AFRICA
April 4, 2013
"The Palestinian Occupation: Even (Or Especially) the 'Gatekeepers' Say It Isn't Working"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"...[U]nlike the French in Algeria, the Israelis, back in history, had a leading presence in the land they much, much later moved in on; nevertheless, there are similarities. What struck me most about The Gatekeepers was reminiscent of The Battle of Algiers: thousands and thousands of indigenous faces shouting or silently expressing their unhappiness at living under the thumb of foreign occupying forces. Looking at this sea of frustration, in frames that must have come largely from official Israeli footage, I said to myself, how can the Israelis, in continuing an occupation that has lasted over 45 years, hope to contain this movement?"
Spring 2013
Belfer Center Newsletter Spring 2013
Newsletter
By Sharon Wilke, Associate Director of Communications
The Spring 2013 issue of the Belfer Center newsletter features recent and upcoming activities, research, and analysis by members of the Center community on critical global issues. This edition highlights the Belfer Center’s deepening engagement with China.
(Dara Kay Cohen Photo)
Spring 2013
Q&A with Dara Kay Cohen
Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter
By Dara Kay Cohen, Assistant Professor of Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School
Dara Kay Cohen is an assistant professor of public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and a core faculty member of the International Security Program at the Belfer Center. Her current research examines variations in the use of sexual violence during recent conflicts and draws from fieldwork in Sierra Leone, East Timor, and El Salvador, where she interviewed more than 200 ex-combatants and noncombatants. Here, she answers questions related to her research on the causes of wartime rape . She recently co-authored a policy report for the United States Institute of Peace titled “Wartime Sexual Violence: Misconceptions, Implications, and Ways Forward.”
Spring 2013
"Odumosu: Seeking Improved Understanding and Use of Technology"
Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter
By Wesley Nord
At the heart of STPP fellow Tolu Odumosu’s work is the practical application and social interactions of technological research and innovation. He believes the way humans reflect on the changes in life wrought by our tools has led to passivity when it comes to assessing the impact of technologies on man, as well as the impact of different peoples on the same technologies.
March 18, 2013
"Engineering the Future"
Op-Ed, Technology+Policy | Innovation@Work
By Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development; Director, Science, Technology, and Globalization Project; Principal Investigator, Agricultural Innovation in Africa
"With improvements in fiber optic connectivity and open internet platforms, Africa is on the verge of becoming a major beneficiary of the massive open online courses (MOOCs). There is a real possibility for Africa to dramatically improve its teaching—especially in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM)—through the deployment of MOOCs."
March 6, 2013
"In Egypt, Sliding Toward Ruin"
Op-Ed, Washington Post
By David Ignatius, Senior Fellow, Future of Diplomacy Project
A"s Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood government slides toward the financial cliff, what’s the right policy for the United States? That’s becoming an urgent question, as Egypt’s financial reserves decline and the country nears a new breaking point," writes David Ignatius for the Washington Post
March 8, 2013
"Technology Trips Over Democracy in Kenya"
Op-Ed, Technology+Policy | Innovation@Work
By Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development; Director, Science, Technology, and Globalization Project; Principal Investigator, Agricultural Innovation in Africa
"As developing countries continue to aspire to higher governance and development standards, they will also need to ensure that they improve their engineering capabilities and the associated management practices. Failure to do so can lead to humbling reversals to analog days for countries that are aspiring to become important players in the digital age."
March 5, 2013
"'In 2020, the DRC…"
Op-Ed, GLOBALBRIEF
By Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development; Director, Science, Technology, and Globalization Project; Principal Investigator, Agricultural Innovation in Africa, John C. Bradshaw and Gwendolyn Mikell
"The post-election era will require economic construction. Much of this will start with building essential infrastructure needed for growth — especially in transportation, energy and in telecommunications. The World Bank estimates the DRC's infrastructure needs at over US $5 billion a year over the next decade. After all, the country is the size of Western Europe, but has only 2,800 kilometres of all-weather paved roads running through it. This is about the same as Rwanda's networks of roads — even if Rwanda is some 90 times smaller than the DRC. The DRC also has extensive potential navigable waterways that need to be developed. And massive investment in air transportation infrastructure could make the country a hub for the rest of Africa, given the DRC's geographical centrality on the continent."
February 28, 2013
"Engineering Green Growth"
Op-Ed, Global Grand Challenges Summit Blog
By Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development; Director, Science, Technology, and Globalization Project; Principal Investigator, Agricultural Innovation in Africa
"Recent trends in a variety of engineering fields have shown the prospects of pursuing ecologically sound technological leapfrogging. For example, the rapid adoption of mobile phones in African countries demonstrates how connectivity can be increased while reducing the ecological footprint of communication. Similarly, the rapid adoption of genetically engineered crops has shown how agricultural production can be enhanced while reducing the use of harmful agricultural chemicals."
February 26, 2013
"Africa and Brazil at the Dawn of New Economic Diplomacy"
Op-Ed, Technology+Policy | Innovation@Work
By Calestous Juma, Professor of the Practice of International Development; Director, Science, Technology, and Globalization Project; Principal Investigator, Agricultural Innovation in Africa
"There are many lessons that Africa can learn from Brazil. The key is that Brazil has had a long record of creating new institutions to address major national challenges. It stands out as a leader in aviation because of having created an aerospace conglomerate, EMBRAER, whose annual revenue stands at about US$5.7 billion. Brazil offers key lessons on how to make Africa's rapidly expanding aerospace industry safer and more reliable."
