Activists, officials and artists, people like you, sit down with IPS correspondents to discuss the issues important to them — and to the rest of the global community.
www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/QandA/index.asp
“When I Leave My House, I’m Not Sure I’ll Make It Back”
— Afghan lawmaker Malalai Joya
VANCOUVER – Malalai Joya was four years old when her family fled Afghanistan in 1982 to the refugee camps of Iran and later Pakistan. Joya gained international attention in December 2003 when, as an elected delegate to the Loya Jirga convened to ratify the Afghan Constitution, she spoke out publicly against what she termed the domination of warlords.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39954
*****
“My Work Reflects These Dark Times We Live In”
— Stan Douglas, Canadian artist
VANCOUVER – Stan Douglas is an internationally renowned photographer, filmmaker and multimedia installation artist who has been called “one of the most accomplished Canadian artists of the younger generation”.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39887
*****
“If Journalism Becomes Further Marginalised, Look Out, World…”
— Chuck Lewis, Fund for Independence in Journalism
ROME – Shrinking newsrooms, declining sales and audiences, vanishing foreign correspondents, concentration of ownership, shrivelling papers…is journalism imploding? Can independent journalism survive?
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39837
*****
“In My Mind, I Haven’t Reached My Vision”
— jazz musician Sonny Rollins
BRUSSELS – New York’s Carnegie Hall was akin to a pilgrimage site in September when Sonny Rollins marked the 50th anniversary of his debut at the revered venue.
Jazz musicians and aficionados who have drawn inspiration from the self-named Saxophone Colossus turned out in droves: Lee Konitz, John Zorn, Pat Metheny and Joe Lovano were all spotted, as were the rock star Lou Reed and his wife Laurie Anderson.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39884
*****
“We Need Partners, Not Masters”
— Evo Morales, President of Bolivia
ROME – Bolivian President Evo Morales visited Italy recently to receive a special award for his government’s commitment to social and health issues. He has made these issues a “political priority.”
(Watch an online video of President Morales dancing the cueca “Viva mi patria, Bolivia” with a Cochabambinean “cholita”.)
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39915
*****
“Wetlands Have Had a Pretty Raw Deal, Historically”
— John Dini, wetlands expert
JOHANNESBURG – Environmental organisations can work with developers to manage wetlands in urban areas, says John Dini: programme manager at Working for Wetlands, a state organisation that tries to ensure the long term viability of wetlands in South Africa.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39858
*****
“If You Are Poor, You Are Out”
— Miloon Kothari, international housing advocate
VANCOUVER, Canada – Miloon Kothari, the U.N. special rapporteur for housing, recently visited Canada on a fact-finding mission to look at homelessness, aboriginal and women’s housing issues, and the impact of the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver.
www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39808
Read more IPS interviews at:
www.ipsnews.net/new_focus/QandA/index.asp
And more global news at: www.ipsnews.net/