Africa
Using Microfinance for Redemption in Kenya
September 8, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
Sam Daley-Harris, founder of RESULTS, an international citizens’ lobby to create political momentum to end poverty and the Microcredit Summit Campaign which brings small loans and other financial services to those most in need, spoke at a July 2010 TEDx Event about the driving principles and events that lead him to dedicate his life to the alleviation of hunger and poverty. He also discussed what he calls the “pitfall” of his own greatest success story, as well as its redemption.
In 2007, the Microcredit Summit Campaign surpassed its own goal of reaching 100 million of the poorest families in the world and helping to lift them out of poverty. Daley-Harris considered himself a proud advocate of the power of microfinance to alleviate poverty and hungry.
But in contrast to Daley-Harris’ success story, several other micro-financing organizations have been criticized for charging high interest rates. These organizations offer loans and other financial services to the poor, but end up making huge profits that outweigh the benefits seen by the families these companies purport to be helping. “We’ve been so successful that the whole thing is out of control now,” Daley-Harris said. “The profit maximizers have entered…
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LoneRaynger in the Land of Canada
September 8, 2010 by Nic Haralambous
A friend of mine, Fausto, is on the road with the incredibly talented South African musician, LoneRaynger. They have made their way to Canada and have been on what seems to be quite a crazy road trip.
A quick bit of background info:
The LoneRaynger a.k.a. Raymond Connell, is a South African beatboxer and a digital marketer at SA’s leading digital media firm, Aquaonline.
His two skills culminate in a pioneering Canadian tour, titled VOXBOX SESSIONS, a transmedia experiment, which means the daily itinerary, his gigs @ venues, collaborations with other musos and whatever else it throws at him & the crew, will be documented on the fly and on various media platforms for the world to witness.
Is it possible to create an army of followers by only using social media devices and without breaking the bank? Follow the VOXBOX SESSIONS and find out!
They’ve gone from serious highs – landing in Canada, gigging, having a party – to some intense lows; their tour van went up in flames and burned to the ground a few days ago with all of their equipment in it. No one was hurt so that’s a big relief, but their…
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What Do They Eat in Cape Verde?
September 7, 2010 by Sasha Martin
The magic of Cape Verdean food lies in history. This cluster of ten tiny islands and five islets dotted off the west coast of Africa was only inhabited in the 15th century, when Portuguese sailors stumbled upon them. Since that time, the islands have developed a cuisine steeped in both African and Portuguese traditions.
On any given day, fishermen can be found amidst the sea spray, casting their nets and lines in the shadow of volcanoes. They bring home prawn, shrimp, albacore, wahoo, grouper, and dorado. A brave few travel further from the coasts in hopes of bringing back a tiger shark, known to attack humans almost as often as Great White sharks. We made a wonderful spicy prawn recipe for our Angolan Global Table that is also eaten by Cape Verdeans. For a light lunch, this prawn dish could be served over a traditional Cape Verdean avocado and date salad (or dip).
Photo Courtesy of FH Mira
Cape Verde’s national dish is called cachupa, a hodge-podge stew that includes whatever vegetables and beans the cook has on hand. Hominy, pumpkin, squash, white potato, and sweet potatoes are often included. In…
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Veggies Going Once, Going Twice
September 7, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
Check out this article by Nourishing the Planet’s co-project Director Brian Halweil in the Huffington Post on how New York City’s Sotheby’s is putting heirloom vegetables, rather than antiques, on the auction block.
photo credit: Bernard Pollack
The Art of Farming project, an initiative of Sotheby’s staff and their farmer friends, is trying to garner support for the thousands of heirloom varieties of tomatoes, apples, seeds, and livestock that have been nearly lost to extinction as our food system has become more streamlined and the hardworking farmers who still grow them. It is also trying to make us realize that the price of good food and a healthy ecosystem full of diverse crops is worth every dollar and every bit of labor that goes into growing it.
To read more about heirloom varieties and the people who keep them growing see: Seeding Food Security, Maintaining the Diversity of Food Crops: An Interview with Gary Paul Nabhan, Restoring Biodiversity to Improve Food Security and Malawi’s Real “Miracle”
The Wildcoast Wildrun
September 7, 2010 by Bob Skinstad
I am no marathon runner (have never run a marathon before), but myself and Ron will be taking part in the Wildcoast Wildrun and will be running 112KM in three days, beginning Wednesday September 9th, and we could really use your support by sponsoring a kilometer for charity.
From the Wildrun mini-site
The aim of the run is simple – to raise R112,000 – that is a thousand steps to be sponsored at R112 a step. Buy one or buy a batch because believe me, we will be taking many more than that on our way to the finish line.
Click here to view the Wildrun mini-site, or to donate.
Thank you!
Best,
Bob
Innovative Africa Essays Win Award
September 7, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
Last week the National Peace Corps Association and the World Policy Journal announced the winners of their Africa Rural Connect (ARC) Essay Contest. The goal of the contest was to gain insight from people around the world about how to fight hunger in rural Africa. Ali Djeffarou (below) won first place. To read the top six winning essays, keep an eye out for the World Policy Institute’s Fall 2010 issue of World Policy Journal, a leading foreign policy publication in the United States.
photo credit: Bernard Pollack
ARC, a program of the National Peace Corps Association, is an online collaboration network that serves as a platform to encourage individuals to communicate and respond to the needs of rural farmers. Check out their site to find out more about innovative ideas they are collecting, add your own idea, and vote to help your favorite projects receive funding!
The Not-So-Simple Peanut Solution
September 6, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
By Amanda Stone
photo credit: Bernard Pollack
Check out this New York Times Magazine article written by Andrew Rice, a contributing writer for State of the World 2011: Innovations that Nourish the Planet and author of “The Teeth May Smile but the Heart Does Not Forget,” about a Ugandan murder trial. The article details the story behind Plumpy’nut, a ready-to-use therapeutic food (RUTF) that could be an answer to significantly reducing malnutrition in developing countries like Haiti, Malawi and others across sub-Saharan Africa. But this small ‘miracle’ product that could help the millions of starving children around the world pack on the pounds has caused a big stir in questions of property rights and profit.
Plumpy’nut is a registered trademark product of Nutriset, a private French company that originally manufactured and marketed the paste and is protective of its intellectual property. But some rival manufacturer factions are claiming that such a valuable product shouldn’t have a patent. According to Navyn Salem, the United States’ sole manufacturer and promoter of Plumpy’nut, doctors, foreign-aid organizations and agribusiness are all staking competing claims to own a bit…
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Video: Locally-Grown Seeds and Grains in Mali
September 4, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
Nourishing the Planet features a video each week to give you an inside peek at the different projects we see on the ground that are working to alleviate hunger and poverty. We showcase past favorites and some brand new videos you’ve never seen.
Meet Mme. Coulibaly Maimouna Sidibe of the Faso Seed Company in Bamako, Mali as she introduces us to locally grown seeds and grains from her community.
This Week’s Highlights at Nourishing the Planet
September 4, 2010 by Danielle Nierenberg
We’ve kept busy this week here in Banjul, The Gambia meeting with reporters, farmers and the Ministry of Agriculture.
photo credit: Bernard Pollack
Check out our article published in The Point newspaper. In this week’s innovation we learned how a village in South Africa is pulling water out of thin air – harvesting it from fog in a mountain pass! We interviewed David Kaimowitz, director of Sustainable Development at the Ford Foundation to learn about their new multi-million dollar initiative to address climate change by empowering indigenous peoples. We also spoke with Steve Osofsky, Director of Wildlife Health Policy for the Wildlife Conservation Society on how his field work and policy work combine to address the tensions between farmers and the wildlife around them.
Oktoberfest in South Africa
September 3, 2010 by Susan McKee
It may be spring in the Southern Hemisphere, but you can’t keep a German from celebrating Oktoberfest. Road Trips Foodies heading to South Africa in October might consider a stop in the Nelson Mandela Bay area between October 28 and 31, 2010, for the Bavarian-themed event.
There’ll be a wide range of both local and imported beers plus music, entertainment and, oh, yes, food! The sponsor is (no surprise here) the German Club of Port Elizabeth.
