Global Voices Digest

Georgia, Russia: Interethnic Relationships

Tbilisi-based LJ user shupaka and Russian war journalist Vadim Rechkalov (LJ user voinodel) share stories about interethnic relationships in Georgia and North Ossetia, Russia, in the time of conflict between the two countries.

Guatemala: Protection of La Danta

Many Guatemalans and foreign journalists are concerned about the plight of the region around La Danta, one of the world’s largest pyramids. A group from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting recently visited Petén to document the environmental threats to the region. La Danta is also the name for the tapir, which also requires conservation attention.

Japan: Ministry study on biological roots of withdrawal and rage

Starting next year, a team of researchers recruited by the Japanese Ministry of Education will commit themselves to studying the connection between brain structure and sociability. Their aim will be the analysis of structures of the brain that control mechanisms such as sleep rhythm and stress tolerance, in order to prevent — and eventually cure — those disorders which affect social relations.

Kenya: Reproductive Rights Bill Sparks Abortion Debate

A bill proposed by Kenyan women’s rights groups, which would make it easier to have an abortion, has re-sparked the debate about legalizing abortion. The procedure is currently illegal in Kenya, unless the pregnant woman’s life is in danger.

Georgia, Russia, Serbia: The Use (or Abuse) of Some Historical Facts?

Serbian bloggers follow closely the situation in the Caucasus region. Many of them compared and analyzed the Kosovo issue and the newest opportunities in South Ossetia. Some of them were careful to express their own thoughts and mainly cited thoughts of politicians. Here is a post by a Serbian blogger who quoted in his blog some pieces of the last statements by Russia’s government officials, who linked military operations in Georgia to certain historical events.

Venezuela: Yukpa Indians, Chávez and land disputes

Citizen media videos have been uploaded informing of the situation arising in Venezuela between the Yukpa Indians of the Perijá Mountains, landowners and President Chávez. This dispute over land limits is 30 years in the making, when military forces displaced the Indigenous communities of the Yukpa by force and established landowners who have cattle ranches and have been working the lands ever since.

Georgia: Blogging the War

The conflict between Georgia and Russia over the breakway territory of South Ossetia was accompanied by cyber-attacks on several Georgian government and independent media sites. But rather than prevent journalists from utilizing the Internet to report on the war, it achieved the opposite. Many Georgians — media professionals and citizen journalists alike — set up blogs to report or comment on the conflict. Global Voices Online speaks to Giga Paitchadze, a veteran local blogger.

Today on Rising Voices: Creative Commons and the culture of sharing

Creative Commons licenses enable you to share your creative works with others and retain their commercial value as well. In this post we will discuss why the culture of sharing is important and ways to use cc-licensed contents.

Today on Voices Without Votes: Europe: Understanding the United States of America

How are the US elections perceived in Europe? One blogger, currently at the convention, in Denver, Colorado, tries to explain why graspingthe nuances of the US presidential elections (or the US of A in general for that matter) is not an easy task from a foreigner’s perspective. Lova Rakotomalala explains.

Roundups

Get the blog buzz from the world over in the Global Roundups, where today you can see the effect of inflation on the holy month of Ramadan, the experience of applying for a NICOP (National Identity Card for Overseas Pakistanis) card online, a traditional healer in Ghana who is using web technology to market his business, and much much more!