALast week, President Obama submitted the proposed trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea to Congress. Congress is expect to vote by this Wednesday. This free trade "package deal" is championed by President Obama and many members of Congress as something that...
The Battle for Land in Colombia
[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGZib2PwbXQ 400x400] Above is the trailer for "The Battle for Land" , a documentary directed by Juan Mejia Botero. Synopsis of the documentary: "Filmed across the Pacific Coast of Colombia as well as the capital city of Bogotá, the film pushes us past...
FTA, Despite Unjust Working Conditions
As the U.S. Congress gets closer to ratifying the pending Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Colombia, it is important to consider the implications of such an agreement. The U.S. currently has active free trade agreements with 17 countries , including Chile, Peru, Mexico, Costa Rica, the Dominican...
From Rome To Cairo: Struggles for Democracy

The Mediterranean is a place of apparent difference, but one in which politics and culture are often more similar than we might at first suspect. This blog looks at Italy, Egypt and the relationship each has with the other shore of the 'Med', thinking about political trends in both countries, reflecting on the dangers and opportunities for democracy each of these experiences presents us with.

 

Andrea Teti
While Rome is Burning
There has never been such rejoicing at the resignation of a post-war Prime Minster as was on display yesterday in the streets of Rome: music, popped champagne and dancing in the streets, and much talk of a page being turned in Italian history. This, however, remains to be seen. Berlusconi has...
The Egyptian Gambit
In chess, a gambit is a risky strategy in which a player offers a short-term advantage to his opponent in exchange for some other longer-term gain. The demonstrations which took place outside the Israeli embassy last night in Cairo go to the heart of the ‘Egyptian gambit’ which has been played out...
Purging State Media
In the past few days, both flagship newscasts by Italy's state-owned public service RAI, Tg1 and Tg2, have made 'mistakes' in reporting the dates for the four referenda, stating they would be held on June 13 and 14, while they will actually be held on June 12 and 13. Tg1 made this mistake two days...
Global Palestine: Contemporary Collisions

John Collins explores the global politics of violence and the representation of violence, paying particular attention to the microcosmic and prophetic location of Palestine in relation to these processes, a topic addressed in his new book Global Palestine (Hurst/Columbia UP, 2011).

John Collins
Unwelcome in Palestine
Eight years ago today, on December 22, 2003, two of my undergraduate students were denied entry into Israel at the southern border with Egypt.  The reason, the helpful border guard told them, was that they were "friends with Arabs."  He also told them that they would never be welcome...
NPR says "Wall Street yes...protestors, uh, not so much"
Today in my "Blogging the Globe" class we were discussing Noam Chomsky and Edward Herman's classic work on the "propaganda model" for understanding how the news media work to legitimate and naturalize elite perspectives and marginalize dissent in a supposedly "democratic" society.  As I told...
9/11 and the Terrorism of Language
Collateral Language“Language is a terrorist organization, and we stand united against terrorism.”  So began Collateral Language, a book I co-authored with a group of my colleagues shortly after the 9/11 attacks.  We wanted to call attention to the fact that in the aftermath of such a...
Techno-politics and the Global Stage

This blog explores the implications of technology across the global political spectrum. I focus on free and open source software as well as the democratic implications of computer mediated communications.

Ross Glover
Techies, Networks and Globalization from Dakar: Part 1
Something strangely fitting surrounds the journey of the May First/People Link, USSF technology crew arriving in Dakar for the WSF and the Indymedia Convergence Center. As we experience the technological difficulties inherent in a city with randomly expected power outages combined with general...
Dakar on Fire: Energy, Protests, and the World Social Forum
On our first day in Dakar, our real estate broker, Serge, finally found us at the air port and brought us to the apartment we've stayed at the last three days, a rather nice place overlooking a ruinous looking structure to the right and the United Nations building to the left. Not only did...

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FTA vote Wednesday: Where's the discussion on the 5.2 million IDPs?
10/10/11 by EstellaHefti

Last week, President Obama submitted the proposed trade agreements with Colombia, Panama and South Korea to Congress. Congress is expect to vote by this Wednesday. This free trade "package deal" is...

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Halloween= A chance to show your ignorance?
10/25/11 by Okiokwinon

For this post I’m going to step outside of my regular agenda and bring up an issue this isn’t just underreported, but it is also denied the time to become reported at all. I’ll be called a fun-sucker, Debbie-downer, and maybe even over-reactive, and that’s ok because it means you were paying...

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Jet lag, overstimulation, inspiration
11/29/11 by Katie Nelson

After sleeping like a baby on the plane ride here, I unfortunately spent most of last night staring at the ceiling.  Have to chalk it up to jet lag more so than anything else.  (This is my excuse for any incoherency that follows…). 

I have finally arrived at the ...

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HAKA
11/7/11 by isabelborman

In previous posts I have mentioned the haka, an iconic symbol for New Zealand, and now I must expose its significance.  The All Black rugby players perform a rugby-ized  section of the most well known haka “Ka...

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USA Today Neglects Science, Panders to Politics
10/26/11 by Steve Knight

Unstated truths in news media do not magically reveal themselves to the masses. With my stance established, I would like to expend some energy calling out USA Today for their front-page coverage of natural disasters and FEMA resources.

In USA Today...

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Weave Writers
Thomas Matt's picture
Crime and Capitalism
by Thomas Matt

This blog aims to expose some of the underreported realities behind the American justice system.   It attempts to explain why incarceration rates have soared since the 1970s while crime rates have dropped.  It also explores the role of capitalism in the prison industrial complex...
Acorde's picture
Arts and Change
by Acorde

True: the arts are underreported.  False: they don't matter.  Explore the issue with the Weave's Adriana Cordero-Calderón.
Marina Llorente's picture
Voices of the 'Indignados': 15-M and Beyond
by Marina Llorente

This blog features interviews with members of Spain's "indignados" movement, which began on May 15, 2011 when the people of Spain took to the streets to demand economic justice and a real voice in a truly democratic system. 

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