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New York Times Magazine examines individual-initiated foreign aid projects

A New York Times Magazine article by the newspaper's Op-Ed columnist Nicolas Kristof examines a "revolution" that is "just beginning" and "might be called Do-It-Yourself Foreign Aid, because it starts with the proposition that it's not only presidents and United Nations officials who chip away at global challenges. Passionate individuals with great ideas can do the same, especially in the age of the Internet and social media."

22 Oct 2010

Surrogacy laws put to conscience vote

The New South Wales Parliament will have a conscience vote to decide on a bill that would grant parental rights to couples who have a child through surrogacy.

21 Oct 2010

North Carolina Academic Center to conduct youth violence prevention research

North Carolina will be home to the nation's first rurally focused youth violence prevention center, with a federal grant worth nearly $6.5 million to support a new project based in Robeson County and led by University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers.

21 Oct 2010

USAID administrator outlines feed the future initiative at World Food Prize symposium

USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah on Friday in Iowa described the Obama administration's international agricultural development effort, Feed the Future, as a flagship effort for his agency and a key plank in the administration's global development strategy, but said it can't succeed without more support, CongressDaily reports.

20 Oct 2010

Coal seam gas toxins raise questions

Routine testing by Australia Pacific LNG found traces of four toxic chemicals, including benzene and toluene, in their wells in the Surat Basin. There are fresh calls for a ban on the extraction of coal seam gas in southern Queensland.

19 Oct 2010

SheKnows City Guide helps women to get expert advice on health

SheKnows one of the fastest growing online content and community global destinations for women, just launched a new city-specific resource titled SheKnows City Guide.

19 Oct 2010

Shift in agriculture techniques required to ensure future food security, U.N. special rapporteur on right to food says on World Food Day

Farming techniques must adapt to mitigate the effects of climate change and ensure global food security, Olivier De Schutter, the U.N. special rapporteur on the right to food, said in a statement to mark Saturday's World Food Day, Agence France-Presse reports.

19 Oct 2010

Parent abuse – lack of support for victims

According to new Flinders University research parents who suffer abuse and neglect by their children need more support. The report found that almost half the victims interviewed were unable to get support.

18 Oct 2010

Crackdown on liquor licensing breaches needed: Doctors

AMA Victoria has urged the State to look deeper into liquor licensing breaches and has alleged that there have been only four prosecutions out of the near 15,200 breaches. There were 1,200 venues who were reportedly supplying liquor “other than in accordance with the license”. AMA Victoria has asked the state government to introduce harsher penalties for venue operators that breach their liquor licensing conditions.

18 Oct 2010

Former U.N. Secretary-General, Gates Foundation CEO, Ethiopian official address World Food Prize conference

In a speech at the World Food Prize conference on Thursday, former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan discussed several topics related to food security and said that discrimination against women is limiting agricultural development in Africa, the Des Moines Register reports.

18 Oct 2010

Opinions: PR for U.S. foreign aid; African food security

Foreign aid is a much cheaper way of conducting a country's foreign policy than the military - and in many cases it can be much more effective, too, Reuters' Felix Salmon writes on his blog.

18 Oct 2010

World Food Prize recipients call for investment in agriculture in developing countries

The 2010 World Food Prize recipients say despite the economic situation "it's no time for the United States to back off a historic pledge to invest in boosting the production of the world's poorest farmers," the Des Moines Register reports.

15 Oct 2010

Cancer cluster among Sydney Harbour Bridge workers triggers investigation

There are reports of a cancer cluster among Sydney Harbour Bridge workers with at least eight known cases that unions believe are linked to the use of lead paint. The Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) will investigate the matter. Of the eight workers five have already died and all of them had been involved in painting and maintaining the bridge for more than 10 years, the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU) said. This included scraping off lead paint, initially with little protective equipment.

14 Oct 2010

Anti-vaccination group loses charitable status

An anti-vaccination group that has been in the news for all the wrong reasons recently has been stripped of its charitable status after the state government found its fund raising appeals had not been conducted in good faith. The Australian Vaccination Network (AVN) came into news when in July it was ordered to publish a disclaimer on its website stating the group was anti-vaccination and its material should not be read as medical advice.

14 Oct 2010

Abortion verdict out: more debates ensue

In a much talked about Queensland abortion trial, the not guilty verdicts may change legal implications for women who procure their own abortion, according to a medical ethicist.

14 Oct 2010

Five tips to sustain couple relationship

In honor of Emotional Wellness Month this October, the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (CAMFT) has released a podcast to help couples keep the flame alive.

14 Oct 2010

Media examines challenges of delivery, strategic impact, branding of U.S. aid to Pakistan

PBS' NewsHour reports on the difficulty of getting U.S. aid to Pakistani flood victims and the branding of USAID assistance.

14 Oct 2010

World Food Prize symposium to give out award; focus on issues facing smallholder farmers

Global agriculture officials and as many as 60 farmers from around the world this week at the annual World Food Prize symposium in Des Moines, Iowa will focus on the challenges facing small farmers, the Associated Press reports.

14 Oct 2010

Toronto Argonauts and The Salvation Army partner to serve community dinner

On Saturday, October 16, 2010, the Toronto Argonauts will partner once again with The Salvation Army to serve a community dinner for more than 600 at The Salvation Army Toronto Harbour Light Ministries, 160 Jarvis Street, Toronto at 12:00 noon.

13 Oct 2010

Dr. Nabarro to deliver keynote address at Third McGill Conference on Global Food Security

Dr. David Nabarro, Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations and co-ordinator of the Secretary-General's High-Level Task Force on the Global Food Security Crisis, will deliver the keynote address at the opening evening of the Third McGill Conference on Global Food Security on Tuesday, Oct. 19, 5 p.m., at Centre Mont-Royal, 2200 Mansfield St. in Montreal.

13 Oct 2010