Connecting the Missing Link: Bringing Together Global Philanthropists and Global Community Philanthropy Organizations

In a project begun in 2011, Synergos brought together individual philanthropists and leaders of community philanthropy organizations (CPOs) from around the world to learn about and understand the potentially transformative benefits of forming partnerships to address societal problems.This project has opened a number of doors to creating opportunities for community foundations and philanthropists to extend their reach as well as significantly increase the impact of their work. It has substantially raised awareness and has also created safe spaces for constructive dialogue on how to move forward in working together. These spaces can now be transformed into more practical "laboratories" to address community problems

Strengthening the Policy Environment for Volunteering for Peace and Development in Southern Africa

This paper proposes that for volunteerism to reach its full potential in contributing to peace and development, there must be a supportive and an enabling environment for volunteering. The components of such an enabling environment are a strong government and civil society partnership to ensure shared appreciation of volunteerism; supportive public leadership, policies and legislation; adoption of a diversity of approaches to facilitate inclusive volunteerism; and sustainable funding

Can New Modes of Digital Learning Help Resolve the Teacher Crisis in Sub-Saharan Africa?

Sub-Saharan Africa, more than any other part of the world, is experiencing a crisis in finding sufficiently qualified teachers to meet the needs of expanding school systems. The professional development support provided to serving teachers is also inadequate in most countries. The most recent data on learner outcomes has revealed a worrying picture of significant under-achievement across the region. This paper argues that the teacher education and training structures of the last century will never be able to meet urgent contemporary needs. Given population growth, especially among the young, large-scale expansion of the teaching force and the associated teacher education systems will be the norm through to the middle years of the century and beyond. In this context the paper argues for a significant policy shift to expand quality teacher education and professional support at scale through a more school-based and digitally supported network model of provision. Examples of current digital programmes within the region are considered as well as the new technologies that are emerging with relevance to teacher education. The paper suggests a three-phase process through which national governments might move in making the necessary changes in policy and practice

Making Social Work Work: Improving social work for vulnerable families and children without parental care around the world: A literature review

This literature review calls for families and children in developing countries to be supported in ways that are appropriate to the conditions, culture and resources available rather than through approaches to social work that are common in the west. Children living without, or at risk of losing, parental care have wide and varied needs, this paper highlights the need for more thorough assessments of appropriate approaches, functions and support needs for social workers, and suggests elements of an assessment tool to explore these issues. This paper is the first part of a longer process for developing such an assessment tool, and plans are underway to further develop and test the tool in 2012.- See more at: http://www.everychild.org.uk/resources/reports-policies/making-social-work-work#sthash.4EF6qnzc.dpu

The Permanent Okavango River Basin Water Commission annual report 2009

First published annual report of OKACOM, covering first period of Sida-funded three year workplan from 2007 until 2009, during which the Secretariat was established. (PDF contains 32 pages

Water use options for regional development : potentials of new water technologies in Central Northern Namibia

The CuveWaters project relates the alignment and implementation of innovative water technologies to an Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in the Cuvelai-Etosha-Basin, which lies in Central Northern Namibia. The aim here is to improve inhabitants’ living conditions by means of appropriate technical schemes and measures – particularly with a view to enhancing water supply and basic sanitation (incl. waste water disposal). A focal part of Cuve-Waters concerns the re-use of water, efficient use of water and utilisation of different water qualities for different purposes (multi-resource mix). With respect to urban conditions and the problems of adequate supply and sanitation, the prospect of a semi-decentralised infrastructure system is under investigation, a concept which includes rainwater utilisation as well as waste water collection and treatment. One major option for such systems, in which waste water is considered a valuable resource, is a washing house combining effective waste water collection (vacuum sewer) with high-tech separation techniques (generation of energy, nutrients and waste water processing). Cleaned waste water – free of bacteria, viruses or pathogens – and fertiliser from an anaerobic waste water treatment plant can be re-used for irrigation in small scale agriculture to enhance food security and/or generate alternative income through the marketing of fresh produce. Energy, in the form of biogas, can be used for cooking or lighting. On the rural sites of the study area, adequate water supply poses a major challenge, for which three technology options are investigated here: rainwater harvesting, solar-coupled desalination of brackish groundwater, and managed aquifer recharge. Suitable technology options are selected for different sites in a participatory process (cf. CuveWaters Project 2008a, CuveWaters Project 2008b). Thus, general aims of the project in terms of providing regional economic impetus and improving livelihoods are: - to link integrated water resources management to land issues, develop the technology needed to build capacity, and achieve better governance; - to bring together supply- and demand-driven approaches in developing the infrastructure; - to consider water as related to other resources (land, energy, nutrients) and other fields of sustainability such as poverty reduction, equality and regional development. From these project objectives arise the key questions driving the surveys documented in this paper: what impetus for regional development can be expected from the implementation of technological options selected for the CuveWaters project? What constraints and obstacles need to be considered here, particularly in terms of incorporating the technologies into strategies of IWRM? What conclusions can be drawn when it comes to the supervision of implementation (training, capacity building, governance)? After an introduction the economic and social situation in the Cuvelai-Etosha Basin along with the conditions for urban agriculture is outlined. This is followed by the discussion of the potentials for water-related activities in the region, taking into account additional water uses and the operation and development of infrastructures, whilst investigating the potentials of urban agriculture for Central Northern Namibia. Finally, these potentials are summarized and conclusions pertaining to flanking measures for technical implementation are drawn

Digital Learning: Reforming Teacher Education to Promote Access, Equity and Quality in Sub-Saharan Africa

The purpose of this report is to provide an overview of the present and future impact of digital learning on teacher education in Sub-Saharan Africa. Digital learning in this report is defined as any instructional practice that uses new communication technologies effectively to improve access to and strengthen learning. The focus of the report is student-teachers and teachers. The 2015–2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) explicitly seek to substantially increase the supply of well-qualified teachers in the region, drawing on international forms of development and co-operation where necessary (Goal 4)

Kolmanskop : an industrial heritage resource or only a tourist attraction? : the assessment of value with regard to Kolmanskop Ghost Town and the industrial landscape of the Sperrgebiet National Park, Namibia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 107-110).Kolmanskop Ghost Town is situated within the Sperrgebiet National Park on the South-West Coast of Namibia. The diamond-mining town was established in 1908 and abandoned in 1956. Kolmanskop's status as a tourist attraction has been readily established and it is regarded as an important economic resource by the nearby community of Lüderitz. The key question of this research project is whether the site is also able to fulfil the criteria of an industrial heritage resource? The principal method employed is that of values-based conservation. The study relies principally on the survey of a broad range of individuals and stakeholders in order to establish present values as they pertain to Kolmanskop