March 14: Experience the horrors and hopes facing child soldiers in Africa

An activist, a legal scholar, and a former child soldier show films and discuss “From Conscription to Justice and Reintegration: Child Soldiers in Africa”

When: Wednesday, March 14, 7:00 – 9:00 pm

Where: The Old Centrum 520 E. 12th Street Indianapolis 46202

Citizens for Global Solutions presents Bukeni Waruzi Beck, Executive Director of AJEDIKa/Projet Enfants Soldats, and Madeleine, a former girl soldier from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), for a public discussion and screening on child soldiers and the work of Mr. Beck’s organization. A light reception will follow.

The systematic and widespread use of children—the most vulnerable members of the population—in armed conflict is not new. The plight of these children continues to shock the conscience and demands immediate and urgent action.

Created to provide justice and accountability to victims of war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide, the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague has commenced its first landmark case against a Congolese warlord accused of forcibly recruiting and conscripting tens of thousands of child soldiers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

In a recent visit to the ICC, Citizens for Global Solutions’ Legal Analyst, Golzar Kheiltash, met with a remarkable man fighting on the frontlines on behalf of child soldiers in Africa. Mr. Bukeni T. Waruzi Beck is an activist and filmmaker who has dedicated his life to not only revealing the plight of child soldiers, but to giving these children a second chance. Mr. Beck documents the stories of hundreds of child soldiers on film, revealing a stark and systematic cycle of recruitment and conscription, narrated by the children and their families in their own words. His films powerfully demonstrate the difficulties of many children who want to reintegrate into their communities after leaving the camps. This is especially true of girl soldiers who have suffered the added brutality of rape and sexual violence at the hands of their commanders.

Through his NGO, AJEDI-Ka/Projet Enfants Soldats, Mr. Beck combines the power of film with the power of hope: a dedicated staff of eight works tirelessly to demobilize and reintegrate girl and boy soldiers and maintain long-term follow up on the welfare of these children. In the words of Mr. Beck, “we at AJEDIKa/Projet Enfants Soldats devote our efforts to protecting the rights of children and the promotion of justice in their cause.”

Through their Connecting Global to Local initiative, Citizens for Global Solutions highlights Beck’s extraordinary work and provides those of us in Indianapolis with a unique opportunity to engage him on this critical issue.

• From the North: Take Central Avenue south to the intersection of 12th Street and Central Avenue. The Old Centrum will be on your left.


• From the South: Take Delaware Street north to 13th Street. Go east (right turn) on 13th Street to Central Avenue. Go south (right turn) on Central Avenue. The Old Centrum will be immediately on your left.


• From the West: Take 16th Street east to Central Avenue. Go south (right turn) on Central Avenue to the intersection of 12th Street and Central Avenue. The Old Centrum will be on your left.


• From the East: Take Washington Street west to Delaware Street. Go north on Delaware (right turn) to 13th Street. Turn east (right turn) on 13th Street to Central Avenue. Go south (right turn) on Central Avenue. The Old Centrum will be on your left.


• Parking: The Old Centrum parking lot is on the east side of Central Avenue, just north of the Old Centrum building. There is also free parking along Central Avenue, as well as 12th Street.

For a clip of Bekeni Beck, go here.

If you like this event, make sure you see Bukeni, Madelaine, and Golzar when they discuss the International Criminal Court on March 13.

February 10: Attend an artsy fundraiser for the IU-Moi partnership in Kenya

An Art benefit to support the HIV/AIDS program of the IU School of Medicine and Moi University in Kenya at The Studio School & Gallery

When: Saturday, February 10 PREVIEW SHOW : 5:00-6:30 PM; GENERAL SHOW: 6:30 PM to 10 PM

Where: The Studio School & Gallery 5610 E. Washington St. Indianapolis 46219 (Located in the heart of Historic Irvington)

The Studio School & Gallery for an evening of panoramas that startle the imagination, inspire the spirit and benefit the IU Kenya partnership and the Imani Workshop. Take home a sunrise, an Acacia, a lion or a family of rhinos.

Below is a selection of the items that will be available for purchase or custom order. All items will be hand signed by the artist, Quay:

• Large scale Gicleès and photographs.
• Matted and framed in rimless glass frames.
• Oil Paintings and Watercolors on gallery hung canvasses ready to hang in your office or home.
• Custom coffee table books. With photos selected by the artist.
• Custom Coffee Table books you co-create with the artist.
• ArtMat© greeting cards.
• Note cards.
• Magnets.
• Small scale, matted photographs.

Proceeds from any items purchased on the night of the benefit will go to support the IU Kenya Partnership and the educational programs of The Studio School & Gallery.

PREVIEW SHOW : $50 per person advance sale; $60 per person, night of show

GENERAL SHOW: $25 per person advance sale; $30 per person, night of opening

Students: $15, 13 and over with I.D. Children under 12, FREE

Light hors'dourve and refreshment service will begin at 5:00PM.

*RSVP by February 3 *

For more information, By Phone: 317-351-6990; Via E-Mail: thestudioschool@sbcglobal.net

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To read an essay about Hoosiers and Africa, "Who Can Help Africans Solve Their Problems?" that connects many of the events relating to Africa this spring, go to Views-PRI, the sister site of IndyBuzz (and forerunner of the electronic magazine Provocate).

January 26: Discuss Indiana and Kenya with Hoosiers who are making a difference

Members of the Indianapolis Rotary Club, the IU Medical School, and local churches discuss their work in Kenya ... and I will discuss how this represents a new way of thinking about humanitarian aid and public diplomacy

When: Friday January 26, 2:30 PM
Where: Sagamore Institute 340 W. Michigan St. Indianapolis (Indiana Historical Landmarks Foundation Building)

Some day when the story is told of how Kenya survived the early 21st century, Indiana will be an important part of the story. Start with the massive and still growing partnership Indiana University Medical School has formed with Moi University in Eldoret, Kenya. Add the Indianapolis Rotary Club's ambitious plans now being launched. Toss in churches such as 2nd Pres and North United Methodist, which are setting up and running orphanages. And the "volun-tourism" missions to Kenya being organized by Ambassadors for Children. It adds up. In fact, these sorts of local-to-local partnerships to solve global problems could become more significant than the US-government-to-foreign-government relations that we think of as foreign aid. The direct relations -- the "citizens diplomacy" -- established through these partnerships could be more important than the "public diplomacy" campaigns sometimes launched by the State Department.

Several Hoosiers currently engaged in local-to-local relations with Kenyans will discuss their work, the problems they are addressing and the possibilities of working with Kenyans to find solutions.

If this event sounds interesting, you definitely should check out the fundraiser for the IU-Moi partnership at The Studio School and Gallery February 10. Kelly Campbell of Ambassadors for Children will talk to the Indiana Council on World Affairs about South Africa on March 6, you are sure to learn more about how you can help Africans solve their problems.

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To read an essay about Hoosiers and Africa, "Who Can Help Africans Solve Their Problems?" that connects many of the events relating to Africa this spring, go to Views-PRI, the sister site of IndyBuzz (and forerunner of the electronic magazine Provocate).

January 31: Find out what is causing global climate change, and what can be done

Electrical engineer Dick Davis discusses "Global Climate Change" as part of the Church of the Saviour's "Great Decisions" series

When: Wednesday January 31, 7:00 PM
Where: Church of the Saviour, 6205 Rucker Road Indianapolis

How much are human practices contributing to substantial and irreversible changes to the environment? What effect are changes to the climate having in different areas of the planet? What response can the international community adopt to lessen the impact of dramatic climate change?

If this event sounds interesting, you should check out All Gore when he comes to town in April, or just get a copy of "Inconvenient Truth." Even better will be to join in other discussions of climate change and the environment. As part of the ICWA's Great Decisions series, you can hear IUPUI climatologist Gabriel Filippelli February 6. Stanford scientist Stephen Schneider discusses "Can we measure, let alone solve, global warming" April 18.

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February 6: Discuss the science and politics of global climate change

Prof. Gabriel Filippelli--Chair Department of Earth Sciences at IUPUI and Associate Director of Center For Environmental Health at Indiana University -- discusses global climate change for the Great Decisions Series of the Indiana Council on World Affairs.

When: Tuesday, March 29 7:00-9:00 PM

Where: Butler University, Pharmacy Building

How much are human practices contributing to substantial and irreversible changes to the environment? What effect are changes to the climate having in different areas of the planet? What response can the international community adopt to lessen the impact of dramatic climate change?

These and other questions will be addressed by Prof. Gabriel Filippelli of IUPUI. Part of the reason why the public and policymakers seem confused about the topic of "global warming" (perhaps more precise would be to call the topic "massive human induced climate change") is that the science is hard. It isn't just that the math underlying the models is beyond our brains, there is also a matter of understanding the nature of the scientific method and the role of doubt.

Filippelli should be a valuable guide, a real live honest to goodness climate scientist who works hard to clarify issues for ordinary citizens. Here's how he describes his research agenda. Filippelli was featured in a WISH-TV feature about global climate change.

“When greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane go up in our atmosphere, because of physics, the atmosphere and the planet simply have to warm,” said Dr. Gabriel Filippelli, IUPUI. Proponents say they have proof. “We can prove this by doing this in a lab experiment in a beaker. You add more of these gases in, the beaker is going to be hotter with the same amount of incident light,” said Filippelli.

The only way to predict future climate is through computer models. “Weather models have a hard time forecasting weather conditions past a week or 10 days,” said Randy Ollis, Forecast 8 meteorologist. Researchers say climate models are
different. “The science behind understanding climate change is much more solid than it was even 10 years ago,” said Filippelli. “Climate models are extremely stripped down and they just deal with some basic aspects of atmospheric physics,” said Dr. Gabriel Filippelli, IUPUI. They’re basic in form, but complex in results. The models don't agree on future climate, but global warming proponents say, “Everyone that I have seen applied projects a warming,” said Filippelli. With that, Filippelli is comfortable enough to say, “If you are looking to buy real estate, Antarctica is I think a good deal right now.”

Prof. Filippelli will surely help connect this global issue to local concerns. We get a taste of this in a news article from last year.

If this event sounds interesting, you should check out the Church of the Saviour's Great Decision discussion of global climate change January 31. And hear a Stanford scientist ask whether we can even measure global climate change on April 18. That makes science sem pretty fuzzy ... so let's listen to the leading authority on the fuzziest of warped and bizarre science on March 7.

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February 8: Learn about what international public health was like before the World Health Organization

Theodore Brown, the country's leading historian of public health, helps us better understand the challenges of global public health in the 21st century by taking us back half a century

When: Thursday February 8, 4:00-5:00 PM
Where: IU Medical School Medical Science Library, Room IB 301 & 302

Theodore M. Brown, Professor in the Departments of History and of Community and Preventive Medicine at the University of Rochester, will talk about “International Public Health: Before the World Health Organization.” The History of the WHO cannot be fully understood without appreciating the often tangled background of international public health that existed in the years before the Second World War. When WHO came into being, it inherited a legacy that included many tensions, contests over organizational territory, and conflicts over priorities. This presentation will evaluate the key developments in international health in the period leading up to the chartering of WHO, and will pay particular attention to the Office Internationale d'Hygiene Publique and the League of Nations Health Organization.

Dr. Brown brings an important perspective, expressed in his 2004 article "A Role for Public Health History":

First, that international public health efforts are deeply influenced and critically shaped by their political context. Programs cannot be created in a vacuum or applied in isolation. They are of this world and, like it, they constantly change and thus need to be frequently renegotiated. Second, the culture of international health organizations must be acknowledged in order to understand what priorities will emerge at any particular time and which will survive intra- and interagency competition. Programmatic ideas are always contested and rise and fall with shifting political alliances.

Third, ideas are applied in a world governed by administrative and bureaucratic realities. The translation of plans into actual programs requires a great deal of persistence and negotiating skill to make them real and keep them functioning. Fourth, international health initiatives must reckon with deep-seated historical and cultural traditions, local realities, and global forces. All play roles in the success and failure of public health activities, and no success is likely to last forever, especially when the world changes in dramatic ways. Fifth, top-down initiatives cannot expect to succeed without real bottom-up support. Because people at the local level understand how programs need to function to address their particular needs, there can be no simple formula for international public health success. A single agenda or set of priorities cannot suit all circumstances.

Clearly, there is an important role for history in global public health. Studying history carefully and generalizing from its particulars may not necessarily help us avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, but by distilling the lessons of history, we can certainly learn more clearly where we have been and, as a consequence, become more aware of where we are.

More information

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February 15: Spend a wholesome day at the 18th annual Joseph Taylor Symposium on "Urban Universities/Urban Communities: Partners in Social Justice"

The 2007 Joseph Taylor Symposium on "Urban Universities/Urban Communities: Partners in Social Justice," emphasizes IUPUI's commitment to civic engagement

When: Thursday February 15 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Where: IUPUI University Place Conference Center and Hotel

The Joseph Taylor Symposium honors the legacy of Dr. Joseph Taylor, the first dean of the School of Liberal Arts, and addresses issues of interest to urban communities. The 2007 event, "Urban Universities/Urban Communities: Partners in Social Justice," reflects IUPUI’s focus on civic engagement while also recognizing the complexities that emerge when bridging boundaries between academic institutions and their communities.

Some of the topics of panel discussions at the Symposium:

• Education and Social Justice: Critical Connections Between IUPUI and P-12
• Achieving Social Justice in Health: Closing the Gap in Access to Health Promotion
• History as Social Justice: Memory and Public Heritage in the Near-Westside
  

The program showcases existing collaborations, features keynote speakers Professor Edward Curtis (Religious Studies) on "University and Community Partnerships: Crossing Bridges, Confronting Walls" and Professor Dana-Ain Davis (Anthropology, SUNY-Purchase College) on "Knowledge in the Vision of Service: Politically Engaged Scholarship." It will provide ample opportunity for audience participation. [ Additional Information/Registration ] [ Symposium Brochure ] More information

If this event sounds interesting, you should check out a parallel discussion of Hoosiers' civic engagement in Kenya on January 26.

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February 21: Hear Terri Jett's impressions of South Africa (and perhaps learn more about race in America)

Butler University's Terri Jett talks about South Africa

When: Wednesday, March 23 7:00 PM
Where: Church of the Saviour, 6205 Rucker Road Indianapolis

South Africa is the most developed country in Africa and has been an active leader on the continent, yet is still struggles with major issues in the post-Apartheid era. What are the political challenges facing South Africa? What impact is the AIDS epidemic playing on South Africa's economy and society?

Terri Jett is an associate professor of political science at Butler University. Dr. Jett has researched the political, economic, social and religious landscape of rural black communities in the American south and has a keen interest in the religious connection to the U.S. civil rights movement. Terri leads Butler University's Center for Faith and Vocation's Field Ministry seminars to South Africa. The goal of the Field Seminar in Ministry is to give undergraduate students who are considering a call to ministry or other community service the chance to reflect on religion and society in a new setting. The seminar will examine how religious communities and service organizations deal with issues of faith and calling in South Africa. Sponsored by the Bob Calhoun Memorial Great Decisions Series

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To read an essay about Hoosiers and Africa, "Who Can Help Africans Solve Their Problems?" that connects many of the events relating to Africa this spring, go to Views-PRI, the sister site of IndyBuzz (and forerunner of the electronic magazine Provocate).

March 6: Explore South Africa with Kelly Campbell of Ambassadors for Children

Kelly Campbell, VP of Ambassadors for Children, leads a discussion of South African problems and how we can be part of solutions for the Indiana Council on World Affairs Great Decisions Series

When: Tuesday, March 6 7:00-9:00 PM
Where: Butler University, Pharmacy Building

South Africa is the most developed country in Africa and has been an active leader on the continent, yet is still struggles with major issues in the post-Apartheid era. What are the political challenges facing South Africa? What impact is the AIDS epidemic playing on South Africa's economy and society?

Kelly Campbell is Vice President of Operations for Ambassadors for Children. Ambassadors for Children (AFC) is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to serving children around the world through short-term humanitarian service trips and sustainable programs. Voluntourism trips are fast becoming the new way to travel. Voluntourism is the combination of voluntary service to a destination with the traditional elements of travel and tourism - arts, culture, history, geography, and recreation. Kelly has been with the organization since 2004 and have served as an intern, volunteer travel coordinator, and Director of Missions. She recently completed her Masters in International Relations at the University of Indianapolis.

If this event sounds interesting, you should check out the discussion of Hoosiers helping Africa January 26 ... Kelly and Ambassadors for Children are important components of that helping. Terri Jett will give a different perspective on South Africa February 21.

Return to IndyBuzz List of Events for Spring

Return to IndyBuzz Themes for Events in the Spring

To read an essay about Hoosiers and Africa, "Who Can Help Africans Solve Their Problems?" that connects many of the events relating to Africa this spring, go to Views-PRI, the sister site of IndyBuzz (and forerunner of the electronic magazine Provocate).