http://www.mercycorps.org/ The Latest Mercy Corps Peaceful Change Content en-us (c) 2007 Mercy Corps http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 19 Aug 2008 15:59:01 -0700 Charity Mercy Corps In-house CMS 60 http://www.mercycorps.org/ /images/donate/mercy_logo_red.gif http://www.mercycorps.org/ 136 48 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/civilsociety/2095/ Ask your U.S. Representative to support community development and grassroots democracy in Iraq. Mon, 24 Mar 2008 10:49:03 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/kosovo/2061/ With independence now declared, Mercy Corps has captured a snapshot of how long-delayed status impacted the lives of people living in Kosovo. Mon, 25 Feb 2008 09:49:37 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/kosovo/2053/ For almost a decade, Mercy Corps has been working with families, communities, local government agencies and partner organizations to facilitate the return of families who wish to go home. Fri, 15 Feb 2008 10:56:13 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/somalia/2016/ Mercy Corps' work in Somalia ranges from helping fishermen increase their yields to teaching new conflict-management skills to building vital transportation links. In three districts of southern Somalia, a major Mercy Corps "cash-for-work" program is giving people the opportunity to earn money; helping communities build and repair infrastructure; and teaching local groups to set priorities, make plans and implement projects in the absence of strong government support. Inherent in all this work is a fundamental question for all international actors in Somalia: How do you help a failed state succeed? Since the collapse of President Siad Barre's government in 1991, Somalia has been seen as the quintessential failed state. The country, a boomerang-shaped rim along the Horn of Africa, has struggled to establish a stable government, maintain law and order, and improve the difficult living conditions most of its inhabitants endure. Economic growth is anemic outside the country's surprisingly strong service sector in urban areas. Infrastructure has been decimated. Only about one in 10 Somali children attend school. For many Americans, mention of Somalia conjures up images of "Black Hawk Down," the 1993 incident — chronicled in Mark Bowden's bestselling book and later adapted into a Hollywood movie — where Mogadishu militias killed 18 U.S. soldiers who were part of a multinational peacekeeping operation. International attention went elsewhere, but the chaos continued. Today Somalia can be considered one of the world's "silent disasters." What is labeled "Somalia" on today's world map is actually composed of three relatively autonomous regions: Somaliland, a former British colony in the northwest of Somalia, has declared that it considers itself distinct from the rest of Somalia. The region has its own system of governance and is seeking recognition from the international community as an independent nation. Puntland, in the northeast of the country, has also established its own political system, though it considers itself part of a federated Somalia and its elected leader serves as part of the country's Transitional Federal Government. Then there's the rest of Somalia, the south and south-central parts of the country. It is this area where competing clans struggle for control, where kids only dream of attending school, where infrastructure is crumbling from 15 years of war and neglect. And this is where this story of Mercy Corps' newest project in Somalia begins. Wed, 23 Jan 2008 10:37:05 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/somalia/2013/ An ethnic Somali, Abdikadir Mohamed has served as Mercy Corps' top representative in Somalia since June 2006. Tue, 22 Jan 2008 06:30:41 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/indonesia/1991/ With collaboration from communities, local organizations and government, Mercy Corps helped Aceh's tsunami survivors quickly move on with their lives. Fri, 21 Dec 2007 07:54:02 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1951/ For the last few years, 12-year-old Anita has stayed home while her peers walked to the village school. But not today Mon, 26 Nov 2007 07:05:20 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1948/ In the village of Bichpuri, trees and vegetables are part of the reason that no one is without the possibility of an education. Mon, 26 Nov 2007 06:18:19 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1945/ On a hot August day, violence and ruin came to the Geti camp. Less than a week later, good neighbors were helping shaken families rebuild their homes. Mon, 26 Nov 2007 08:17:02 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1942/ A 14-year-old son of bonded laborers brought learning to his people through literacy classes — and ended up leading a movement that resulted in freedom. Mon, 26 Nov 2007 11:32:41 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1940/ Conflict, ethnic discord and slavery have long kept western Nepal poor and hopeless. Mercy Corps is helping youth unite and change society. Mon, 26 Nov 2007 09:36:08 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/sudan/1957/ Poverty Tabaan has risen above his name and become a role model for the youth of southern Sudan. Mon, 26 Nov 2007 08:06:27 -0800 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/uganda/1922/ John Bosco Akello is an important leader in his village at a time when leadership is vitally important. Wed, 31 Oct 2007 09:52:51 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/guatemala/513/ Guatemala's long-running civil war, ethnic divides and economic woes are sparking fierce conflicts over land. Mercy Corps is working with farm families, landowners and officials to defuse the crisis. Wed, 18 Jul 2007 06:33:57 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/agriculture/514/ Unfortunately, there are thousands of families with struggles similar to those Olivia's family once faced. Decades of civil war, an inequitable colonial legacy and economic downturns have driven rural Guatemalan families further into poverty. The 36-year-long war that ravaged Guatemala was largely fueled by widespread conflicts over land tenure and abuse by the ruling class and businesses. Indigenous peoples, many of them descendants of the Maya ethnic groups, were denied land ownership or forced from tribal lands. At one point, over 65% of Guatemala's arable land was controlled by just 2.5% of the country's population. In Guatemala's mountainous Alta Verapaz department, about 90% of the population is indigenous and over 85% are rural. More than half are illiterate and 63% live in poverty. These dire characteristics resulted in a wide number of families living and working on seasonal coffee farms with no real land or homes to call their own. They have been, in many ways, survivors of economic and land systems that conspired to keep them down. When the worldwide coffee crisis struck Guatemala - and all other coffee-producing countries around the world - beginning in 2000, rural families' meager livelihoods were destroyed almost overnight. The price of coffee on the world market fell by more than half, forcing coffee farms into bankruptcy and leaving indigenous families like Olivia's with no source of income - and no land. Disillusioned and hungry, poor families have turned to civil disobedience and protests to make their voices heard. Sometimes, these protests have escalated into violent confrontations and forcible occupations of farms, making an already combustible situation even more volatile. Mercy Corps is working with disgruntled families, landowners, local organizations and the Guatemalan government to help defuse this crisis. A cooperative, coordinated strategy between all stakeholders, involving extensive negotiation and mediation, is leading to peaceful resolution of conflicts and long-term solutions. Mercy Corps' land conflict resolution uses a two-part approach: directly mediating local land conflicts and then training local organizations to be able to resolve conflicts in the future. Currently, mediation activities take place at ten regional Mediation Centers, located throughout Alta Verapaz. These centers are managed by Mercy Corps' primary local partner, the Association of Lawyers for Legal Development (JADE). The mediation process is, for the most part, driven by the families themselves. Mercy Corps encourages local people to find solutions that best benefit their communities. One of the main aims of the land conflict project is to put families in touch with resources, including local organizations, that will help them achieve peaceful resolution of their grievances. There's still a lot of work to be done - but Mercy Corps and its local partners are proving that positive, peaceful change can happen at a grassroots level. Wed, 18 Jul 2007 10:55:46 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/guatemala/515/ The terrain where both Tierra Linda and Milagro are situated was once abandoned land. Today it's at the center of a dispute, meetings and ongoing negotiation. Wed, 18 Jul 2007 07:08:42 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/liberia/1766/ Mercy Corps' work to install new drinking-water sources is setting the stage for Liberia's growth and contributing to national reconciliation, sometimes in surprising ways. Wed, 18 Jul 2007 08:40:41 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/countries/sudan/1767/ Sudanese are flooding back to border regions once off-limits due to war. A smooth resettlement, however, depends on creating economic opportunities. Wed, 18 Jul 2007 11:00:38 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/peacefulchange/1746/ Watch a video from Nike about Mercy Corps' work with the children of South Sudan. Wed, 20 Jun 2007 09:07:20 -0700 http://www.mercycorps.org/topics/civilsociety/1727/ Tjak Tohata and his family were getting used to staying in a barn - but Mercy Corps helped them return home. Thu, 24 May 2007 09:39:27 -0700