Win a Trip!

New York Time's Nicholas Kristof's annual “win-a-trip contest,” for a university student to go with him on a reporting trip to the developing world is open right now. Check it out and enter!

Ivory Coast Elections

Here's a short article in the NY Times about the upheaval in Ivory Coast over the most recent election. It seems like they are getting closer to getting it right but still have to manage violence and corruption. This article gives good background info that ties in well with what we've been studying most recently.

Lost Boy Returns to Sudan

Here is link to a New York Times video story about a man who was one of the lost boys of Sudan. After living in America, he returned home after 22 years.

Ernest Cole's Photography

Here's an article about a black photographer who was exiled from South Africa in 1960 and whose work was banned. It's very moving. Make sure to check out the slide show that goes with it.

Goodluck Off to a Good Start

Here's an article on how 19 hostages were rescued by the Nigerian military. Goodluck Jonathan is the first leader of Nigeria to come from the oil-rich delta region. Remember the earlier post I had about how international the oil business is in the Niger Delta? The rescued hostages included two French citizens, two Americans, two Indonesians, and a Canadian.

Field Trip!

I checked out he Museum of the African Diaspora website and discovered that there's a special event on the day we'll be there (Thursday, 11/18). Some or all of us might want to stick around to see "DANCEfirst! Modernity/Humanity," which is free with museum admission ($5/students).

I'll make a reservation for the 8 of us at Moya for lunch. Woohoo!

Polio

Here's an article on an outbreak of polio in the Congo Republic (the smaller Congo). What struck me most was that they think they could eradicate polio worldwide with only $800 million. I liked it that there are potential rewards to changing diapers.