More photos from incoming students . . .

My name is Carolina Ocampo-Maya, an incoming MPA-DP from Colombia.  I have been a sustainable development practitioner during the last five years, and every day my work is more focused on sustainable agriculture and rural development.  I am passionate about rural areas and I want to share with you photos that I believe illustrate the beauty of the countryside.

Each cup of coffee has a story behind.  Here two typical Colombian coffee workers, rural people who need pertinent policies to attend their needs.  These are the people who inspire me every day.

Children from a rural community in Cartagena, Colombia.  Since they don’t have little toy cars (forget about remote control carts), they have attached LIVE crabs to strings!!!

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Yuchen PENG, incoming MPA student – This photo was taken last year when I was at NYC.

Photos from incoming students continue to roll in.  Enjoy.

Name: Nameera Nuzhat

Admission in: MPA

Pictures taken in: Bangladesh

The Bengali New Year known as “Pohela Boishakh” is celebrated very big in Bangladesh by people of all religions and caste in union. As opposed to the western New Year where celebrations begin at midnight, the Bengali ritual is to rejoice at the break of dawn with traditional dance, music and food. This is at six thirty in the morning when performers and audience gathered for some entertainment, “Pohela Boishakh” style.

Little ones are super excited and dressed up in Sarees to perform in shows celebrating the arrival of spring. “Bashonti” (yellow and Orange) is the color of “Boshonto” (spring) and everyone around the country dress in yellow attire on the first day of the month of “Falgun” to welcome spring and youth.

Weavers of Roopganj (literally means the village of beauty), beside the Shitalakkhya river are the only people apt at making this special kind of fabric called Dhakai Jamdani. A saree (six metres of fabric) of such intricacy takes about 3 months to make and draws about  US $ 350 at a fine store/ boutique. Sadly the poor weavers have to be satisfied with $ 80 at most for a piece that is sold for so much higher.

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Name:  Tanita María Preston Bertie.

Program:  MPA

My hand – Taken by my other hand in Lahore, Pakistan, on December 27th. As women inside the house got prepared to attend the wedding – main purpose of the trip –  the streets were adorned with marching women remembering Benazir Bhutto.  This picture always makes me remember too.

Sunrise in the Atlantic ocean on a regatta to San Blas, Panama. I have no words

I just like this picture. Nature framing nature, I took this one scuba diving in the Cayman Islands … by the way…love Scuba Diving!