Dear Gentle Readers:
I had a couple of readers ask what were the thoughts of Indians regarding the recent election.  I would say from my interactions, Indians by far supported and appreciated the election results from Tuesday night.  At the same time, many people have a wait and see attitude.  Issues such as the recently signed [...]

Here is a brief outline on the process of my voting in this year's presidential election.  The hardest part for me was that I didn't know where I was going to be when the absentee ballots were mailed out so I had to play it by ear.
Hong Kong—– September 17, 2008I printed the absentee ballot [...]

 
Pictured: A room in the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.
I spent one day in Phnom Penh experiencing the Killing Fields and the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum.  It was a very difficult and emotional day.  I still grapple with the visuals that I saw in the museum. I remember reading about the oppressive Khmer Rouge regime of [...]

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I submitted my September 17th blog post "It's the Economy and Foreign Policy Stupid!" (with a few minor changes) to the editor of the Lansing State Journal.  It was published on September 22, 2008 under a different title, "World worried over our election nonsense: Can candidates, voters engage [...]

The past nine months of traveling around the world have given me an interesting perspective on the upcoming presidential election.  The primaries of both parties, though filled with plenty of rhetoric, dealt with many substantial issues such as foreign policy, energy policy and the economy.  Since the conventions, the candidates and the media have lost [...]

The last day of the conference was a very powerful day.  The local host committee and the conference planners organized a march and rally for human rights.  The march started at the conference center and went to the University of Glasgow.  There were a number of speakers that discussed the issues of global poverty and [...]

I went to Glasgow, Scotland to attend the CIVICUS World Assembly.  CIVICUS is an international civil society building organization and the World Assembly “is a forum for international civil society representatives to get together, exchange ideas, experiences and build strategies for a just world.”
At the conference, I was introduced to two nonprofit anti-poverty activists from [...]

Dear Gentle Reader,
I recently wrote a piece for publication about the dollar’s value.  Since it is my first foray in writing for the masses outside of the blog, I thought I would share it with you.  I am looking for honest feedback and advice.  Enjoy.  Sam

Dear US Dollar,
I think it is time that we have [...]

On May 10, there will be a global event occurring called Pangea Day.  Pangea Day was developed by the talented filmmaker, Jehane Noujaim.  In 2006 she won the prestigious TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) Award  for the concept.  Simply- she wanted to build international understanding and tolerance through the medium of film.  Now two years later [...]

While I was in Panama at the International Association of Voluntary Efforts (IAVE) Conference, I met the director of the End Poverty 2015 Millennium Campaign.  In 2000, 189 world leaders signed  the Millennium Declaration and agreed to meet a set of benchmarks called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs.)
The overarching goal is to eradicate extreme poverty.  [...]