Fort Collins, CO - Environmental nonprofit organization, Trees, Water & People (TWP) has been awarded the prestigious “Best in America” Seal of Excellence from Independent Charities of America (ICA). The seal is given only to members of ICA who meet the highest standards of public accountability, program effectiveness, and cost effectiveness. Of the 1 million charities operating in the United States, only five percent meet these expectations, and fewer than two thousand charities have been awarded the exclusive seal.
Trees, Water & People is dedicated to improving people’s lives by helping communities to protect, conserve and maintain the natural resources upon which their long-term well-being depends. They develop and manage continuing reforestation, watershed protection, renewable energy, appropriate technology, and environmental education programs in Latin America and the American West. TWP’s conservation efforts have been recognized locally, nationally, and internationally.
TWP won an Ashden Award in 2005 for their work with ADHESA in Honduras, developing the Justa stove to reduce reduce wood consumption and air pollution from smoke.
Labels: Ashden Awards, justa stove, renewable energy, stove, sustainable energy, trees water and people, twp, wood stove
Ashland Community and Technical College recognized the 2012-13 scholarship recipients and donors at the annual Scholarship Reception on October 9.
The reception, held at the Highlands Museum and Discovery Center in Ashland, honored 147 students, some of whom received more than one scholarship, and more than thirty donors. A total of $243,000 in scholarships was awarded, according to Dr. Kay Adkins, ACTC President and CEO
I congratulate the students who have earned these scholarships, and I thank the donors who made the scholarships possible, Dr. Adkins said. For some students, these scholarships make the difference between going to college and not being able to go to college. Our donors, through their generosity, literally make dreams come true.
Some of this years scholarships were established by organizations, including American Legion Clarence Fields Post 76, Fifth Third Bank, Kelley Galloway amp; Company PSC, Kentucky Power, Vicky Barouxis Jenkins P.E.O. Chapter AJ, Vanhoose/Big Sandy Foundation and YWCA.
My parents believed in the value of education, and they wanted to help others with college the same way that they had been helped, said Carol Kelley, daughter of Harold and Ruie Kelley. My father established the scholarship fund many years ago, and I am pleased that it continues to provide financial support to ACTC students seeking a better life.
State-wide scholarships awarded this fall were the John T. Smith, KCTCS Commonwealth, KCTCS President's, Kentucky Colonels and KCTCS Workforce Development scholarships. ACTC institutional scholarships included the Partners in Progress, Pre-Engineering, Talent Grant and Vending scholarships.
For information on establishing ACTC scholarships through the Community and Technical College Foundation of Ashland, Inc., ACTCs fund-raising arm, contact Frank Salisbury, ACTC Director of Advancement.
Im thankful for this scholarship, said Sarah Robbins, a Catlettsburg resident and 2012 Boyd County High School graduate who plans to go into Elementary Education. It will help me complete a degree at ACTC that I can transfer to the University of Kentucky.
She received a Commonwealth of Kentucky Scholarship which is awarded to recent high school graduates who were valedictorians, salutatorians or in the top 10% of their graduating class.
It makes you feel good to be recognized for your academic efforts, said Michael R. McNatt, a Catlettsburg resident in the Computers and Information Technology Program. The scholarship will take some of the financial burden of going back to school.
McNatt decided to change fields after working for several years in the construction industry. My brother was successful in his business but always regretted not going to college. I didnt want to have those same regrets, and I thought this was the chance to get into a field I will really enjoy. He plans to transfer into a university computer program with the goal of becoming a video game designer.
The need to protect children is a universal obligation that is embraced by The Asia Foundation in its work and is explicitly required by some donors. Children who experience exploitation and abuse are less likely to fully participate in their own development, education and well-being, and more likely to suffer mental health issues, reduced educational outcomes and drug and alcohol abuse. The Asia Foundation staff and partners who come into contact with children during delivery of programs are in a position of trust and authority, and should avoid actions or conduct which may constitute poor practice or potentially abusive behavior. While The Asia Foundation has limited programming that provides direct support for implementation with children, we are committed to child protection as set forth in the following policy.
The Asia Foundation hosted the 8th annual author workshop of the Asian Approaches to Development Cooperation (AADC) dialogue series. Organized jointly with the Korea Development Institute, the AADC brings together development experts and government officials to address how Asian countries’ engagement in development and South-South cooperation is ch… Read more
The Nepal Peace Monitor: Annual Review 2017 report prepared by the Collective Campaign for Peace, presents data collected by the Nepal Peace Monitoring Project and is an effort to contribute to human rights and peace in Nepal by monitoring conflict and the nature of those occurrences. It provides a comprehensive overview of incidents documented thr… Read more
Community-based mediation is a proven alternative or complementary mechanism for resolving conflict and ensuring equal access to justice in countries that face a combination of capacity, time and cost, and social and cultural constraints that limit public access to formal legal services. In Asia, mediated dispute resolution has facilitated access t… Read more
This week, Alistair Burt, the Minister of State for the Middle East at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, UK, announced Smart Peace, a new four-year program which will deliver innovative conflict resolution programming. The Smart Peace program combines the expertise of consortium members to address the challenges of building sustainable peace i… Read more
The Asia Foundation is leading a series of programs to encourage stronger relations between Thailand and the United States. Thailand is America’s oldest friend and ally in Asia, a connection dating to the presidency of James Monroe. However, bilateral relations have been under strain in recent years with the growing influence of China and the chall… Read more
The Manila Bulletin reports on a Peace Caravan in Marawi in the Southern Philippines. Members of The Asia Foundation volunteered in the “Duyon Ramahdan, Alang sa Kalilnaw” in Marawi City. The 10-day event, which was held from June 6th to the 15th, was organized by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP). The Asia Foundat… Read more
Despite rapid economic growth, conflict has persisted in many parts of Asia. Peacebuilding efforts have often focused on the role that Western nations or multilateral bodies can play in supporting statebuilding to build peace. South-South cooperation emphasizes supporting peacebuilding efforts in partner countries by drawing on a country’s own relevant experience.
The Asia Foundation is a longstanding partner working in Mindanao in support of peace. The Foundation cooperates with all stakeholders in search of peace, including the Philippine government, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, the Moro National Liberation Front, and a range of civil society partners across Mindanao. The Foundation supports national… Read more
Three and a half years after the withdrawal of the UN peacekeeping mission from Timor-Leste, The Asia Foundation’s new survey on community police perceptions finds that Timorese people are optimistic about the security situation in their country, feelings of insecurity are at their lowest levels in a decade, and there is greater trust in the police… Read more
Late last month, a group of young peace advocates sponsored “Piece of Peace,” or POP, an art contest at a public elementary school in the town of Patikul in Sulu, Southern Philippines. The event attracted young artists from the area who showcased their talents…
The new set of post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals includes for the first time a target that specifically sets out to promote peaceful and inclusive societies, marking an increase in awareness that peace and security is critical for sustainable development.
On August 13, the Philippine polling organization Social Weather Stations (SWS) observed its 30th anniversary with the publication of Filipino Public Opinion on the Bangsamoro Basic Law and the Mamasapano Incident. The report is based on the results of nationwide surveys in March and June, and a February survey in Mindanao, supported by The Asia Foundation.
It was an admirable effort. On March 7, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), understaffed with just four commissioners left after the retirement of Chairman Sixto Brillantes, held a symbolic special satellite voter registration of Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) members and their families….
January 22 marks the deadline for a new constitution in Nepal, as committed to by all political parties participating in the 2013 Constituent Assembly (CA) elections. But on Tuesday of this week, thousands of police were deployed and schools and shops were shut down in the capital…
Conflict-affected areas of Mindanao in the southern Philippines form a complex, unpredictable, and highly dynamic environment that makes development programming very challenging against a backdrop of general urgency. Over the last 15 years, The Asia Foundation has been engaged in Mindanao…
Development assistance is founded on countless theories about how foreign taxpayers’ money can be harnessed to instigate and catalyze economic and social development and provide humanitarian benefits abroad. Basic arguments for how positive change can be achieved…
Research has transformed medicine, agriculture, and sanitation, and has helped lift many millions out of poverty. Most of the extremely poor people in the world now live in states suffering from conflict. Scholars have studied wars for millennia, but are usually concentrated on how to win them.
There is a difficult tension in the evidence-seeking agenda: on the one hand, donors seek short-term, project-related outcomes to support claims about their impact on a grand scale in a society; on the other hand, society-level impact does not seem measurable…
As we prepare for the long-awaited March 27 signing in Manila between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) of the Comprehensive Agreement on the Bangsamoro, one of the striking things of the peace process…
Since 2001, The Asia Foundation has worked intensively in the development and implementation of facilitated, interest-based mediation and is currently a recognized leader in community mediation in Nepal. The Foundation promotes community mediation as a means to improve access to justice at the local level and establish a culture of conflict resolut… Read more
As the focus of building peace in Mindanao shifts from negotiating details to the actual implementation of agreements between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), The Asia Foundation has been asked by both parties to join the five-person Third Party Monitoring Team (TPMT).
The Asia Foundation’s new study, “The Contested Corners of Asia,” highlights the growing importance of conflicts that occur within rather than between countries. In recent years, subnational conflicts between national governments and local rebel groups…
Aceh – Indonesia’s western-most province which endured three decades of a secessionist civil war that left at least 15,000 dead – is frequently cited as the best recent example in Asia of a successful peace process. However, eight years after the Helsinki accord brought an end to the conflict, new forms of localized violence are now emerging.
The Asia Foundation just launched a major new study on development and subnational conflict in Asia. “The Contested Corners of Asia” argues that subnational conflict is the most widespread, deadly, and enduring form of conflict in Asia, and that increasing development and expanding state capacity do not make these conflicts any easier to resolve. A product of a three-year research effort, the study involved nearly 100 researchers, leading subnational conflict experts…
When we hear about the current slow pace of negotiations between the government of the Philippines and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, we can lose sight of the many concrete achievements made over the years. As peacemakers on both sides of the negotiating table try to learn lessons from past peace efforts…
In a study I wrote a number of years ago, I quoted a peace activist in Mindanao lamenting the lack of success in ending the war between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF). He was speaking in the wake of President Estrada’s 2000 “all-out war” offensive that overran fixed positions of the MILF.
One of the world’s most prominent experts in Afghan art, Mr. Omara Khan Masoudi, director of the National Museum of Afghanistan in Kabul, was in San Francisco recently on a two-week exchange at the Asian Art Museum as an Asia Foundation Brayton Wilbur, Jr. Fellow in Asian Art.
Karl Eikenberry, former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan and Asia Foundation trustee, wrote in an op-ed in the Financial Times that, “Afghanistan’s future is of course uncertain. Lower levels of international support will inevitably place stress on its security forces, depress the economy…
Mindanao dominates the headlines in the Philippines this week for several reasons. There is the horrific aftermath of Typhoon Pablo (known internationally as Bopha), which slammed into an area of the island that typically does not get hit by storms. On a lighter note, but one that also riveted the nation, hometown boxer Manny Pacquiao (from General Santos City in Mindanao) was knocked out this past weekend in a surprise, convincing defeat – leading to speculation about whether his sterling career is on the wane.
On October 19, The Asia Foundation held the Manila launch of the book, Dynamics of Gender and Conflict in Mindanao, written by conflict experts Rufa Guiam and Leslie Dwyer.
It has been an exciting and emotional 10 days for the peace process between the Philippine government and the country’s largest rebel group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), which looks to end 40 years of conflict that has left a reported 150,000 dead and devastated the economy.
A fortnight ago I blogged about the energy for peace I found at two very different events in Mindanao. We might now ask: what is the origin of that energy, and of the general surge toward a peace agreement? At first glance, this may seem to have an obvious answer, since it is clear from citizen surveys…
For the first time in my life, I am visiting London. Everybody tells me how unusual is the glorious weather we’re enjoying, and that my infatuation with the city might not be as strong if the weather were more normal – gloomy and wet – but I plan to take these first impressions as fixed.
In March 2012, a few weeks before Thai New Year which is celebrated every April, a series of explosions rocked a district of Thailand’s Songkla province popular with tourists, and a business district in Yala province.
Nearly 1,500 participants from local communities, government agencies, and the armed forces gathered in late May 2012 for a Peace Festival in Thailand’s conflict-affected Deep South. The Peace Festival is the culmination…
Nearly 1,500 participants from local communities, government agencies, and the armed forces gathered in late May 2012 for a Peace Festival in Thailand’s conflict-affected Deep South. The Peace Festival is the culmination of a 2-year dialogue initiative launched by The Asia Foundation and local Thai partners. They gathered in the seaside community o… Read more
Burma (also known as Myanmar) may be on the verge of a dramatic expansion of international assistance. After last month’s parliamentary by-elections, there is likely to be more support for easing sanctions and increasing foreign assistance to the country to support the changes underway.
North Korea’s failed rocket launch accomplished the rarest of feats. The regime managed to simultaneously outrage the world and embarrass itself at the same time. Unfortunately, this increases the likelihood that Pyongyang will undertake a nuclear test…
Peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in Kuala Lumpur last week featured chocolates on Valentine’s Day. It was a light moment in talks characterized by the Malaysian facilitator as “sincere but tough.” As the next scheduled meeting in March approaches…
Since Sri Lanka’s decades-long civil war ended in 2009, we’re now witnessing the beginning of reconstruction in the country’s battered North and East. The government is rapidly investing in roads, rail, ports, and telecommunications that help connect marginalized communities with the vibrant, growing capital of Colombo.
Just yesterday, on November 15 in Kabul and Washington, D.C., The Asia Foundation released the results of its 2011 Survey of the Afghan People. The annual Survey of the Afghan People is the most comprehensive and credible nationwide poll of public opinion on topics related to national mood, governance, security, and development in Afghanistan. In 2011, the survey polled over 6,300 respondents from all 34 provinces of Afghanistan.
Religious leaders received the highest vote of confidence and optimism of the Afghan people among local governance institutions, according to The Asia Foundation’s 2011 Survey of the Afghan People. Seventy percent of respondents say that there should be regular consultation with religious leaders about problems in their area, while 74 percent rank religious leaders…
Last week, Nepal’s political parties reached agreement on the future of 19,602 Maoist ex-combatants, breaking years of political log jam. In Asia spoke with Asia Foundation Nepal country representative, George Varughese…
Over the past 90 days, the peace process between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) has been through the best of times and the worst of times. At the beginning of August, President Noynoy Aquino met…
On September 20, former president and head of Afghanistan’s peace process, Professor Burhanuddin Rabbani, received an urgent call while in Dubai: Taliban leaders were ready to talk peace, he was told, and he rushed back to his home in Kabul.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s controversial off-the-cuff remarks made earlier this month on the influence of conservative Islamic groups on the Bangladesh polity, led the Indian government to announce immediately – quite contrary to diplomatic practice – his much-awaited visit to Dhaka on September 6-7.
Thailand’s political landscape throughout much of the 20th century was populated by numerous regional or personality-based parties, and characterized by weak coalition governments. Alliances and coalitions were made and broken easily, as parties sought the best deal for their constituents and members.
Contrary to the predictions made by the plethora of political pundits watching Thailand’s elections that the Democrats would have difficulty holding their five current seats in Thailand’s Deep South, the Democrats instead ran away with nine out of 11 constituent seats.
At a polling station in Chiang Mai province, election officials were busy counting votes just moments after the polls closed for Thailand’s July 3 general election. As counting continued, each ballot was placed aside in a pile, visible to the large crowd observing.
Having served as a short-term international observer for the general election in Thailand earlier this month on July 3, I unfortunately became somewhat of an expert in the dark arts of vote buying. As one of 60 observers from the Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) deployed around the country…
On May 28, 2011, Nepal’s Constituent Assembly (CA) will end its tenure, for the second time, without having completed even a first draft of the constitution. In the lead-up to the deadline, a strike by ethnic and indigenous groups nearly shut down the nation’s capital Kathmandu late last month…
Over the last months, the world has watched as uprisings and revolutions have spread across the streets and squares of the Arab world. In Egypt, entire families – mothers, wives, daughters, grandmothers, showed remarkable courage in standing shoulder-to-shoulder with their brothers, sons, and fathers…
Earlier this month, the World Bank released its 2011 World Bank Development Report, “Conflict, Security and Development.” This highly ambitious report intends to challenge conventional wisdom and propose a new strategy for the international community to help countries emerge from war, long-running violent conflict, entrenched criminality, and fragility. In my view, the report has accomplished this goal, and in so doing, may change the way we work with fragile states and conflict-affected regions.
Since Thailand’s color politics began pitting the People’s Alliance for Democracy’s (PAD) “Yellow-Shirt” movement against the National United Front of Democracy Against Dictatorship’s (UDD) “Red-Shirt” movement, political watchers have insisted that the Thai people are bitterly divided in their loyalties to rival political factions. The view holds that an old-guard elite preference for guided democracy has collided with a populist call from marginalized farmers and wage earners to return Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to power.
In 1947, Winston Churchill said “democracy is the worst form of government, except for all others that have been tried.” When Churchill made this remark, Thailand was in the throes of developing a strong dictatorial state headed by the military. But after six decades of impressive economic advancement and social mobility…
After nearly eight months without leadership, Nepal’s parliament has elected Jhala Nath Khanal prime minister. In Asia interviewed Asia Foundation Deputy Country Representative in Kathmandu Sagar Prasai about what this news means for the peace process and what lies ahead. Read the interview.
A general nervousness around the exit last week of the United Nations Mission in Nepal (UNMIN), which monitored Nepal’s struggling peace process since 2007, was evident in political commentaries as early as last November. Perhaps because political pundits expect more from politicians than most of us do, most commentators were hoping that Nepal’s political parties would defy their history of brinkmanship…
Often, when the prospect of peace is moving forward at the national level, citizens continue to experience the impacts of conflict, particularly at the local level. This is very much the case in Nepal today – emerging from nearly a decade-long open civil war – as the Constituent Assembly struggles toward a peace process at the national level. These… Read more
During last year’s presidential election, Hamid Karzai promised to call a jirga to promote peace and reconciliation for Afghanistan’s future. After two postponements, the peace jirga finally took place in early June with 1,700 delegates gathering in Kabul. Some in the Afghan and international press have criticized the results, but the primary goal… Read more
The National Parliament of Timor-Leste officially launches a chapter of the Global Organization of Parliamentarians against Corruption (GOPAC). The establishment of a GOPAC chapter in Timor-Leste, arose in part due to a resolution from the anti-corruption conference held on April 21-22, 2010. The conference brought together members of parliament, a… Read more
Around midnight on May 28, 2010, Nepali lawmakers took a stunning last-minute emergency action that served to keep hopes for a democratic constitutional republic and a stable nation alive in Nepal: by an overwhelming majority the Eighth Amendment Bill to the interim constitution to extend the Constituent Assembly’s tenure by one year was passed. Of… Read more
On May 28, 2010, three major political parties of Nepal, including the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), signed a three-point agreement pushing the deadline for promulgating a new constitution to May 28, 2011. Without that amendment, the Assembly’s constitutional tenure would have ended without having produced even a first draft of the new constit… Read more
The Jakarta Globe features an article about a documentary premiere on the state of Aceh, which served as the centerpiece of a night of discussions about the province and its efforts to rebuild. The Asia Foundation’s Senior Director for Indonesia Programs Sandra Hamid was mentioned for attending the event. Read the full article: “Aceh’s Uneasy Peace… Read more
A news brief in The Jakarta Post about Indonesia’s democratic progress features coverage of a book launch for Problems of Democratization in Indonesia: Elections, Institutions and Society, co-written by The Asia Foundation’s Director for Gender and Women’s Participation in Indonesia Hana Satriyo. Read the full article: “Expert praises democratic pr… Read more
On election day in the Philippines, The Commission on Elections declared a poll failure in several towns in Lanao del Sur, among them the municipality of Bayang, where a peace covenant signing among local candidates took place in February 2010 to pledge support for the conduct of honest and peaceful elections in the area. While the peace convention… Read more
Among the most prominent rido (clan conflict) reconciliations facilitated by The Asia Foundation’s partners in the Philippines is the celebrated resolution to the feud between the Imam and the Macapeges clans. In the small municipality of Matanog in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), the former mayor (Macapeges) and his political riva… Read more
In an Agence France-Presse wire story discussing further investigations in the sinking of South Korea’s warship, which confirms the presence of traces of high explosives found on the wreckage, The Asia Foundation’s Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director Scott Snyder is quoted. Read the full article: “S.Korea: high explosive traces on ship wreckage.”
Twenty members of the National Police and over 500 citizens of Bidau-Santana sucos (village) in Dili, Timor-Leste took part in an ancient ceremony, called Tara Bandu, to establish a community-wide agreement for security. The ceremony was presided over by the President of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste, Jose Ramos Horta, General Commander of… Read more
On Nov. 23, 2009, the incident now widely known as the “Maguindanao Massacre,” left 57 unarmed civilians dead. The enormous media attention to this gruesome incident and the resulting local and international public outrage ensured swift action from authorities to arrest and put to trial the suspects in the killing. Amid fears of a looming rido (cla… Read more
The May 2010 national and local elections will claim many firsts: the first nationwide automated elections in the Philippines and in Asia, and also the most expensive election in the country’s electoral history. Strange bedfellows share the same stage in campaign sorties (Leftist leaders who were detained by former President Marcos share the same S… Read more
In a Los Angeles Times article about North Korean leader Kim Jong Il’s trip to China, reportedly in search of funding support, The Asia Foundation’s Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director Scott Snyder is quoted on the possible motive behind the visit. Read the full article: “North Korean leader in China seeking cash, clout.”
Following preliminary evidence from investigations suggesting that a North Korean torpedo caused the sinking of South Korea’s naval ship, World Politics Review interviews The Asia Foundation’s Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director Scott Snyder on the potential significance for both South and North Korea. Read the full article: “News Spotlight: Sout… Read more
In a Philippine Information Agency article about the launch of a Quick Reaction Team related to extra-legal killings and enforced disappearances in Palo, Philippines, The Asia Foundation is credited with sponsoring the program along with the Ateneo Human Rights Center. Read the full article: “Palo hosts launching of Leyte team vs extra-legal killin… Read more
Below is an excerpt from Mr. Torres’ chapter “Letting A Thousand Flowers Bloom: Clan Conflicts and their Management” in the newly-published Challenges to Human Security in Complex Situations: The Case of Conflict in the Southern Philippines. Life with rido is being a prisoner in your house. A person without rido can go anywhere. A person with rido… Read more
Special to In Asia A constable, his uniform freshly pressed, sits elbow to elbow with more than a dozen local residents in a loud, airless office in Pussellawa, a high-altitude hamlet nestled among the tea plantations of central Sri Lanka’s diverse Kandy district. “We’re limited,” he says. “The area we have to cover is big. We don’t have enough veh… Read more
In an article on The Diplomat about South Korea’s rise as a military power and its presence in Afghanistan, The Asia Foundation’s Center for U.S.-Korea Policy Director Scott Snyder is quoted on sensitivities surrounding South Korea’s deployment of troops to Afghanistan. Read the full article: “South Korea’s Secret War.”
The bloody, 25-year armed conflict in Sri Lanka is over, but in small, hardscrabble towns like Pussellawa – a high-altitude hamlet in central Sri Lanka – a legacy of rigid, aggressive, inherited policing tactics is preventing police and residents from collaborating to fight a surge in crime. Read more about this in our blog. The Asia Foundation is… Read more
In a Huffington Post blog piece about Afghan President Karzai’s May visit to Washington, D.C., and the influential role Afghan ministers play in decision making, The Asia Foundation is recommended as an organization that the State Department should connect the ministers with during their visit in order to raise their visibility with the American pu… Read more
In a Sun Star (Philippines) article about the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s pessimism that a breakthrough could be achieved during the latest rounds of peace talks with the Philippine government in Kuala Lumpur, The Asia Foundation’s role as an International Contact Group member is mentioned. Read the full article: “MILF sees no breakthrough in t… Read more
Asia Foundation and Australian Agency for International Development Enter Strategic Partnership to Address Challenges in Conflict-Affected and Fragile Regions
As the international community searches for new ways to deliver aid and assistance in places affected by conflict and state fragility, the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) and The Asia Foundation have formed a strategic partnership to enhance current approaches and explore new methods for supporting development, building pea… Read more
The Asia Foundation announced today it will begin repairs on the Lama-e-Shaheed Girls’ School in Kabul—a school with an enrollment of over 4,500 students from kindergarten through 12th grade. With funding from the Janet Ketcham Foundation, The Asia Foundation will make critical improvements on the school building, which was severely damaged during… Read more
In a Huffington Post blog post about what would happen to Afghanistan and its citizens if troops were pulled out of the country, The Asia Foundation’s Afghan poll findings about cell phone usage are cited. Read the full article: “Afghanistan: Fallen Soldier’s Mother Asks the Right Question.”
In a feature in The Economist detailing the current unrest in Thailand, as well as fears surrounding the royal succession, The Asia Foundation’s 2009 Thailand survey findings are cited. Read the full article: “Thailand’s succession: As father fades, his children fight.”
In a Bernama (Malaysia) article about the ongoing peace talks between the Philippine Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in the Philippines Steven Rood is quoted. Read the full article: “Good Sign For Mindanao Peace.”
Radio Australia interviews The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in the Philippines Steven Rood on the latest setback in peace talks between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front with MILF’s rejection of a power sharing proposal put forward by the government. Listen to the interview or read the full transcript: “Philippines ce… Read more
Foreign Affairs featured an online article about the status of the renewed peace talks between the Philippine government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The Asia Foundation’s role on the International Contact Group is mentioned. Read the full article: “Letter From Manila: How to Talk to a MILF.”
Radio Australia interviews The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in the Philippines Steven Rood on the ongoing peace talks between the Philippine government and MILF held at a meeting in Kuala Lumpur. Listen to the interview: “Philippines talks with separatists.”
The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Indonesia Robin Bush is quoted in a Financial Times article about Indonesia’s strategy for tackling terrorism and Islamic radicalism. Read the full article: “Indonesia’s tactical change pays off.”
On a program on KQED’s The Forum with Michael Krasny about the massacre in Mindanao, The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in the Philippines Steve Rood was a guest. Listen to the program: “Philippines Massacre.”
In a New York Times article about the kidnapping on Monday by armed men of a group of 40 people in Mindanao that resulted in at least 21 killed, The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in the Philippines Steve Rood is quoted on the violence. Read the full article: “21 Filipinos Are Reported Dead in Election Violence.”
The Asia Foundation’s office in the Philippines announced it has accepted an invitation from the Government of the Republic of the Philippines (GRP) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) to join the newly-formed International Contact Group (ICG). The ICG, agreed upon September 15, is tasked with supporting the next stage of peace negotiation… Read more
PBS’ Worldfocus features excerpts from the June 17 In Asia post “In Pakistan: Homeless in their Homeland” by The Asia Foundation’s Senior Program Officer in Pakistan Nadia Tariq Ali. Read the blog post: “Pakistan offensive nears end; refugee crisis just beginning.”
In a New York Times article about the Sri Lankan government’s defeat of the Tamil Tigers that ended the over 25 year-long civil war there, The Asia Foundation’s country representative in Sri Lanka Nilan Fernando is quoted. Read the full article: “War’s End in Sri Lanka: Bloody Family Triumph.”
In a Voice of America article about the recent protests in Thailand, Tim Meisburger, The Asia Foundation’s Regional Director for Elections and Political Processes, talks about the increased political participation leading to strengthened democracy in Thailand. Read the full article, “Thailand’s Protesters Highlight Rifts, Political Participation.”
In response to the situation in Thailand, John Brandon, The Asia Foundation’s Director, International Relations and Associate Director, Washington, D.C., was quoted in a Channel News Asia article about the U.S.’s response to the unrest in Thailand. Read the full article, “US joins other nations in condemning violence in Thailand.”
Tim Meisburger’s April 8 In Asia post “Whither Democracy in Thailand?” is excerpted by PBS’s Worldfocus website in a long feature about the situation in Thailand. Meisburger is The Asia Foundation’s Regional Director for Elections and Political Processes. Read the full Worldfocus story, “Escalating political violence in Thailand shuts down summit.”
Karl Inderfurth, a member of The Asia Foundation’s Board of Trustees, was published in the New York Times in an op-ed offering a strategy for Afghanistan to become a permanently neutral state via a multilateral process. Read the full op-ed “Ultimate Exit Strategy”.
James Klein, The Asia Foundation’s Country Representative in Thailand, has been quoted in the Christian Science Monitor on the protests shutting down Bangkok’s airports. Read the full story “Airport clash grounds Thailand.”
The Asia Foundation is supporting next week’s “International Workshop on Autonomy and Armed Separatism in South and Southeast Asia” to be held in Singapore. The Foundation’s Steven Rood, Country Representative, Philippines and Pacific Island Nations Regional Advisor for Local Governance, and Thomas Parks, Regional Director for Conflict and Governan… Read more
The Asia Foundation Announces Settlement of Imam-Macapeges RidoFor over six years, the families of Kahir Macapeges and Nasser Imam have engaged in a notoriously bloody war that has left nine relatives and two bystanders dead and 13 wounded. In the small municipality of Matanog in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), the former mayor and… Read more
The Asia Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to Asia’s development since 1954, and The McConnell Foundation are entering a new phase of a program to provide community mediation services across 12 districts in Nepal, a country coming out of a decade of insurgent rebellion. The absence of effective courts and the breakdown of traditional me… Read more
Book Will Enhance Dialogue and Understanding between Communities and Government Mindanao, home to a majority of the country’s Muslims, is a region suffering from poor infrastructure, high poverty, and violence that has claimed the lives of more than 120,000 in the last three decades. At a ceremony held today at the Intercontinental Hotel Manila, Th… Read more
Report Written by Former United States Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Jeffrey Lunstead Today, The Asia Foundation launched The United States’ Role in Sri Lanka’s Peace Process, a study that analyzes the United States’ involvement in Sri Lanka’s peace process from 2002-2006. The report, released amidst renewed fighting in Sri Lanka’s civil conflict, was… Read more
The Asia Foundation to Manage the Coalition for Constituent Assembly Support in Nepal The Asia Foundation, the premier non-profit international organization devoted to peace and development in Asia since 1954, announced today its assistance to a groundbreaking, 18-month program to ensure that all Nepali citizens are informed and equipped to partici… Read more
Study Designed to Advance International Community’s Impact in Sri Lanka during Critical Time Yesterday in Washington, The Asia Foundation and the World Bank convened Sri Lankan senior policy makers, conflict experts and members of the diplomatic community to introduce the study, Aid, Conflict and Peacebuilding in Sri Lanka, which analyzes the confl… Read more