AUSTRALIA:
Location: Melbourne
ICA Australia members Liz and Garnet Banks continue to provide innovative facilitative leadership in Melbourne and the State of Victoria in areas extending beyond their professional practice. Liz is working with the State Department of Health on the Cancer Implementation Plan, aimed at improving outcomes for people suffering from cancer, particularly in rural areas, and especially among Aboriginal people. This is an extension of her earlier work on using the extensive Victorian database on cervical cancer to gain insights into the factor involved in cervical cancer; work that contributed to the discovery of human papilloma virus as the cause of cervical cancer and the development of the vaccine against this disease.
Garnet continues to be active in the Alternative Energy Association, which is creating a thermal solar electricity generator. This device captures and stores solar energy so that it generates electricity both day and night. The generator uses molten salts and promises to provide state and federal governments with avenues to expand Australia's use of electricity from renewable sources.
Richard Maguire unfolding@smartchat.net.a
BANGLADESH:
Location: Dhaka
The ICA Bangladesh Chandpur team visited the Deputy Commissioner’s Office and met with the acting DC on May 4 to follow up on the approval for the construction of the school building and the new entrance gate in Ghoramara. Due to the Prime Minister’s visit in Chandpur and the posting of a new DC, the file is being delayed unexpectedly. A contract with the construction firm has been signed and necessary plans and agreements have been made for the required construction.
On May 2, the Terrorism Research Team had a meeting at the ICA office. The team will be finalizing their field work design by May and will undertake their field work in June.
Zaki and Jahngir are developing a life skills module for the ICA Bangladesh street children project. We are expecting TUC Japan will continue to support the project. ICA Australia colleagues are also making efforts to raise funds for the street children project as well as the Ghoramara project.
Aziz had an online meeting with Maria and Richard on May 7. They discussed Action Planning, November 2010 ToP training, and a capacity building visit to ICA Bangladesh by the Maguires from Australia.
The ICA Bangladesh team would like to thank three organizations from Australia—ICA Australia, Unfolding Futures, and the Facilitators Network—that together raised $3300 AUD for ICA Bangladesh in addition to supporting ICA Bangladesh’s ICAI annual membership dues.
Zaki admin@ica-bangladesh.org
UNITED STATES:
Location: Chicago
May is Sojourners Month in the Global Archives
During the month of May, ICA-USA is host to Sojourners who are working on the Global Archives Project. The intent of this project is to take the basic steps necessary to create a digitized archive of the 170 five-drawer filing cabinets that contain documents, manuals, reports, course curriculum, letters, speeches, outlines, original songs/plays, publication, posters, pamphlets, meeting notes, photos, videos/audio tapes, and artifacts of the Institute of Cultural Affairs (ICA-USA) and the Ecumenical Institute (EI).
Each week will have a specific focus. This week it is the Town Hall Collections from 1976 and Global Community Forums. Our Sojourners this week are Rosemary Albright (Illinois), Kitty Cole (Illinois), David Dunn (Colorado), Sally Fenton (Illinois), Beret Griffith (Minneapolis), Frank Knutson California), Evelyn Philbrook (Taiwan), Sandra True (New Jersey) and Todor Efremov (an international fellow from Macedonia from the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota). The volunteer coordinators for the month are Pam Bergdall and Marge Philbrook. The Sojourners will be staying on our newly-refurbished 8th floor at the 4750 N. Sheridan Rd. building. We are planning a rich community life consisting of discussion, study, and celebration throughout each week.
One Step Closer to a Capital Improvement Grant
ICA-USA has been approved to move to the second phase of inquiry for a $100,000 grant from the City of Chicago Small Business Improvement Fund. Multiple contractor bids, proof of proper insurance and licenses are required by August. We have applied for grant money to restore parts of the building facade, upgrade handicapped doors and install new windows on one of the floors.
Karen A. Sims ksims@ica-usa.org
ICA International:
Location: Montreal
Lambert returned from Accra, Ghana, where he has been making local arrangements for the Major Groups Initiative Forest Workshop to be held July 26-30 of this year. ICA International is the coordinating organization for this conference, which will bring together approximately 120 key representatives from Major Groups, governments and intergovernmental organizations. Chelsea completed the website for this event, which can now be accessed at www.mgi-forests.org.
Renée and Anne-Marie, our new communications intern, created a Mother’s Day email promoting the Working Gifts program. If you would like to give a Working Gift, you can visit www.workinggifts.org to choose your gift today.
Renée also worked on a grant proposal for ICA International’s Global Education and Youth Leadership Program. The program seeks to bring learning from international cooperation and community development into Montreal schools and, with ICA Canada, to promote facilitative leadership among youth.
Michael received news and updates from projects in Côte d'Ivoire, and he and ICA director Eugene Kouame are exploring possibilities for a joint project in the region. Michael also followed up with End Poverty Now, a Montreal-based organization that is looking to partner with ICA International to support small community projects in Africa.
Staff info@ica-international.org
