How many places exist where you can find people from all over the world, of all religions, and from opposite sides of violent conflict in one room discussing how to make the world a better place? This is exactly what happens in Caux, Switzerland every summer where Initiatives of Change holds its conferences. In aContinue reading “Summer Series: A Conference to Change the World”
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The Sultan and his Censors
In June 2016, Rifat Cetin was convicted and sentenced for insulting the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. His crime? Posting pictures comparing Erdoğan to Gollum. He is not the only one to have noticed the similarity. Bilgin Ciftci, a doctor for Turkey’s public health service, also faced similar charges for posting memes which likenedContinue reading “The Sultan and his Censors”
Summer Series: Writing Wrongs – The language of aid, development and neo-colonialism
She was a “white Muzungu with long angel hair” who fell in love with a German pilot, singlehandedly started a school for HIV-positive children, and managed to survive a vicious attack on her host village from genocidaires connected to the Hutu-Tutsi conflicts of the 1990s. At least, that’s the story Louise Linton tells in herContinue reading “Summer Series: Writing Wrongs – The language of aid, development and neo-colonialism”
Summer Series: Imagine a World Like This…
You wake up every morning in a refugee camp, converted into a city, commonly referred to as “the ghetto” by your Israeli counterparts; life is anything but easy. In fact, water might not even be accessible by 2020. It has been two years since your family fled from your previous home, seeking refuge in aContinue reading “Summer Series: Imagine a World Like This…”
Summer Series: Living in a Globalized World
Global Language Project is a non-profit organization that specializes in giving students the opportunities to learn languages from a young age. Angela Jackson, the founder and CEO of Global Language Project, described during her TED talk how important it is to open a child up to other cultures, while simultaneously allowing a child to furtherContinue reading “Summer Series: Living in a Globalized World”
Summer Series: Refugees and Legal Aid
The room feels almost like the waiting area at a doctor’s office. Rows of seats with armrests dividing them, 5-foot-tall translucent dividers between waiting areas, a check-in desk with two women being only as nice as they have to be. There is even a vending machine and a children’s play area, complete with games andContinue reading “Summer Series: Refugees and Legal Aid”
Does Religious Freedom Limit the Freedom and Rights of Others?
In many historically Christian countries in the West, religious freedom or religious liberty can be very different depending on what religion one follows. In recent years there have been many high profile cases involving religious freedom and restriction of this freedom in Western countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom. In someContinue reading “Does Religious Freedom Limit the Freedom and Rights of Others?”
North Korea: The Untouchable State?
In today’s current international climate, North Korea represents a giant question mark on the international agenda. No state knows how to deal with the ‘North Korean issue,’ as North Korea commonly positions itself as an individual actor on the defensive from the rest of the world. This began when Kim Il-Sung introduced the philosophy ofContinue reading “North Korea: The Untouchable State?”
Peace Parks: Nonviolence and Conservation
Recently there have been multiple studies on the correlation between climate change and conflict, notably with the Syrian civil war. A study published in PNAS quantitatively connected climate change in the Fertile Crescent, most specifically the jarring drought, with human conflict. Articles have begun to warn about the dangers of shifting blame for human violenceContinue reading “Peace Parks: Nonviolence and Conservation”
Migration and the Possibility of a Borderless World
In our 21st century world, true political defiance can occur through simple acts. The Financial Times recently published an article which presented migration as the most resourceful way to achieve radical change. Revolution in a globalised world needs neither ideology nor grand radical gestures. If you want transformation, there is no need to overthrow theContinue reading “Migration and the Possibility of a Borderless World”
Protocol Magazine 