For A Change articles from June 2003

For A Change archives from June 2003

Welsh on the up. (Ear To The Ground).
June 1, 2003... All those concerned about the future of the Welsh language breathed a collective sigh of relief when figures from the 2001 census showed that, far from the further decline feared, the number of Welsh speakers had actually increased by two per...

Sydney's rival. (Ear To The Ground).
June 1, 2003... Rising rapidly on the shores of Cardiff Bay is 'Wales' answer to the Sydney Opera House'--the Millennium Centre. It will house the Welsh National Opera as well as the Diversions Dance Company of Wales, the Hijinx Theatre in Education and...

Grey power. (Ear To The Ground).
June 1, 2003... Some environmentalists, backed by Welsh Secretary Peter Hain, dream of Wales becoming 'the green energy hub of Britain'. Mostly they have wind power in mind. But not everyone gives an unreserved welcome to giant wind turbines sprouting on...

A powerful people. (Ear To The Ground).
June 1, 2003... 'I feel so sanguine,' said David Lloyd George, 'that were self-government to be granted to Wales, she would be a model for the nationalities of the world.' He was speaking in a Home Rule debate in the British House of Commons in 1893. ...

Wales' answer to Hollywood. (Ear To The Ground).
June 1, 2003... Hollywood could soon be losing some of its business to 'Valleywood'. That is if the project to build a massive film studio complex on a former South Wales coalfield gets off the ground. Driving force behind the 350 million [pounds sterling]...

Relaxing the Midas grip. (From The Editor's Desk)(Cover Story).
June 1, 2003... If love makes the world go round, greed also keeps things moving--but it makes for a stomach-churning ride. Personal greed is rampant--not least where failed company bosses receive seven-figure 'golden handshakes' while their redundant...

Fair trade makes good: as you reach out for a jar of coffee in the supermarket, you can give a hand to the people who grew the beans. (Lead Story).
June 1, 2003... You'd be amazed how much difference your decisions in the supermarket can make to small farmers in the developing world. The choices of western shoppers have made it possible for Mario Hernandez, a coffee grower in Nicaragua, to buy clothes...

Hope on the street. (People Making A Difference).
June 1, 2003... It's not often you see elderly church-going ladies baking chocolate cakes for prostitutes working the streets at night. But in Bristol that is exactly what's happening--with remarkable results. The One25 Project prefers not to reveal its...

Hopscotch theatre. (People Making A Difference).
June 1, 2003... 'La Marelle' is French for hopscotch, one of the oldest children's games still in use, going back to ancient Greece and beyond. It's an appropriate name for an unusual Christian theatre company that's been touring Switzerland, France, and...

School for buccaneers. (People Making A Difference).
June 1, 2003... The atmosphere at the Portofranco centre in Milan is ideal for young people who don't feel comfortable at school. Opened in November 2000, it provides help with homework and a quiet place to study, consult books or use computers. No payment, no...

Bringing a nightmare to an end: the people of Pforzheim, Germany, suffered dreadfully in World War II--and a British aircrew paid a terrible price. Michael Henderson discovers how a small community is laying its ghosts to rest. (Healing History).
June 1, 2003... At the end of World War II RAF ex-prisoner of war Tom Tate said to his wife, 'I'm never going to Germany again in my life.' Yet, 50 years later, in 1995, he returned to Germany and he has gone there every March since. 'I will do anything to...

Tata's army of volunteers: Michael Smith reports on the Indian industrial empire that is producing social capital as well as profits. (Sustainable Development).
June 1, 2003... As you drive along a dusty road, past parched fields east of the steel city of Jamshedpur in Bihar, a large brick college building comes into view. It dominates the tribal hamlet of Asanboni. The college serves 500 students from some 75...

Acting up for peace: when a group of Ugandan children was asked to put on a play, they chose war and reconciliation as its themes. Mercy Mirembe Ntangaare worked with them. (First Person).
June 1, 2003... During the 1979 Liberation War in Uganda, my village was a battlefield. With bullets whizzing over our heads, we herded our cattle into the kraal, snatched a few belongings, and ran for the mountains. My mother was heavy with her seventh-born...

From Penelope Turing, London, UK. (Letters).
June 1, 2003... It is almost unbelievable that in Bryan Hamlin's interesting article (Feb/March 2003) there is not one mention of Israel and the Palestine situation. He seems perplexed that there are feelings of animosity in Europe towards the US. Does he...

From Harry Pople, Bristol, UK. (Letters).
June 1, 2003... Does Bryan Hamlin realize, I wonder, just how provocative the proposition that the USA 'has now become the world's policeman' appears on this side of the Atlantic? It is the very basis on which many like myself find ourselves mistrustful of...

From Virginia Goulding, Birmingham, UK. (Letters).
June 1, 2003... I cannot agree with all the points raised by Antoine Jaulmes (April/May letters). It is nonsense to suggest that Americans want to be global police or sheriffs. Recently I spent six weeks travelling across the USA, my homeland. I stayed in 10...

From Fiona Leggat, London, UK. (Letters).
June 1, 2003... Last year I returned to Sherkole Refugee Camp, Ethiopia, where I had previously worked as a volunteer. I was surprised to hear people there discussing stories that seemed familiar. Then I realized that the stories were taken from For A Change...

From Eelko Bergsma, the Netherlands. (Letters).
June 1, 2003... In a group Bible study at my Methodist Church, we looked at the action of the Holy Spirit. We asked whether we had had experiences that could be put down to its influence. To my surprise many of us came up with stories. One of the group...

'I have tomorrow': when 19-year-old Romanian Eva Szabo discovered she had cancer, she didn't understand why her family were so upset. Two years on, she faces the future in a country where home support and palliative care are only beginning. (Living Issues).
June 1, 2003... No one deserves to have cancer but now if I could have my old life back, I would choose to have cancer. Sounds silly doesn't it? However, it has brought me closer to God than I have ever been. At the age of 19 I noticed a lump forming in my...

First novel.
June 1, 2003... Every third person by Karin Peters Highland Books, Godalming, 4.99 [pounds sterling] ISBN: 1-897913-66-4 When she was 14, Karin Peters' uncle died of cancer. 'It felt like a bomb had been dropped on top of my world,' she says. In her...

The thrill of the big picture: even the most pragmatic students become philosophers after reading Sophie's World. (Bookmark).
June 1, 2003... Ask a young person whether they are interested in philosophy and they may well reply that they do not know what philosophy is. Ask any of my students the same question and 99 per cent would answer that they find philosophy not only interesting...

Truth, lies and freedom. (FAC Essay).
June 1, 2003... As a youngster I was greatly impressed by an uncle who told me that, although he was a conservative, he read a socialist newspaper. He wanted to be presented with viewpoints and arguments different from his own so that his mind would remain...

Australian conference breaks barriers. (Newsdesk).
June 1, 2003... 'Together we can make a world of difference' was the theme of a conference organized by MRA/Initiatives of Change in Collaroy, New South Wales, Australia in April. The challenges involved in making this slogan a reality were borne out by a...

African journalists call for press freedom. (Newsdesk).
June 1, 2003... One hundred and six media professionals meeting in Cape Town in April called on the Angolan government to end the repression of dissenting journalistic voices and commit itself to a free flow of news and information. They condemned a recent...

What follows war? (Webbsite).
June 1, 2003... Having lost a son in World War I, the great German artist Kathe Kollwitz was avowedly anti-war but equally committed to what she called 'a new idea--that of the brotherhood of man'. In his book, All Saints: daily reflections on saints, prophets...

Home knows no borders. (Reflections).
June 1, 2003... I have found that when I live each day in the context of global citizenship, each person I meet is a journey of discovery. This approach also helps me to feel that we all live under the same roof, the sky. Whenever I have travelled, I have...

The material and the spiritual need each other. (Guest Column).
June 1, 2003... If I were to write an epitaph for this civilization it would be: 'Created to love people and use things, we ended up loving things and using and abusing people.' Alongside the euphoria of the Millennium--though perhaps we didn't spot it at...