Everest Skydive 2009 successfully concludes

 

Everest Skydive 2009 successfully concludes

Kathmandu, October 29, 2009: Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure is pleased to announce the successful completion of the Everest Skydive 2009 program.

On October 28, 2009 a skydiving event was held at Gorak Shep. During the event, world skydiving champion Wendy Smith from New Zealand, Global Angels ambassador and tandem master Tom Noonan and Wing Commander Jai Kishan from the Indian Air Force, made a successful landing at the Gorak Shep, Kala Patthar plateau, lying at an altitude of 17,192 feet (5,242m), right beside Mt. Everest. This is believed to be the highest skydiving stunt performed over highest drop zone in the world.

The operation was carried out from Fishtail Air’s AS 350 B3 helicopter flown by Capt. Sabin Basnet and Capt. Deepak Rana. The dives were performed in the morning of 28^th Oct, 2009 between 7:30 to 9 AM. The helicopter took off with the skydiving team from Shyangboche airport and flew to a height of 23,000 feet before dropping from 21,000 feet at right air layer.

Prior to this event, seven skydivers from the Explore Himalaya skydiving team had performed solo and tandem jumps at Shyangboche (12,350 feet) on 16^th and 17^th October, 2009.

On 16^th October, Five members skydived from a height of 25,000 feet .Tom Noonan (USA), Ian Bishop (Australia) and Jai Kishan (India), made solo jumps at 10:30 AM (local time). In the second group, , Wendy Smith (New Zealand) jumped solo, while Ganesh Pandey (Nepal) made a tandem jump with tandem master Tom Noonan (USA) at 12:30 PM (local time).

On the second day, ie 17th October, Wendy Smith (New Zealand), Jai Kishan (India) and Mery Noonan (USA) made solo jumps from a height of 27,500ft at 8:30 AM (local time). While Everest summitter, Pujan Acharya (Nepal) made a tandem jump from a height of 29,300 feet, with tandem master Tom Noonan (USA) at 10:30 AM (local time).

The jumps over Shyangboche were made from Tara Air’s Pilatus Porter aircraft, flown by Capt Jack Sparrow (UK) and Praful Baidya (Nepal). Capt Jack Sparrow, an experienced pilot, has performed more than 4,000 lifts (flights for skydiving) for skydivers in Europe and is preparing to launch a skydiving club in Thailand, which will be the first in Asia.

As a continuation of the Everest Skydive 2008, the Everest Skydive 2009 program was organized by Explore Himalaya with the help of Nepal Tourism board to promote Nepal Tourism Year 2011.During the event, all the skydivers sported the logo of Nepal Tourism Year 2011 on their jumpsuits. The visuals of the skydiving event will be distributed worldwide.

After the success of Everest Skydive 2009, Explore Himalaya is planning to establish Skydiving as a prominent tourism product of Nepal. More events shall be launched to mark the Nepal Tourism Year 2011.Very soon, skydiving tests and commercial operations will be performed in Pokhara. With due support from all concerned, we are planning to organize a team of Nepalese Civilian Skydivers for aerial events to be held in 2011's Nepal Tourism Year.

Finally, we would like to thank the Ministry of Tourism, Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, Ministries of Home, Defence, Forest, Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation, Tara Air family , Fishtail Air family, Sagarmatha National Park, members of the Skydiving ground team from Explore Himalaya and all concerned who have contributed in making the Everest Skydive 2009 a grand success. I would also like to thank the companies Javelin Suntath , Aerodyne, and Performance Design from the US and Vigil from Belgium for providing parachutes and equipments. Summit Oxygen from United Kingdom for supplying the oxygen system and Capt Jack Sparrow who flew all the way from UK to perform the skydiving flights.

(The information was circulated by Suman Pandey, Team Leader and Convener, Everest Skydive- 2009, Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure, For further enquiries contact: Mr.Krishna Aryal, Special Adventure Co-ordinator, Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure, Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal Phone: 977-1-4418100, M: 9741137476, E-mail: krishna@explorehimalaya.com, Ms. Usha Rai, Copy Editor, Explore Himalaya Travel & Adventure, Thamel, Kathmandu, Nepal Phone: 977-1-4418100, M: 9803197443, E-mail: usha@explorehimalaya.com)

 

 

Khagendra Thapa Magar, Nepal teen, finally old enough to vie for 'world's shortest man' title

By Michael Sheridan
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

He's now 18-years-old, and wants to be recognized as the world's shortest man.

The Nepalese teen, Khagendra Thapa Magar, who stands at 22-inches, is finally old enough to have his name submitted to the Guiness World Records officials - and the application's already on its way.

Magar's family attempted to submit his name four years ago, but was told he was too young and may still grow. Now that he's an 'adult,' they're hoping to prove he's smallest guy in town.

It could be some time before Magar, who weighs about 10 pounds, can officially obtain the title as the world's smallest person. Guiness officials will still need to verify his height and he has stopped growing.

21-year-old He Pingping of China currently holds the shortest man title, standing just 29-inches tall.

 

Violent hubris can be lethal: Nepal's Maoists prepare to assault, by DR THOMAS A MARKS

Violent hubris can be lethal: Nepal’s Maoists prepare to assault

DR THOMAS A MARKS

(Republica, Oct. 29, 2009) - Again, the Maoists have announced their plans to bring Nepal to its knees. They don’t like the government. They don’t like parliamentary democracy or the market economy. They don’t like the army. They don’t like the flag. They don’t like their neighbors, except possibly China, which they naively think is going to support them in a face-off with New Delhi.

So, what are they going to do? Attack. This will come as no surprise.

The trials of normal life for the people are all to the Maoists’ liking since what they want is incapacitating chaos. This, they feel, will allow them to pick up the pieces and put them together as a new world.

Nepali Maoism is a particular brand of violent hubris which claims – in a country which has no resources save its people – that the failed dictatorial policies and redistributive policies of the Soviet era will somehow redeem the situation. A “triumph of the will” is all that is needed – the irony being, of course, that this is the very name of the great propaganda film glorifying Hitler and fascism.

Yet, the Maoists seem determined to recreate the mistakes and tragedies of the past.

WHAT THE MAOISTS WANT

What do they really want? Power. They have said so all along, they will continue to disrupt life until they have it. And then their misguided policies will disrupt life in ways only a horror show could imagine – or a film on the mob, the mafia.

International Crisis Group (ICG) recently claimed that it is absolutely wrong to state that the Maoists do not want to be a part of Nepali democracy. ICG claims that the Maoists have committed themselves to peaceful politics.

This is nonsense. The Maoists have simply moved their struggle from “the jungle” to “the streets.” They claim the right to engage in “civil resistance,” by which they mean the use of intimidation and violence short of “long arms” (pistols are acceptable) to get their way. In the parliament they disrupt; in the streets they attack.

They will continue to do this until the system surrenders. The heart of the problem is that the Maoists were convinced the system already had surrendered. Since it has proved uncooperative, the conquest must be carried through to conclusion.

Maoists are so opposed to parliamentary democracy, because they see it as a check upon structural reshaping: A “guided” economy; redistribution of land; a compliant press that is “responsible”; a Red Guards type national service militia which will both engage in “national development” projects and train to resist “Indian invasion.” There are even more odious plans that have been discussed but these are illustrative.

Their claim to support “civilian supremacy” is but a fig-leaf to cover the fact that they badly miscalculated in their ill-timed effort to bring Nepal Army (NA) to heel and thus were unceremoniously ousted. Yet, all systems have just such a figure as the president to serve as a referee of sorts. What the Maoists object to is that they were on the losing side of the decision.

Their frustration was made still greater by their lackluster record while governing, a reality they blamed on others but which stemmed directly from their immature political approach. Always aiming for the moon, they neglected to anchor their feet on the ground.

A PECULIAR VIEW OF POLITICS

For the Maoists, as with so many Nepalis, reality is a zero-sum game. They rigged the Constituent Assembly (CA) election, fair and square, goes their thinking, beating “the system” at its own game, so how dare the old-order continue its resistance?!

Only the likes of Jimmy Carter and his clueless associates – I will include United Nations Mission (UNMIN) in Nepal and certain European Union (EU) missions in this blanket term – could have missed what went on during the CA election. Long before the actual vote, copious evidence highlighted the degree to which the Maoists used violence to ensure that rival political party activists did not gain access to the population.

In this, to be sure, they were assisted by the lackluster, dysfunctional nature of Nepal’s previously majority parties. Nevertheless, in the areas of government control, those blanketed by publicity, the same rules did not obtain. There, something more akin to a real political contest was waged. No one who has seen machine politics at work should have been surprised by the results.

Subsequently, the move to neutralize then-Royal Nepal Army could only have worked with the likes of UNMIN and its monitors in charge. Not only did they fail to match weapons against known inventory, they had not even the most basic understanding of Maoist structure.

Thus, the camps were packed with manpower far beyond actual “military” strength. Then, with UNMIN/EU fiscal support, regularization and indoctrination took place, even as cadres were moved laterally into Young Communist League (by a different name, still the same thugs).

At this point, few thought the Maoists would prove as inept as they were. Any astute political party would have started with the small thing – such as dealing with Kathmandu’s horrible trash and polluted water problems – “made the trains run on time,” as would all good fascists, whether of the left or right.

Instead, the Maoists sought capitulation and used thuggery – and even murder – against those who stood in the way. No orders went out to stop the violence. In fact, under the surface, it was constant and ubiquitous.

The police, under orders not to intervene in “political” cases, normally stood by. To those pursued in Maoist vendettas, the police were next to useless. Flight abroad became the chosen course for many.

To its credit, the present CPN-UML coalition has acted responsibly given the bad hand it has been dealt (and helped create). What it cannot do is mobilize the growing disillusionment among the masses with Maoist misadventure, since its political activists simply cannot penetrate many areas due to the violent Maoist net that has been cast over them. For its part, Nepali Congress has slid into irrelevance due to the cowardice of individual members unwilling to challenge the nepotism of the ultimate leadership.

The trials of normal life for the people are all to the Maoists’ liking since what they want is incapacitating chaos. This, they feel, will allow them to pick up the pieces and put them together as a new world.

A WORLD TO WIN

Prachanda (he adopted the moniker; he should live with it) is often portrayed as a moderate of sorts balancing contending Maoist factions, hard- and soft-liners. This, as with so many judgments, is a fundamental misreading of the revolutionary project. The only differences between the insurgent factions are issues of tactics and timing, not strategy.

The strategy remains people’s war, the mobilization of a new Maoist world, a counter-state, to challenge the existing world, the state. The manner in which the strategy is operationally implemented is what remains an object of debate.

Prachanda and company, illustrated best by Dr and Mrs Bhattarai, give greater weight to the course they are now pursuing, which is to bring the old-order down “peacefully” – that is, with intimidation, sub-rosa attacks on individuals, and street violence (“peaceful protest,” as illustrated by the present “Black Flag” activities). Even now, the Maoists have engaged in intense planning and training sessions for their promised Nov 1 attack, they vow, will only end when the government agrees to “compromise” (by which the Maoists mean surrender power to them).

In contract, the hardliners demand outright assault and forceful restructuring of society. They have bought into their own myth-making and simply discard the potential of Indian intervention of blockade.

They are best compared to Hamas and its present position in Gaza. That the population of Gaza has become isolated and miserable is irrelevant to the Hamas revolutionary project.

One need only look at Gaza, too, to understand the dysfunctional role in Nepal of both UNMIN and various EU missions. In Gaza, the UN “humanitarian” support of an archipelago of “refugee camps” in reality supports centers of militancy and terror – which, ironically, claim to be inviolate whenever there is response to crimes launched from within their confines.

Similarly, European ideological miscue has long given the benefit of the doubt to any force, such as Hamas, claiming to be revolutionary, even as its hideous belief structure, complete with an anti-Semitism that goes beyond Hitler’s Mein Kampf, is not only ignored by EU politicians but increasingly given voice in their pronouncements and embrace of the classic human rights double standard.

This is Nepal. The limited Maoist main forces have now been augmented by foreign-sustained, regularized militancy in the ‘regroupment’ camps. The NA is not allowed to recruit but the recruitment for the People’s Liberation Army went on as the camps were filled!

Ideologically, Maoist dogma has long since alienated even the most slow-learning members of the Nepali chattering classes. Reading the pages of leading Nepali media makes clear there is little that is unknown tangibly.

What remains underestimated, though, is the consequences of Maoism for Nepal.

(Writer is a political risk consultant based in Honolulu, Hawaii and the author of several benchmark works on Maoist insurgency, to include Maoist People’s War in Post-Vietnam Asia (Bangkok, 2007) and Counterrevolution in China: Wang Sheng and the Kuomintang (London, 1998).

Nepal to host international Adventure Travel Mart

Nepal to host Adventure Travel Mart

KAMAL RAJ SIGDEL  

THE KATHMANDU POST, OCT. 22

Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) in association with other stakeholders, including Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is hosting a first-of-its-kind international conference on adventure travel and tourism in Feb. 1-5.

The event named as Adventure Travel and Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart 2010 (AT&RTCM) is expected to help meet the government’s target of brining in a million tourists in the Nepal Tourism Year 2011, according to First Vice President of PATA Nepal Chapter and NTB CEO Prachanda Man Shrestha. The NTY 2011 aims, among others, at establishing Nepal as a choice of premier holiday destination with a definite brand image, and enhancing the capacity of the service providers.

The conference will have multiple sessions with deliberations on adventure travel, responsible tourism, adventure sports tourism, zero waste challenge and other issues of sustainable tourism.

PATA has received important backing from two influential organisations -- Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) -- for its 2010 Adventure Travel Mart.

 

Shrestha said that the Conference will create important platforms for tourism stakeholders to discuss and promote environmental protection and social sustainability.

 

According to PATA, the confirmed speakers at the Mart include Shannon Stowell, President of the US-based Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), Jose Dominic, CEO of CGH, India, Naranjan Khatri, GM for Environment at ITC Welcome Group in India, Tony Jones, Founding Director of Nepal’s Himalyan Encounter and Australia-based Intrepid Travel CEO Darrell Wade and others.

 

As an official carrier of the program, Nepal Airlines Corporations is offering preferential fares for delegates from several Asian cities to Kathmandu including Bangkok, Hong Kong, Singapore and Dubai, according to PATA.

Nepal welcomes gay and lesbian tourists

Nepal eyes sexual minorities for tourism

KAMAL RAJ SIGDEL

KATHMANDU, OCT 22 - Almost three years after the Supreme Court established gay rights in Nepal, the country is awaiting to host “one of the most extravagant groups of tourists in the world” — the sexual minorities consisting of lesbians, gays, bi-sexuals and transgenders (LGBTs).

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) officials hope that LGBT arrivals will contribute to the government aim of bringing in a million foreign tourists in the Nepal Tourism Year 2011.

In the recent past, the tourism authority has held a series of meetings with some internationally established private companies, tour operators and non-profit organisations to promote Nepal as a potential destination for LGBTs. The sexual minorities make up about 10 percent of the world population—670 million as of July 2008—according to the Kinsey Institute at Indiana University, an acclaimed research organisation specialising in sex, gender and reproduction.

“Some international companies want to work in tandem with the go- vernment and attract LGBTs. We will develop strategies for the same,” said an NTB official. “The beginning is encouraging.”

What has encouraged the government the most is that the renowned US-based Community Marketing Inc. (CMI), which is involved in gay and lesbian market research, has agreed to join hands in promoting Nepal as one of the best destinations for sexual minorities. A CMI research shows that gay and lesbian consumers make up at least 10 percent of the consumer market.

LGBT activists say they prefer destinations like Nepal, which is rich in culture, art, architecture, cuisine and music.

The CMI believes that Nepal has both natural beauty and the goodwill of the LGBT community worldwide to emerge as one of the world’s top destinations for sexual minorities. Nepal recently made history by having Asia’s first openly gay lawmaker Sunil Babu Pant, who is also Chairman of Blue Diamond Society.

Pant, who has been involved in promoting Nepal as a destination for sexual minorities, believes that the state could revive the economy if it could bring in at least 10 percent of the total LGBT population. “All that the government has to do is welcome LGBT travellers,” says Pant.

As part of the first promotional activity, Nepal is hosting a historic international conference in February, which is expected to bring together the world’s top tour operators, airlines and agencies selling adventure tourism to Kathmandu to explore opportunities for gay tourism in Nepal.

Mine menace persists in post-conflict Nepal, toll reaches 113

Mine menace persists in post-conflict Nepal, toll reaches 113

 

KAMAL RAJ SIGDEL

The KATHMANDU Post, OCT 16 - About 800 people have fallen victim to landmines and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) since the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) of November 2006. This puts Nepal among countries with the highest civilian casualty from mine explosions. 

Worse, the death toll is likely to further shoot up as the de-mining process is taking much longer than estimated when the CPA was signed. The CPA (Clause 5.1.4) states that both sides (Nepal Army and the Maoists) shall assist each other and completely defuse the mines planted during the decade-long war within 60 days.

As a result of non-compliance, large areas continue to remain danger zones with undefused explosives. Not surpri-singly, Nepal had the highest rate of child causality from explosions globally in 2008. Government records show that out of 794 explosion victims since the CPA, 113 have died with children accounting for over 50 percent of the deaths. 

According to an INSEC report, Maoist-planted mines account for 90 percent of civilian casualties. 

There is no exact data, even with the Maoists on how many mine items they have left on the fields. “It’s almost impossible to trace the mine items left on the fields, especially those planted by our combatants who were martyred, but we have destroyed most of our stockpiles,” said Chandra Prakash Khanal, a former deputy commander of Maoist combatants. According to UN Mine Action (UNMA), as of September this year, 46,850 “dangerous items” held by Maoists were destroyed.

On NA’s part, its special  UNMA-trained squad has cleared 17 out of 53 landmines and 105 out of 274 IEDs. “The team has plans to clear another 19 landmines next year,” said an NA official. “There’s almost no risk so far as NA planted mines are concerned. We have identified and fenced most of them.”

Civil society groups observe that despite the alarming death toll, the parties have never prioritised this issue. “There’s no scientific mapping of the fields where IEDs may have been left,” said INSEC Chairman Subodh Pyakurel. 

Government officials concede that the de-mining process is slow, but disagree that it should have been comple-ted within 60 days. “The 60-day time line was a technical mistake,” according to Salikram Sharma, under-secretary at the Ministry of Peace and a member of the steering committee on mine action. “Demining is time-consuming, it may take another two years to complete the job.” (Oct 16, TKP)

The old man in a hurry

The old man in a hurry

KAMAL RAJ SIGDEL

The Kathmandu Post, OCT 13 - Nepali Congress (NC) President Girija Prasad Koirala seems to be standing on shaky political ground. He finds himself at perhaps his leanest phase as party leader since the restoration of democracy in 1990. 

Many say the Grand Old Man of Nepali politics is losing sight of history and the party’s long-term interest: How could a man who led his party to power in two general elections after 1990 and oversaw a difficult transition through the Constituent Assembly elections in 2006 let history slip away at the fag end of his career? To many, Koirala’s core problem, which continues to erode his credibility, is the ailing 84-year-old’s impatience to establish as his heir, his daughter Sujata in NC politics.

“The old man has such a rich political legacy,” says an NC central committee leader, “but he is risking everything he has earned in the last six decades. He seems desperate to establish dynastic politics through his daughter Sujata.” His life seems to read like a Greek tragedy, says the NC leader, “a character flaw leading towards a mighty fall.” According to this argument, Monday’s elevation of Sujata as deputy prime minister only adds credence to the theory that Koirala is squandering his political capital in the party.

The major flaw with Koirala, according to NC CWC member Narahari Acharya, is failure to move ahead with changing times. “The habit of taking unilateral decisions has hurt him the most,” says Acharya. Whereas NC Parliamentary Party leader Ram Chandra Poudel says Koirala’s ‘love’ towards one particular person at the expense of rest of the members has been most debi-litating.

 Opinions are divided over when Koirala’s stranglehold on NC began to loosen. To many, the early seeds of dissent appeared when 36 NC lawmakers stood up against then-Prime Minister Koirala as a strong faction in the early 90s.

Acharya traces Koirala’s decline to the April 2006 movement when the parties he led, including his own NC, refused to heed his call for keeping ceremonial monarchy intact. “In fact, he had lost hold over the party much earlier but most were unaware of it.”

Many see the CWC’s firm stand on slating the Mahasamiti meeting (Nov. 1-3), which Koirala opposed, as the most recent evidence of the party’s defiance. 

“The CWC’s stand on the Mahasamiti meeting can be taken as a slap on the wrist for the octogenarian,” says a CWC member. “Koirala is desperately trying to secure positions for his loyalists, including his daughter.” The logic is that the sooner the party holds the Mahasamiti, the earlier NC will undergo massive reforms to further curtail Koirala’s influence on the party machinery.

“Currently, the NC leadership is in transition, and Koirala has to change with the time to get a safe exit,” says Binaya Dhoj Chand, another NC CWC member.  

However, CWC member Chakra Bastola believes that Monday’s decision to upgrade Sujata as deputy prime minister will backfire on him, “The time’s up for Koirala. There’s little he can do now.”

 

(Published at: http://www.ekantipur.com/tkp/news/news-detail.php?news_id=1028)

Master and Doctoral Scholarship at Saitama University

Master and Doctoral Scholarship at Saitama University

 

International Graduate Program on Civil and  Environmental Engineering at theGraduate School of Science and Engineering at Saitama University.In this prospectus you will find all the necessary information aboutthe program for prospective international students. The programoffers excellent opportunities to highly qualified internationalstudents for pursuing graduate studies and research in the fieldof Civil and Environmental Engineering. This program first startedaccepting students in 1992 and has since awarded Master's and Doctorate Degreesto 268 students from 24 countries. Currently, we have 71 students from 14 countriesenrolled in the program.

Readmore:

International Graduate Program on Civil and Environmental Engineering at theGraduate School of Science and Engineering at Saitama University.In this prospectus you will find all the necessary information aboutthe program for prospective international students. The programoffers excellent opportunities to highly qualified internationalstudents for pursuing graduate studies and research in the fieldof Civil and Environmental Engineering. This program first startedaccepting students in 1992 and has since awarded Master's and Doctorate Degreesto 268 students from 24 countries. Currently, we have 71 students from 14 countriesenrolled in the program.

The program is highly competitive and admits about 20-25 students each year. Moststudents are awarded scholarships by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports,Science and Technology of the Japanese Government, Asian Development Bank-JapanScholarship Program, Joint World Bank-Japan Scholarship Program, or Special Programfor Studies at Japanese Universities Program of the Inter-American Development Bank.In addition to these programs, several public and private organizations also grantscholarships to international students in our program. Not all students, however, areawarded scholarships, and we accept a few qualified self-financed students each year.

We are committed to offering the best education both in terms of research and coursework. Our faculty is comprised of well-known experts in their respective fields andboasts excellent experimental, computing, and reference facilities.

Application for Admission
Application forms are available from this web page for downloading in PDF format (you need Adobe Acrobat Reader for this). If you have any difficulty in downloading, you can request the application forms by writing to the FSO.

The following documents must be submitted when you are applying to the program:

• Completed application form (Form A) [This form consists of two pages]
• Certified copies of previous academic records
• Two letters of recommendation (Form B)
• Essays on selected topics (Form C)
• A concise resume (Form D) [This form consists of two pages]
• Filled out address labels and return postcard (enclosed in the application package) [Not necessary if you use the downloaded forms]
• Certificate of English proficiency (an official score of TOEFL, IELTS or equivalent)

Download the Forms

Download Prospectus

Moreinfo: http://www.civil.saitama-u.ac.jp/fso/

International Human Rights Training Program_June 6 – June 25, 2010, Montreal, Canada

The International Human Rights Training Program_June 6 – June 25, 2010, Montreal, Canada

 

The International Human Rights Training Program (IHRTP) is at the heart of the Equitas' activities. Since 1980, this annual three-week training session brings together approximately 120 participants from over 60 countries. The IHRTP provides a unique opportunity for human rights workers to deepen their understanding of human rights and of the essential role of human rights education in effecting change. As recognized by the United Nations:

"There is a growing consensus that education in and for human rights is essential and can contribute to both the reduction of human rights violations and the building of free and peaceful societies. Human rights education is also increasingly recognized as an effective strategy to prevent human rights abuses."

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The International Human Rights Training Program (IHRTP) is at the heart of the Equitas' activities. Since 1980, this annual three-week training session brings together approximately 120 participants from over 60 countries. The IHRTP provides a unique opportunity for human rights workers to deepen their understanding of human rights and of the essential role of human rights education in effecting change. As recognized by the United Nations:

"There is a growing consensus that education in and for human rights is essential and can contribute to both the reduction of human rights violations and the building of free and peaceful societies. Human rights education is also increasingly recognized as an effective strategy to prevent human rights abuses."

Goal

The goal of the IHRTP is to strengthen the capacity of human rights organizations to undertake human rights education efforts (e.g., training, awareness campaigns, information dissemination, and advocacy) aimed at building a global culture of human rights.

To this end, the Program places a strong emphasis on the transfer of learning and on follow-up activities. Participants attending the Program develop an Individual Plan for putting their learning into action as part of the training. Therefore, when submitting their application, both organizations and Candidates nominated should consider how the transfer of learning might take place within and beyond the organization after the Program.

Objectives

By the end of the IHRTP, participants should be able to:

• use a framework based on internationally accepted human rights standards and principles to analyze the issues and situations encountered in the work of their organizations
• determine how to incorporate participatory methods and techniques into their human rights education work
• indicate appropriate ways for putting their learning from the IHRTP into practice in the work of their organizations
• identify opportunities for future collaborative and networking activities essential for furthering the cause of human rights
• determine strategies for promoting gender equality in their human rights education work
• employ a basic evaluation process for assessing the results of their human rights education work

Selection Process and Bursaries

A Selection Committee will review all applications. In addition to the requirements previously listed, consideration will also be given to overall gender balance and geographic representation. Given the number of applications and limited space available, we are unable to accept many worthy Candidates. Your understanding is greatly appreciated.

Through the support of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Equitas has funding to award a limited number of bursaries to selected Candidates. Once eligibility has been determined, the Selection Committee will award the bursaries to the Candidates who best meet the requirements. Due to the limited number of bursaries available, there is no guarantee that the selected Candidates will receive funding. Therefore, we strongly urge all Candidates to immediately begin seeking funding from other sources.

Your application must include:

• The completed Application Form (Part A completed by the Director of the Candidate's organization; Part B completed by the Candidate)
• The Memorandum of Agreement duly signed by the Candidate and the director of the Candidate's organization
• Two supporting letters from national and/or international human rights organizations (other than the Candidate's) familiar with the Candidate's work and/or the work of his or her organization
• A brochure (and/or mission statement) describing the Candidate's organization

Please send all documents for applications, preferably by email, to: ihrtp-pifdh@equitas.org or by fax to: 1-514-954-0659

• Information about the International Human Rights Training Program
• 2010 Application Form
• Memorandum of Agreement

Moreinfo: http://www.equitas.org/english/programs/IHRTP.php

Scholarship for Master in International Media Studies

Scholarship for Master in International Media Studies

 

The bilingual Master's Program International Media Studies started in September 2009 with 22 students from 13 countries at DW-AKADEMIE, the international training centre of Deutsche Welle in Bonn. The program combines topics like media development, journalism, communication science and media economics, whilst developing practical skills and competencies that are important for the world of media. It is a joint project from the University of Bonn, the Bonn-Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences, InWEnt and Deutsche Welle, Germany's international broadcaster with its headquarters in Bonn.

The four-semester, full-time program offers a unique course that combines the acquisition and development of practical skills in journalism with theoretical grounding. Students from around the world will benefit from the inclusion of partners and the unparalleled mix of research, lectures and practical experience. The program ends with a master's thesis and colloquium. Successful graduates receive a Master of Arts (M.A.).

 

Readmore:

Moreinfo: www.ims-master.de or http://issuu.com/deutsche-welle/docs/international-media-studies_dw-english