UPDATE as of Sunday, Jan 17, 3:40 pm Eastern Time:
We received 5 patients via a single chopper about an hour ago. We received 4 patients yesterday. We have a total of 9 patients. We are ready and capable to handle *100* injured people.
We have a full-service hospital with two ORs, a trauma team and an orthopaedic team ready to serve. They can land helicopters in the soccer field. I can send anyone who needs the Google Earth coordiates and labeled arial photos for landing. The soccer field will be LIT WITH HEADLIGHTS from trucks tonight. We have an ambulance – we are ready – we do NOT need to be contacted in advance. PLEASE BRING THE PATIENTS TO US!
Carol Fipp
Hopital Sacre Coeur in Milot, Haiti
904-223-7233
904-451-0003
cfipp@bellsouth.net
The message has already been conveyed to family members and close friends that, given the state of the personal coffers and the fact that most of us have too many material possessions anyway, they should be looking elsewhere this season for Christmas presents of the corporeal kind. A certain development taking place on the Trinidadian retail scene this coming Saturday (December 19), however, is seriously threatening to make me rethink my position. Needless to say, this pisses me off royally.
You’ll find more details on the upsetting event at the Alice Yard blog. Which should tell you everything—what successful retailer in Trinidad has a blog?
The sort of annoyingly attractive object likely to be on sale at Alice Yard on Saturday
My Ghanaian blogger friend Mac-Jordan Degadjor, who so graciously showed me around during my visit to Accra in October, has been given the chance to go to Copenhagen to cover the UN climate change talks there this month. He’s received a stipend from Denmark, but it isn’t sufficient to cover the entire cost of the trip. So a few of us have got together to raise funds for Mac-J.
Mac-Jordan at Cape Coast Castle in Ghana, this past October
At the time of posting we’ve raised US$290 of the $1,200 he needs, so only $910 to go now. Would you please consider helping out by donating via the ChipIn widget above? (If that doesn’t work, try the ChipIn page). Anyone with a credit card can donate.
If you’re a Trinidad and Tobago blogger interested in covering the upcoming Summit of the Americas (April 17-19, 2009), here’s an offer you might be interested in:
Global citizen news platform GroundReport.com is looking for Trinidadian bloggers and digital journalists to attend the upcoming Summit of the Americas and provide digital coverage from a local, insider perspective. GroundReport is interested in all formats of digital media coverage, including video, text and photos. This position is unpaid but will include press credentials, publication on GroundReport, and potential wider syndication, under your name, to larger media outlets. Share your voice with the world to show the Trinidadian experience of the Summit of the Americas.
To apply, please send an email describing your interest and credentials to info@groundreport.com titled ‘Summit of the Americas’. Include links to your previous work/blogs and a resume or CV if available.
If selected, you will be required to post 2 items per day on the event to GroundReport.com. Publications can be in English, Spanish, French or other local languages.
The year before I left Trinidad for university in the USA, I spent hours on end at the United States Information Service (now called the Public Affairs Section) library on Marli Street, boning up on Dreiser and Faulkner, Updike and Bellow, Welles and Cassavetes, filling in the gaps left by a British post-colonial education and attempting to add a veneer of sophistication to an experience of US popular culture cobbled together from a couple of local television channels and visits to the cinemas of Port of Spain, plus the odd visit to the country itself. In using the services of the USIS, I was engaging with one aspect of US public diplomacy, the means by which the US as a nation “seeks to promote [its] national interest. . . through understanding, informing and influencing foreign audiences.”
The countries of the English-speaking Caribbean are hardly the United States’ most challenging interlocutors, especially when compared with the Middle East, China, the former Soviet Union, Cuba or the country that lies just a few miles west of where I sit writing this (Venezuela, in case you’re wondering). But our relationship with the the US isn’t a simple one, as any Caribbean national who’s ever applied for a visa knows only too well.
That our gaze wanders so easily and longingly northward; that our countries are commonly considered transshipment points for drugs; that deportees from US prisons are contributing to the increase in our crime rates; that most of Trinidad and Tobago’s natural gas is purchased by the US; that Venezuela lies across the water just a few valleys west of where I sit writing this; that I can write this, then publish it instantly to the internet: all of this makes us important to the US in the way that small, unimportant places can be. “Important”, meaning, of course, “strategic”.
Because small and strategic is not an unproblematic combination, an event taking place on Tuesday 3 February, 2009 (tomorrow, in this part of the world) in Washington D.C. should be of interest to many of us in the Caribbean (not that anything in the programme is specific to us–but we’re used to that). The event is called Media as Global Diplomat, and it’s designed around the premise that
We are in a disruptive period in media, the result of an explosion in digital distribution, social networking, and user generated content. And with disruption comes opportunity. This summit, moderated by Ted Koppel and entitled Media as Global Diplomat, is a forum to ask key public and private sector leaders how the United States can best use media to reinvigorate its public diplomacy strategy and international influence in order to strengthen efforts to build a more peaceful world.
The event is also a response to the Obama administration’s promise to distinguish itself from its predecessor by taking a different approach to public diplomacy, one focused on listening instead lecturing.
How to participate? I won’t be physically present at the event, of course, but my Global Voices colleagues Ivan Sigal and Rebecca MacKinnon will, and I’ll be tuning in to the live webcast and chat which Ivan will be moderating and parsing for questions and comments to be passed on to Ted Koppel.
Rebecca will be liveblogging at http://rconversation.blogs.com/, which, given her fierce intelligence, outspokenness and sharp wit, not to mention her skepticism about the event’s actual goals, is bound be both informative and entertaining. “It’s unclear to me,” Rebecca says, “whether they really just want to explore how to use digital media to get the world to like the U.S. better – or whether they’re truly open to a paradigm shift: moving from broadcast “messaging” mode to conversation mode, in which the U.S. would be listening and learning as much as informing others.”
Rebecca also notes the dearth of new media vibe on the program “…my initial reaction is that the only panelists who might be considered “new media” people are Google’s Andrew McLaughlin and Mika Salmi of MTV’s Digital Networks. And they work for huge Internet and media companies. No citizen media or grassroots voices are speaking on the panels at all. Lots of “old media” and/or establishment foreign policy elites. Will there really be any new ideas coming from this crowd? Hard to know. Maybe you can help thorough your remote participation?”
Maybe you can. Let’s get some Caribbean spirit into that chat room. Visit this page for the event schedule, and the live chat will be taking place here. See you online tomorrow!
I’ll be heading down to cut+clear productions shortly to record episode #2 of the cut+clear carnival podcast w/ 3canal. Today’s special guests: C*POP and Walt Lovelace. The show will be released tomorrow.
And above, photos from last night’s launch of 3canal’s carnival presentations at Queen’s Hall. That includes their 2009 release, JOY+FIRE, which, for a limited time, can be downloaded for FREE at http://www.trinidadtunes.com.
If you’re like me, there’s been no shortage of appeals for donations landing in your inbox this month. And now I’d like to add another: please support Global Voices.
As many of you know, I’ve been involved with Global Voices since 2005, and now work for the organisation full-time. At the beginning of the year we left the safety of our birthplace, the Berkman Center at Harvard University, and struck out on our own as an independent nonprofit. We’ve done some astounding work this year, reporting on and aggregating citizen media coverage of events like the Mumbai attacks and World AIDS Day. Our Outreach section has helped scores of people in communities throughout the world gain access to citizen media skills that we hope they’ll pass on to hundreds more, while Global Voices Advocacy has worked tirelessly on issues around online freedom of speech. And we’re now translating our content into 21 languages. Our Caribbean coverage has grown as well, thanks to the efforts of editor Janine Mendes-Franco, whose team now includes authors from the French Caribbean and Jamaica.
As ’08 draws to a close, however, we, like every other organisation in the world, find ourselves working hard to secure the funding that will ensure our future ability to do the job of amplifying stories and images from ordinary people across the globe who use the internet to communicate with their fellow world citizens.
So if you believe in our mission and would like to help promote the diversity of voices and points of view that citizen media makes possible, please consider supporting Global Voices with a financial donation. And even if you can’t, then do help us spread the word by flying one of our adorable badges (or one of our more serious ones).
"Thanks to all of you for caring enough to ask after my health after looking at the Reaper in his face. Here is what happened.
I flew to Toronto to give a paper and photographic presentation at the conference concerning Carnival held in connection with Caribana at York University. Instead, upon arrival I got very sick and had to be carried to a hospital emergency room. It was revealed that I had a case of internal bleeding caused by a stomach ulcer. The situation seemed at first fairly straightforward to treat. However, a few hours after being diagnosed I was struck down by a massive heart attack while still in the hospital. It was later also found that my kidneys were functioning at only 20% capacity. This complicated matters dramatically. All together I spend seven days in the hospital. I have been told that going home was out of the question before they perform an angiogram to locate the blockage in my arteries, and that in all likelihood I would have to undergo an angioplasty."
and
"Since I have no insurance, the onus is on me to pay the anticipated costs of the procedures upfront. We don’t yet have the exact figures but what we do know is that the amount will be significant and that this has to be done as soon as possible in order to avert the risk of another attack. Besides the angiogram and angioplasty I also have to deal with the seven days hospital bill ($2500 CAN. a day, not including doctors’ fees and tests).
I am at present recovering at a friend’s home in Chicago where I was driven by car. I will return to Toronto as soon as the doctors have made the final decision about when the procedure can be performed safely and when we have resolved the financial complications. In the meantime, I am happy to report that I am reasonably stable (give or take the occasional chest pain) and comfortable, thanks to my friend’s hospitality and to your good wishes."
So far the following people have contributed towards the cost of Jeffrey’s surgery:
Many, many thanks to you all, and thanks in advance to those of you who plan on donating. We’ve raised US$800 so far (not $980 as the ChipIn widget says—see explanation below), and I know we can raise much more.
(Note also that the ChipIn widget is showing 9 contributors, which is a miscount. For an accurate listing of contributors, please check the “Contributors” tab on the Facebook widget page. I have written to ChipIn about the problem).
If you’re unsure about how to use ChipIn, please feel free to email me (replacing the words “at” and “dot” with the relevant punctuation marks). And yes, ChipIn and PayPal do accept Trinidad and Tobago credit cards. Just so you know, PayPal skims 3.2% off each donation, and a small fee is charged for actually accessing the funds.
If you would prefer not to make your donation online and live in Trinidad, please drop me a line and I’ll arrange to get it from you. I myself plan on making another larger donation when I pass the money over to Jeffery. Offline donations will also be listed in the ChipIn contributors list.
I learned a few days ago that Trinidadian photographer Jeffrey Chock has fallen seriously ill on a trip to Canada, and is in urgent need of surgery. The estimated cost of that surgery, from what I have heard, is around TT$300,000 (US$48,000). The information I have about Jeffrey’s medical condition is third-hand, so I hesitate to repeat it here (very un-Trinidadian of me, I know!), but I’ll update this post with the details when I’m sure what I have is accurate. What I do know is that Jeffrey’s surgery needs to be paid for, which is why I’ve created the donation widget below.
Jeffrey Chock and I are not close friends, but I’ve known him for years and have the deepest admiration for his work (which I once photographed him doing). As dancer Dave Williams said to me recently, “The man understands dance. I doh let anybody else photograph my shows!” And I know you’d hear local maspeople, thespians and pannists express similar sentiments.
I also know that, were I ever to be in a similar position, I’d be tremendously grateful to anyone who would do the same for me.
I originally created this donation widget for use on the “Friends of Jeffrey Chock” Facebook group, but as ChipIn campaigns must be connected to a PayPal account, and as the PayPal account to which this one is connected is mine, I decided to reduce the target figure to US$12,000 and make it a personal campaign as well. (I’ve already made a small donation, and I’ll even throw in more funds if you do!) There may also be other fundraising efforts in progress, in which case I promise to hand over the funds I raise to whoever ends up being the central collector.
So I would be extremely grateful if you would help Jeffrey pay for his surgery by donating via the widget below, and/or embedding it or linking to it on your own website, Facebook page etc. Thank you!
UPDATE:
For those wishing to purchase Jeffrey’s book Trinidad Carnival, there are a few copies available at Paper Based bookstore at the Hotel Normandie, St. Ann’s.
Knight Center Develops Online Introductory Course in Digital Journalism for Caribbean Reporters and Editors
The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas, as part of its new focus as a digital media training center, has developed an introductory course to digital journalism that it will offer for the first time from March 3 to April 4, 2008, to journalists living and working in Caribbean countries.
The course, Journalism 2.0, was developed by U.S. journalist Mark Briggs, author of the book Journalism 2.0: How to Survive and Thrive, a digital literacy guide for the information age. It will be offered in English in partnership with the Association of Caribbean Media Workers (ACM).
Spaces in the course are limited, and Caribbean journalists may apply online until Feb. 25, 2008. The Knight Center will repeat the course later in 2008 for journalists from throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
“We expect strong demand for this course, and we will try to accommodate that demand as best as we can,” said Rosental Calmon Alves, director of the Knight Center.
“Whenever we introduce a new course, we like to start with a small group of students. While Caribbean journalists will have the first chance to take this class, the Knight Center will explore ways to repeat the course as soon as possible, and to offer it to larger groups throughout Latin America.”
The Knight Center is also developing similar courses in Spanish and Portuguese, Alves added.
Course Themes
The course will be conducted entirely on line and will cover five main areas:
*Introduction to Journalism 2.0. Understand the opportunities and challenges of practicing journalism in the digital age.
*Web 2.0 and an Eye on the Future. Learn how Web 2.0 sites expand the realm and responsibilities of today’s journalists.
*Blogs, Breaking News, and Headlines (Writing for the Web). Explore and critique the world of blogs, and learn to write strong web headlines.
*Multimedia Basics. Explore basic practices in photography and video production, and experiment with the technology.
*Multimedia Planning. Learn what makes a good multimedia story and how to get these pieces produced.
Course Specifics
Students will have several weekly assignments, all of which will be performed on line. They include viewing video lectures and PowerPoint presentations, reading lecture materials, and participating in discussion forums with the instructor and classmates. Students will also conduct weekly skills assignments, and one exam, which they will submit online for comment and grading by the instructor.
Many of the readings will come from Briggs’ book Journalism 2.0. The English, Spanish, and Portuguese editions can be downloaded for free from the Knight Center ‘s website: http://knightcenter.utexas.edu/journalism20.php
Students will be expected to meet weekly deadlines but can choose their own hours to access the course and can work at their own pace and schedule. All participants who complete the course will receive a certificate from the Knight Center.
Applications from Caribbean journalists will be accepted until 0900 (Austin time) on Monday, Feb. 25 here: http://www.engr.utexas.edu/sos/survey/56847937/index.cfm.
Priority will be given to journalists with at least three years experience who work full time for print, electronic or online media; possess a basic command of computers and internet technology; have access to a digital camera that takes both still photos and video; and have limited opportunities to attend training courses.
About the Partners
Briggs is the Assistant Managing Editor for Interactive News at The News Tribune in Tacoma, Wash. He has contributed to textbooks, seminars, and conferences on new media and journalism, and some of the projects he has led have won national and regional awards. He will be assisted in the course by Amy Schmitz Weiss and Carlos Perez de Alejo, staff members of the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas.
The ACM, founded in 2001, is an organization of journalist and media worker associations from throughout the Caribbean Basin. The organization will charge a US$30 fee to journalists selected to participate.
“The ACM is delighted that the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas has chosen the Caribbean as the place to launch this course,” said Wesley Gibbings, president of the ACM.
“The role of new technologies in Caribbean development is being viewed as singularly important. Journalists have the opportunity to be in the leadership of such a revolution. Through our participation in this course, we signal that we accept the challenge.”
The Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas was created by Alves at the University of Texas at Austin School of Journalism in August 2002 thanks to a generous donation from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
In 2007, the Knight Center received a new five-year grant from the Knight Foundation to refocus its work as a digital media training center for Latin American and Caribbean journalism, and to expand its efforts to serve as an incubator for new journalism organizations.
Over at Rising Voices, the outreach arm of Global Voices, David Sasaki has just announced the latest round of Rising Voices grant recipients. Among them is the Rising Voices project’s first Caribbean grantee: “Diary of an Inmate”, a Jamaica-based project which will attempt to counter the veneration of badboys and gang leaders by training prison inmates to blog and podcast. The project’s founder, Kevin Wallen, who has been doing exemplary work among inmates in Jamaica’s penal institutions through an organisation called (Students Expressing Truth), outlined the project as follows:
Through blogging, inmates will be able to tell their stories. They will be able to paint a realistic picture of life behind bars and the consequences of crime. Currently, Jamaica’s music and media idolize the ‘badman’ or ’shotta’ and portray as role models those who have been incarcerated. Many of our youths now think that prison is a ‘cool’ place to be, until they themselves are faced with the harsh truth. The Diary of an Inmate blog will allow all Jamaicans to learn about the realities of Jamaica’s overcrowded prison system with the hope that this will counteract the false ideas implanted by the media.
Congrats to Kevin and the “Diary of an Inmate” project. I look forward to seeing the results of this interesting experiment. And to the rest of you potential Caribbean applicants: what are you waiting on?
Monday September 10th 2007, 11:36 am
Filed under: Announcements Posted by: Georgia
Knight Foundation and MTV Partner on Global Grant Program for Young Digital Journalism Pioneers
$500,000 “Young Creators Award” to Fund Digital Journalism Projects that Strengthen Community Ties
Sep 6, 2007, MIAMI and NEW YORK – The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation and MTV announced today the Knight News Challenge “Young Creators Award,” a new digital journalism grant program for young people age 25 and under anywhere in the world. The contest will award up to $500,000 to young creators with compelling ideas for using digitally delivered news and information to enhance physical communities – improving the lives of people where they live, work and vote. The new award is a component of the Knight News Challenge, an annual competition awarding $5 million for innovative ideas using digital experiments to transform community news. (more…)
As promised, here’s an update on 
Jeffrey Chock and I are not close friends, but I’ve known him for years and have the deepest admiration for his work (which I once 