The first three photos today come from Beatriz Guillen, an incoming MIA student.

I have been living in Caracas for almost three years. Venezuela is an amazing country, full of contrasts that I would like to show you through some of the pictures I have taken.  The first one is from Salto Angel in Canaima, the highest water fall in the world.

The second one is a “parking boat” in a small beach town, called Choroní.

The third one is swimming in the paradisiacal Isla Tortuga.

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The next two photos come from Sofia Fernandez del Castillo, an incoming MPA student.

These pictures were taken during a pilot program done in a community in the metropolitan area of Mexico City that consisted in the recuperation of social ties through the implementation of workshops, color in the facades and neighborhood upgrading. The evidence demonstrates that color has a positive direct impact in people´s lives. I believe these pictures reflect the motivation of the community -specially children- to rescue public spaces and are evidence of the sprawling of cities and irregular settlements in Mexico.

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The last two photos come from incoming MIA student Sarah Bilson.

Location: A village outside of Vélingara, Senegal (July, 2007)
Description: Young girls dance in a celebration commemorating the village’s abandonment of female genital mutilation.

Location: Aley, Lebanon
Description: This picture captures a night view of Beirut from the mountain town of Aley in Lebanon. Sitting in the quite, serene village we could see Beirut rocking below us.

The first three photos come from incoming MIA student Burak Guresci.

This photo was not taken in Iwo Jima Island or an US city but in in Sana’a, the capital of Yemen. It was taken last week (June 2009). This is a underpass along the “Canal Road” in Sana’a. This road was originally built by my ancestors (Ottomans) and serves as a water canal during heavy rains and prevents flooding in the city. It was renovated by the help of US Government and this relief work depicting American soldiers raising a Yemeni flag was made as a representation of the aid of the US’s government to Yemen’s.

This photo was taken in Fuzhou, China in May 2008. This Buddha statue was in Fuzhou West Lake Park. Little Buddha seems very comfortable and happy, like most of the children.

This photo was taken in Geneva, Switzerland in April 2008, two months before the start of Euro 2008 Football Tournament. That’s me heading the giant football over the Lake Léman.

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The following two photos were submitted by incoming MIA student Yueping Liu.

The photo named “Geneva” was taken at Place des Nations in Geneva in February this year, right in front of the United Nations main gate (which is on the far right in the picture, where the lines of flags are). There was a demonstration calling for peace in Sri Lanka, with the crowd waving flags and displaying banners. (In case you were wondering, the giant chair on the square with a broken leg symbolizes opposition to land mines.)

The one named “London” was taken inside the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London, UK, next to Downing Street. The building was constructed in the 19th century with the aim of impressing foreign visitors. The Grand Staircase in this picture is a showcase of the rich decorations, and is suitably used as the main entrance for foreign dignitaries and diplomats. I’m no VIP of course – I took the picture during the London Open House weekend last September when it was accessible to the public.

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The next three pictures come from incoming MIA student Hui (Aurora) Wang.

Where: Côte d’Azur – the French Riviera.  Description: I tool this picture when I had vacation at the French Riviera last summer. I was fascinated by the beauty of the Mediterranean Sea, and in this picture I liked the combination of the sea, the tree and a white yacht seen through the branches.

Where: Gallery of maps – The Vatican Museums.  Description: This picture is taken on May 10th, 2008, when the Vatican Museums dedicated an extra open day for collecting donations to Italy’s Abruzzo Region, in which had been strong damages caused by the earthquake in April. The Gallery of Maps has 40 maps frescoed on the walls and brings visitors directly to the famous Sistine Chapel.

Where: Hong Kong.  Description: After having waited in queue for an hour, I finally got a big bag of egg ball waffle from this small pastry shop. The woman in the picture is making egg ball waffle using those specific makers with red handle. On her left side you can see some pictures of local famous people getting sweets from this place. The egg ball waffle is probably considered the most famous street food of Hong Kong.

The first three photos come from incoming MIA student Nery Gracia.

The first photo was taken in Port of Spain in Trinidad and Tobago. It shows the beautiful sunset and the oil refinery in the middle of the sea. Oil refining is the principal industrial activity of this country.

The second photo was taken to a group of welders and pipefitters that were applying for work visas at the US Embassy in Port of Spain in September of 2006. I worked in the process of these workers obtaining their work visas. That is me in the middle!

The third photo was taken on April 2009 in Playa del Carmen, Mexico to this pair of Mexican women who would make clothing and souvenirs for sale in the touristic part of town. The women in the photo are from Oaxaca, Mexico and they speak their native language – Chontal and Spanish.

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The next two photos come from incoming MPA in Development Practice student Stephanie Ruiz.

I took these photos while working on water treatment projects in Western Kenya last year.

During a field visit to one of our projects, I came across this little girl walking home after collecting water from a spring. I don’t think she could have been more than 3 years old. In this area of Kenya, water borne diseases are prevalent and contribute to a very high rate of child mortality.

The projects aimed at finding the most effective ways to reduce the threat of water borne diseases by treating the water with chlorine products. The second picture shows a young girl collecting water from a spring where we had installed a chlorine dispenser (to the right) making it easier to treat the water.