@TheNerdologistsHow can we bring development to Afghanistan if we don’t have security? It is still the question put to us by backers of our longest war, and we buy it. How indeed, can aid convoys get through if they are being fired upon? First battle the enemy, then build.
But the argument is flawed. Since 2006 Afghanistan has had 27 PRTs (Provincial Reconstruction Teams) and each of these are foreign military led. They have a commander and between eighty to a hundred-and-fifty army personnel and only three or four civilian advisors. This is the development we are sending in. Soldiers. What does the Afghan see coming? Soldiers. What does the Afghan hate most? Soldiers. Continue Reading →
Simon Sheikh holds the title of Getup! National Director. An amazing amount of influence for anyone to hold. Getup is the community advocacy group who has been instrumental in driving issues onto government agendas since it’s inception. With just shy of 600,000 members, more than all of Australia’s political parties combined, it is one of the most powerful advocacy groups in Australia and takes it’s cues directly from it’s members.
Simon Sheikh has been running the show since 2008 when he took over from Brett Solomon. He has been driving the group forward and has overseen the effective doubling of the membership and the running of numerous campaigns on issues such as climate change, internet freedoms, mining policy & assylum seeker policy including mandatory detention just to name a few.
Simon has used film to great effect and has done an exceptional job at funding the distribution of film for social change. These often take the form of advertisments touting the getup message and are seen by millions of Australians every year.
At ‘Interesting’ on Monday the 12th of March, Simon will be addressing film-making for social change, the vital elements that make up films for this purpose and will be facilitating a workshop exploring these ideas.
For tix go to interesting.eventbrite.com.au
Speech by Brett Solomon from AccessNow.org to the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs – The Hague
December 9, 2011
Dear Ministers,
I am the Executive Director of Access Now (https://www.accessnow.org). We are a global movement for digital freedom. Being in this room is somewhat of a dream come true, because we, and other civil society organizations who are also present here, have been talking about many of these issues for a number of years now, and to see it all played out here in this room, at such a high level, is a major step. Hilary Clinton and Eric Schmidt articulating so eloquently the importance of digital freedom is a powerful endorsement the importance of these issues. Now, it feels as though we can go forward together.
Fact: While we are migrating online, we are not moving into a civic commons—rather, into a series of shiny and digital private malls. The privatized internet and corporation-owned mobile communication networks are increasingly fundamental to our ability to express our opinion, to seek, receive and impart information, and serve as gateway to all other rights in the digital age.
Because the private sector, essentially, owns the net, produces the hardware, lays the cables, stores the data and manages the networks – and is the sphere that we go to exercise our rights – it is becoming the arbiter of our freedoms. Indeed, as the internet becomes the front line of human rights defense and enjoyment, the question becomes whether the corporate keymasters to that front line really care, and how can we make them care? Continue Reading →
While teaching film studies at IQRA University in Lahore a number of years ago, a young student in the front of the class put up his hand and asked me a question. ‘Sir, all I want to do is make Pakistani version of The Matrix.’ While applauding his ambition, I could not help thinking his sights were set a little high. Not being one to douse enthusiasm and well aware that passion can build the seemingly impossible, I encouraged him to keep his dream alive. After all, in the 1950s to 1970s when his father was young, Lahore was blockbuster capital. Continue Reading →
Hi Dan, you have founded Nerdi, prior to this you were in a role as Clinical Educator with the Ambulance Service of NSW. Why the change, the desire to create and invent your own business?
I’ve always had a really strong drive to make a difference. It’s why I became a Paramedic. As a Paramedic you can make a profound difference to a small number of people each week. In the beginning I was buzzing all the time. It’s so rewarding to help people in that way
As my skills improved I realised there was always more to know. The better Paramedic education was, the greater impact Paramedics could have. I became a Clinical Educator as I knew I could have a much bigger impact in the community if I could lift the quality of Paramedic education. Instead of affecting a limited number of people each week I could indirectly affect hundreds or thousands through my students by improving their clinical knowledge and thus the treatment they administered to their patients. Continue Reading →
Dr. David Wiley is Associate Professor of Instructional Psychology and Technology at Brigham Young University. He is also the Chief Openness Officer of Flat World Knowledge and Founder and board member of the Open High School of Utah. He was formerly Associate Professor of Instructional Technology and Director of the Center for Open and Sustainable Learning at Utah State University.
The Hall Pass Tour is a series of high energy concerts designed to encourage underserved students to pursue higher education through the use of music. After the successful launch in New York City, the program begins a nationwide tour and has sixteen schools on board. The tour has enlisted the support of Kickstarter, the premier crowdfunding site for creative projects.
Apart from the main act, students have the opportunity to be the opening act. Hall Pass holds auditions at the participating schools with the best music act selected. They then have the opportunity to share their college and career aspirations and inspire their peers.
