The New Single from Emmanuel Jal - child soldier turned international artist. The free download “We Fall” is a ‘thank you’ from Emmanuel himself for the support he received through his 1-year fast that ended today, December 2nd. The money he saved during his fast was donated towards the building of a school in Sudan. You can learn more about his non-profit GUA Africa here and download “We Fall” here.

I need to see this. I’ll admit that initially I simply fell in love with the imagery but upon further reading it also looks extremely interesting.

“Propelled by a cover story in Newsweek in Oct 2007 labeling Pakistan, “the most dangerous place in the world”, ‘Made in Pakistan’ seeks to dispel the prevailing perceptions of Pakistanis in the West.

Set against the backdrop of the declaration of a state of emergency it aims at projecting a multifaceted society where politics, fashion, religion, law and tradition intersect by following the lives of four working professionals.
- Rabia Aamir: working mother and journalist
- Waleed Khalid: religious, articulate and secular lawyer
- Tara Mahmood: event and PR manager
- Mohsin Warraich: aspiring politician

At the outset the film does beg the obvious question about the decision to follow the lives of an obviously priveleged class of individuals. According to Executive Producer, Ayesha Khan, this was an educated decision since target audiences in the West would be more inclined to identify with them.

The subjects deserve kudos for their veracity and openness sans ‘schmaltz’, especially in light of the trajectory of events. Director Khan’s focus is keen. He does not attempt to break down political reality nor does he present a call to action.

If one can set aside the question, “Why does a western perception matter so much?” what you get is a tasteful chronicling of everyday lives of young urban people as a means to initiating discussion.

“Made in Pakistan” is the first documentary ever to be released theatrically in Pakistan, with a release to follow soon in the UK, courtesy of Mara Pictures (www.marapictures.com). For now, it is a favorite on the festival circuit, with the Cancun and Mumbai festivals up next.” (source)

1. TOMS Shoes in Silver Glitter $54 & Hand Painted $68 - Buy a pair of shoes and TOMS donates a pair to a person in need on one of their infamous “shoe drops”. Best part yet, you can join the TOMS team on a shoe drop in places like Ethiopia and Venezuela.

2. Bobbi Brown for FEED $50 - Limited Edition FEED 10 pouch with three full-size lip glosses. In partnership with FEED, Bobbi has filled this sustainably made canvas bag with three of her favorite lip gloss shades: Petal, Rose Sugar, and Aubergine. When you buy the FEED 10 pouch, you provide ten disadvantaged women with food and job training for a year through the United Nations World Food Program.

3. KIVA Gift Certificate $25+: A KIVA gift certificate allow the recipient to create a KIVA account, redeem the gift certificate and lend the funds from the certificate to the entrepreneur(s) of their choice. I couldn’t be a bigger supporter of KIVA and micro-lending in general

4. Okra Seeds $15: I’m not crazy. At Women for Women you can buy a gift to give on behalf of a loved one, that person will receive a card in the mail letting them know about the gift you’ve given. These Okra seeds will help a woman farmer in Sudan, The Congo or Afghanistan, allowing them to feed their families or bring the okra to market. You can also by Carpenter’s Tools Set - $25, Wheel barrow - $35, Teach a woman to read - $50, Sewing Machine - $75, Entrepreneur’s Starter Kit - $250 or a Beekeeper’s Suit - $100. All gifts give women throughout the world something they desperately need.

5. Charity Water Bracelet $24 - It may look small but the impact is huge. This bracelet gives clean water to one person for 20 years. No typo, for 20 YEARS. The bracelet is simply a reminder of the person your gift helps. There are two other low priced options available but if your feeling generous you can lay down 5g’s to build a well.

Exclusively at Bloomingdale’s

Limited Edition FEED 10 pouch with three full-size lip glosses. In partnership with FEED, Bobbi has filled this sustainably made canvas bag with three of her favorite lip gloss shades: Petal, Rose Sugar, and Aubergine. When you buy the FEED 10 pouch, you provide ten disadvantaged women with food and job training for a year through the United Nations World Food Program. (via ourcloth)

Absolutely adore this website Voices of Africa. Not only do I love the idea of creating media where it was once not available but its also an outlet to hear news from Africa that the media here, simply doesn’t cover.

Voices of Africa is a training programme initiated by Voices of Africa Media Foundation. Its goal is to empower you African men and women with limited media experience to pursue a career as community reporter. Central to the training programme is the potential of the mobile phone as a powerful reporting tool.  

With trainings and materials designed to fit the taste and interest of young Africans, we train reporters to use the mobile phone to create objective news about their own communities. We use online coaching by media professionals and publish the stories on this training website www.voicesofafrica.com. 

Mobile reports on this website are made by current trainees and reflect their progress. The reporters under training bring out stories based on local views and issues. Please enjoy their video reports about the daily news from African communities!  
For more information about Voices of Africa Media Foundation, please visit: www.voamf.org.

My TOMS of choice. Which TOMS are you? With every pair you purchase, TOMS will give a pair of new shoes to a child in need. One for One.

Perception

Something to think about….

Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time approximately. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later:

The violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.

6 minutes:

A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again.

10 minutes:

A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly. The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.

45 minutes:

The musician played continuously.  Only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their normal pace.  The man collected a total of $32.

1 hour:

He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.

This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and people’s priorities.

The questions raised:

*In a common place environment at an inappropriate hour, do we perceive beauty?

*Do we stop to appreciate it?

*Do we recognize talent in an unexpected context?

One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this:

If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written, with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.

How many other things are we missing?

\via\ (via brettjohn)