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New Media Task Force Student Group

Posted by Matt Clemons

· Tuesday, November 2nd, 2010

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There are lots of ways for SIPA students to keep busy and pursue their interests. One way is through student groups. Currently there are 37 student groups at SIPA and one of the newest groups is the New Media Task Force. The following post was submitted by Sawako Sonoyama.

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I would like to introduce a new student group at SIPA, the New Media Task Force. We are thrilled that our student group exists at SIPA. The time is right—there has been a tremendous need for this community at SIPA: a student group that focuses on information and communication technology for development, crisis mapping, and mobile for health.

The New Media Task Force was initiated under the supportive umbrella of the UN Studies Program Working Group. Launching as the “UNICEF New Media Task Force”, we focused on research, internship, and networking opportunities with the UNICEF innovations department. Although the Task Force started as a small group of interested individuals, the number of people engaged in the Task Force grew every year. In DATE Sean Blaschke ( MIA 2010) and his team received the first-place award in the ‘Development 2.0 Challenge’ of the US Agency for International Development. For this project, they worked with RapidSMS, a system leverages basic mobile phones and text messages, to collect health information and improved the speed and quality of health data collection in Malawi. This award brought a lot of media attention to SIPA and its activities in technology for development, especially in the use of mobile.

The biggest turning point for the New Media Task Force was the launch of crisis mapping at SIPA. On February 27, 2010, SIPA students were listening to Patrick Meier speak at a conference titled “Policy Making in the Digital Age,” hosted by The Morningside Post. He spoke about a process called “crisis mapping” and a new technology platform called Ushahidi that had greatly aided relief workers after the Haiti earthquake. That same day, a tremendous earthquake of magnitude 8.8 occurred off the coast of the Maule Region of Chile. When Meier asked if anybody was interested in holding crisis mapping training sessions for the Chile earthquake, SIPA students stepped in.

From a volunteer standpoint, the earthquake could not have happened in a worse timing—during midterms. However, brutal econ tests did not phase SIPA students. Within 48 hours of the earthquake, over 60 students were trained to monitor media sources, map GPS coordinates, and report earthquake related incidents. For weeks after the earthquake, countless students stopped by the Situation Room to help out. We were so impressed with the passion and dedication that SIPA students demonstrated in assisting the people of Chile. These actions were a true testiment of the character of SIPA students.

Ushahidi-Chile brought a tremendous amount of media attention to SIPA, which included Al Jazeera filming a training session. The Ushahidi-Chile instance was a great example of how students can mobilize and make a tangible difference to those in need, continents away. At that time, we also recognized that Chile was only one of many crises, and that there was great potential in formalizing and institutionalizing Crisis Mapping at SIPA so that students would be able to assist in future crises. Additionally, we realized that we had the opportunity to bring extremely valuable skills to SIPA students, skills that are in high demand by organizations such as OCHA, the World Bank, and other agencies. During the chaotic time of crisis mapping for the Chile earthquake, it was decided that the New Media Task Force would branch out from UNSPWG and officially become a student group.

The New Media Task Force was approved officially at the end of May 2010. We truly appreciate UNSPWG’s support, providing us with both institutional and moral guidance in launching our student group. We would also like to thank Professor Lindenmayer for her guidance in working on the earthquake relief; her experience in Haiti gave us a deeper insight on what it means to work in a crisis situation. Thanks to their guidance and SIPA’s support, the Task Force now has the capacity to make an impact in the fields of crisis mapping and information and communication technology for development.

The New Media Task Force’s mission is to increase student knowledge of how technology can support decision-making in international affairs and to expand opportunities for students within the information and communication technology for development space. Through projects, panels, and events, we aim to create a community around new media for development and promote practical research and internship opportunities for SIPA students. Additionally, the New Media Task Force supports SIPA curriculum development around technology for development. Our students and alumni work globally with organizations such as The Earth Institute, UNICEF, OCHA, Ushahidi, and UNDP. One of our primary activities is Crisis Mapping, an international effort to respond to disasters around the globe, and our volunteers provide essential information within the first few essential days following a disaster.

We look forward to welcoming more students who is interested in technology and development.

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Categories : Meet Seeples, News

Tags : extracurricular, student group, student life

New Track in Energy and Environment Concentration

Posted by Matt Clemons

· Wednesday, October 27th, 2010

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The following was a message passed on to the SIPA community by Dean John Coatsworth.

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I am pleased to announce that in response to growing student interest, SIPA’s Energy and Environment Concentration has launched a new, third track in Sustainable Energy Policy. This new track will be directed by Adjunct Professor Ellen Morris, who has taught highly popular and successful energy courses at SIPA for several years, and who also has assumed the role of Director of the existing track in International Energy Management and Policy
(IEMP) in the Energy and Environment Concentration.

SIPA is highly fortunate — and I am personally grateful — that Professor Morris has agreed to undertake this critical leadership role in our teaching and curriculum development of energy policy and finance. I am confident she
will provide students of the energy tracks with the perfect blend of academic insight and practical experience in the public, private and non-profit sectors.

The new Sustainable Energy Policy track focuses on the national and international policies and practices aimed at ensuring a sustainable energy future, with a particular focus on policies and practices that support
small-scale energy production and enterprise development. The IEMP track, which launched in Fall 2009, will continue to focus on energy development and production, particularly large-scale infrastructure projects that
involve extensive interaction between the private and public sectors for energy management and policy. SIPA’s Energy and Environment Concentration, which is directed by Professor Steven Cohen, also includes the Environment
track, which focuses on the policy and management knowledge required to address the world’s most pressing environmental sustainability issues.

Professor Morris co-teaches with Philip LaRocco the much in-demand, two-semester sequence, “Energy Business and Economic Development” and “Capstone Workshop in Energy and Development.” She is the founder and
president of Sustainable Energy Solutions, a consultancy providing research and policy analysis on the role of energy in international development, and a co-founder and Board Member of Arc Finance, a non-profit organization that
facilitates financing for modern energy, water and other basic needs for people in developing countries. Professor Morris previously served as a senior consultant for sustainable energy programs at the United Nations
Development Program and as an analyst on international programs for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Ellen holds a Ph.D. in marine geophysics from the University of Rhode Island and a Bachelor’s degree in
geophysical engineering from the Colorado School of Mines.

Both energy tracks will continue to collaborate with the Center for Energy, Marine Transportation and Public Policy, which conducts policy analysis and applied research on energy issues and is directed by Albert Bressand,
Professor of Professional Practice.

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Categories : Admissions, Columbia University, News

Tags : energy, environment

Ketti Jean Klefeker, SIPA Student Video Winner, 2010

Posted by Matt Clemons

· Tuesday, October 26th, 2010

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The following post is credited to SAlex Burnett, SIPA’s Communications Officer.

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As part of SIPA’s ongoing effort to share the extraordinary work of its students, the School conducted a contest earlier this year calling for videos from students spending their summer in the field.

Kettie Jean Klefeker (MIA ’11) wins a new video camcorder for her video exhibiting her work with young refugees and orphans in Tibet and Nepal. Klefeker is a second-year student from Haiti, concentrating in Economic and Political Development. She says her work helped her gain greater insight and knowledge about the inner-workings of such homes for children.

The new video recorder will allow her to continue to show how her SIPA education is making a difference around the world. SIPA encourages all students to document and share their incredible stories through photos or video, and is now beginning to loan video cameras to students heading into the field.

Klefeker’s video and additional student submissions will be used to demonstrate SIPA’s commitment to educating the policy advocates and analysts of tomorrow.

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Categories : Admissions, Columbia University, Meet Seeples, News

Tags : Haiti, Nepal, orphans, refugees, Tibet, video

Prospects for 21st Century African Agriculture

Posted by Matt Clemons

· Saturday, October 9th, 2010

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Top flight events are a mainstay at SIPA. For some evidence, check out what is happening this Monday. The good news is that if you wish to participate from your computer, you can. See the end of this entry for details on how to view the event live.

Prospects for 21st Century African Agriculture

Time: Monday, 6:30 pm

Type: Discussion

Moderator(s):

Mamadou Diouf
Professor of History, Director Institute for African Studies
Committee on Global Thought
Columbia University

Speaker(s):

Kofi Annan
Former Secretary General
United Nations

Jeffrey Sachs
Director, The Earth Institute
The Earth Institute

Program Notes:

It is widely recognized that agricultural development can play a key role in eliminating hunger, reducing poverty and food insecurity, increasing trade, and promoting wealth in Africa. However, the full potential of African agriculture is far from being realized. Part of the 2010-2011 World and Africa Series, this panel seeks to explore the possibilities for boosting the productivity, profitability, and sustainability of African agriculture in the 21st century. It will consider those cutting edge programs, policies, and technologies that are paving new roads forward with regard to unleashing the full potential of the continent’s agricultural economies.

Kofi Annan was the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, serving two terms from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006 and was the first to emerge from the ranks of United Nations staff. In 2001 Kofi Annan and the United Nations were jointly awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace with the citation praising his leadership for “bringing new life to the organisation”. In 2009, Annan was named a Columbia Global Fellow by University President Lee Bollinger.

Jeffrey Sachs is the Director of The Earth Institute, Quetelet Professor of Sustainable Development, and Professor of Health Policy and Management at Columbia University. He is also Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. From 2002 to 2006, he was Director of the UN Millennium Project and Special Advisor to United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the Millennium Development Goals.

This event is co-sponsored with The Earth Institute.

This event can also be viewed via live webcast.

Real:

http://www.columbia.edu/acis/networks/advanced/events/live.ram

Windows Media:

http://akami.cc.columbia.edu/asxgen/wmtencoder/live.wmv.asx

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Categories : Columbia University, News

Tags : africa, development, hunger, poverty, un, United Nations

Summer 2010 Internship – Post 3

Posted by Matt Clemons

· Tuesday, September 28th, 2010

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This is the third entry in our recap of summer internships completed by SIPA students working in the Admissions Office this year. Brittney Elise Bailey is a second-year SIPA student pursuing a Master of International Affairs degree with a concentration on Economic and Political Development (EPD).

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From New Delhi to New York: The Perils of Internship Transitions

As of Spring 2010, I was still on a leave of absence from SIPA working in New Delhi and the idea of finding yet another internship for the summer, preferably back in the western hemisphere, was a bit daunting. Where do I want to go? Do I want to pick up a new skill? Where would I get the most face time and knowledge transfer from my supervisor if I end up making little-to-no salary for 3 months?

Although I planned on staying at my job at the Micro Insurance Academy – an Indian NGO that utilizes a community-based approach to risk management for low-income populations in South Asia – I wanted another opportunity to apply some of my new knowledge of livelihoods (and microfinance) to education.

Children at youth center associated with a SEWA (community-based financial services)

After receiving a few summer internship offers from larger micro finance institutions and relevant NGO’s, I decided to return to New York in July to work at the Women’s Refugee Commission (WRC), an organization within the International Rescue Committee (IRC,) that provides applied research and advocacy on protection programs, specifically for refugee women and children. I became the Displaced Youth Initiative intern with the WRC’s Protection Program.

I had four main reasons for working with the WRC as opposed to some other organizations that may have been larger or more well-known. First, I had heard a lot of great things about the IRC and in turn the WRC, where the smaller NGO-within-an-NGO setting was rumored to provide much more substantive work prospects. Reputation goes a long way in all career fields; however, I find that in the development sector because there are so many options to choose from-Multilateral/intergovernmental organizations, NGOs big and small, foundations, the private sector, the government, regional banks, etc.- much of what we have to go by as potential practitioners is reputation… and a few key contacts at our orgs. of interest (if we’re lucky!) Also, former EPD students bragged about how great the Commission had been as a client for EPD workshops, where there was always a clear final project, good working relationships, and truly demand-driven and participatory results.

Second, I wanted to be aligned with an organization like the WRC that aims to serve the most vulnerable of the poor, even within refugee or internally-displaced communities, such as women, youth, persons with disabilities and children.

Third, substantive work and knowledge transfer between my supervisors and I were a vital component of my decision. This was my first time working for free- a concept many of us in graduate school unfortunately still have to become familiar with- so I wanted to make sure that I could gain the skills and knowledge I desired. Fortunately, my boss, an alumna of SIPA, felt the exact same way and made consistent strides to integrate me into all aspects of her work.

Lastly, my motivation to be at the WRC, in particular, had to do with the Displaced Youth Initiative(DYI) itself.

As a DYI intern, I worked between the Youth and Livelihoods programs, which among other things, aimed to bridge education to income-generating programming for young refugees and IDPs in conflict and post-conflict settings. Much of my work consisted of helping to produce DYI reports on education and skills-building, fine-tuning market-based assessments (for Southern Sudan and New York), M&E for WRC and IRC youth advocacy impact, managing our Youth Advisory Board and attending high-level meetings related to youth, education in emergencies and livelihoods. In addition, I conducted comprehensive research-through mapping, desk research, surveys, interviews, etc.- on the most innovative non-formal education programs for youth worldwide.

In spite of my initial fears to leave India, to be further away from the field and settled into some skyscraper near Grand Central, to prioritize knowledge transfer over money and prestige this time around, I found that this type of applied research really suited me. It was in fact what I was looking for in a summer internship. I will most likely stay on at the WRC and IRC throughout this next year, working on education and livelihoods projects in some capacity. Between the connections made, skills built and summer reports of WRC research turned action in the field, I am positive that my internship transition was worth it.