the morningside post

Rothbury: A Music Festival With Some Suggestions

By Ben Colmery
MIA 2009

In about a month everyone’s going to be asking each other, “So, what did you do over the summer?” Mostly, people are going to be interested in what internships everyone did, and just as importantly, where they did them.

Sure, these are interesting questions for SIPA people. After all, some are out there working on climate change, food security, economic development, conflict resolution, HIV/AIDS, or human rights. They are doing it in places like Ghana, Uganda, Thailand, Brazil, and Nigeria. And so much of it is important work, in the name of helping others.

I, on the other hand, recently did something that was of pivotal importance to helping me. I got my head screwed back on right. It wasn’t until I pulled this off that I realized just how askew my head had become after a year of pushing my brains to their outer reaches at SIPA. For all the good it had done me, something just wasn’t right.

Fox: Intern Learns That "Community" Means Everyone

By Ben Colmery
MIA 2009

What did I learn this week at Fox? Well, for starters, “they’re out there”, to borrow a phrase from Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. I work in the department that people contact when they have something to say about, well, anything Fox-related (something they saw on TV, something they want to see on TV, something they want to know, and more importantly, something they want you to know). This is what happens when you publish an email address and say, “Hey, tell us what you think!”

What do people think? One viewer was upset to see someone on Fox wearing cufflinks of a rival city’s baseball team. Another viewer called on Fox to pay more attention to the “thriving belly dance community” in the city. There was a cancer patient who wanted to find a hair piece to cover his bald head for his daughter’s wedding, had heard that one of the TV people on Fox wore a hair piece, and wondered where he could pick up such a convincing hair piece.

Looking for Some Job Ideas?

By Courtney Doggart
MIA 2009

In The History of the Siege of Lisbon, author Jose Saramago explores the historical implications of a book proofreader slipping in the tiny word “not” into a historical account of the 1147 siege of Lisbon.  The ensuing romp underscores, among other things, how words are indicators with long-lasting implications. A more modern version of the proofreader’s tale can perhaps be found in the unfortunately named “nonprofit sector.” With urban legends of underpaid, overworked employees and a sector name that is less than tantalizing, it is unsurprising that the nonprofit sector consistently draws the fewest SIPA students into its ranks.

While I don’t make a habit of reading career guides cover-to-cover, I can confidently say that this one is far from dry.

Last week, I sat down last week with Shelly Cryer, SIPA alum and former adjunct professor, to talk about her new book, a guide to the nonprofit sector. From the beginning both she and the book emphasize that the sector is done a disservice by being defined by what it is not. Rather, Cryer believes that the nonprofit sector should be recognized for what it is—a sector that “emphasizes mission and not the financial bottom line.” The book, aptly titled The Nonprofit Career Guide: How to Land a Job That Makes a Difference, dispels some of the common myths (salary...) about the sector about and provides a thorough analysis of its job market.

A New Harlem Renaissance?

By Jessica Wanke and Chagit Bachrach

 

A change is underway today in South Harlem. An area rich in American heritage, Harlem gained international renown as the epicenter of African American culture in the early 1900s. It also underwent a long period of decline, particularly during the drug epidemic and a period of neglect by the city in the 1970s and 1980s. Today the region, like much of Manhattan, is being revitalized. However, commercial investment is driving up the price of neighborhood real estate, and with it rent prices, forcing many long-time Harlem residents out. A local pastor is leading the charge against this gentrification. In this video by Jessica Wanke and Chagit Bachrach, residents new and old share their thoughts on the changes happening in South Harlem.

Green Dragon Perspectives: Hope from Hvistendahl – China’s Environmental Movement 2.0

By Kerstin Ahlgren
MIA 2009

To a foreigner who has lived in China, Mara Hvistendahl (who spoke at a talk sponsored by Green Dragon on February 18th, 2008) set a familiar scene in her presentation on China’s Environmental Movement 2.0.  She talked about the “China cold,” symptoms of which include hacking, excess flem, spitting, and congestion.  Hvistendahl, however, has gone further than simply living with and complaining about the China cold and has consistently sought out those who are changing China’s environmental reality.  In doing so, she has become a clear voice of nuance and hope among the many China naysayers.

Rethinking "Sustainability" in International Media Development

By Ben Colmery
MIA 2009

I recently encountered some opinions at SIPA that I found somewhat troubling for someone in my field of international media development. When I said that the International Media and Communications concentration should become more of a development concentration, a professor and a student both said that the problem with international media development is that, in their experience, it isn’t really sustainable.

I’d first like to say something about this whole notion of sustainability. In principle, I agree with it as a goal for development. Of course we want to think about the future of a project, where it will be once we are no longer directly involved, what it will produce, and that it necessarily has an end, as far as our involvement is concerned. We don’t want to start projects that will forever depend on us, or that won’t provide long-term benefits for recipient countries. And, we also don’t want to promote short-term thinking in recipient countries, since that is very often a major obstacle to their development. To this extent, I champion sustainable thinking.

New Media Comes to SIPA

By Sean Blaschke
MIA 2009

Dr. Sharad Sapra, UNICEF Director of Communications, spoke Monday to Columbia students during a New Media Practicum focusing on how technologies like mobile phones and FM radio can address the digital divide in developing countries. Joining Dr. Sapra were Senior UNICEF Communications Officers Chris Fabian and Erica Kochi.

The New Media Practicum is the first part of a fledgling initiative aimed to bring together representatives of academia, the development industry and UNICEF.Speaking about UNICEF education initiatives in post Taliban Afghanistan, Dr. Sapra highlighted the importance of finding creative solutions to reach vulnerable populations ignored by decades of 'development'. Many portray technology, and in particular the internet, as the silver bullet.

SIPA Should Be A Leader In International Media Development

By Ben Colmery
MIA 2009

Now is the perfect time for SIPA to take a leadership role in international media development. SIPA is one of the top international affairs schools in the world. It is a school within Columbia University, which has one of the top journalism schools in the world. It is in New York City, the media capital of the known universe. The pieces are all there. All SIPA has to do is seize the moment, and make it a priority.

Why become a leader in international media development? Simple. First, we are in the information age, in which media are booming and constantly evolving, presenting relentless opportunities for growth. Second, much of the developing world is comprised of people who have limited access to media, and even less access to utilizing media. Third, media are vital resources for promoting the flow of ideas, freedom, democracy, human rights, and development in the world, while progress in the developing world is often believed to be slowed by a lack of these things.

McDonald's Can Be "Good" for Development

By Ben Colmery
MIA 2009

After spending time in a redeveloping country like Ukraine, I am afraid I have to say that McDonald’s is not entirely evil. There. I said it. McDonald’s isn’t entirely evil. And Ukraine provides a great case for such a conclusion.

Before I go into why, I need to explain this “evil” tag I’ve put on McDonald’s. It’s not that I really think the company is evil. But some people do, and sometimes I agree. However, after my experience in Ukraine, I feel as though I should present another way of looking at this global empire.

"The Yes Men" Curing Your Post-Econ Exam Blues

By Matteen Mokalla
MIA 2008

For those of you who hate econ, econ exams, Milton Friedman, the WTO, and well, money...I present to you, a documentary about people who feel just about the same way, "The Yes Men."

As you will see,this film chronicles the lives of a handful of culture jammers who fly around the world pretending (convincingly) to be corporate and Washington Consensus representatives. The results are absolutely hilarious. Be sure not to miss the part where one of the Yes Men go to a B-School and try to convince future MBAs that McDonald's, in the name of market efficiency, should sell the feces of first world people to feed the people of the third world. No, I am not making this up.

And while I don't necessarily agree with everything that The Yes Men espouse, I think they provide some healthy fodder for discussion during your next economics class!