JNB

This is the airport code for Johannesburg. I spend so much time here it feels like a second home. I spent most of yesterday in Chatsworth getting an update on the Westcliff Flats Residents Association’s ongoing work. The more time I spend with them, the more impressed I am. I spent most of the morning looking at the ongoing housing renovations in the community. In the afternoon, we met with members of the municipal government. In the evening, I got an update on their income generation programs. I also saw what life in Westcliff would be like if it were not for the efforts of the WFRA. Many of the surrounding areas of Chatsworth are truly grim and destitute places, and the government seems indifferent – or even hostile – to their concerns. Making democracy work for the residents in Westcliff has been hard work, but one can’t deny the difference it has made.

Other

Africa

May 19, 2010

Barak

No Comments

Homeward bound

At the airport. DUR-JNB-AMS-IAD (that is, Durban-Johannesburg-Amsterdam-Washington, DC). I hope that stupid volcano in Iceland takes a rest for the next few days. This has been a great trip and I am really going to miss Orlean. I also hope that the program we put together – a documentary on life in Chatsworth from the perspective of the community’s youth – helps to engage kids to do something other than hang around street corners waiting for something to happen (i.e., start using drugs).

Other

Africa

May 18, 2010

Barak

2 Comments

A worthwhile trip

I am in Durban, South Africa to write a report on how research can help make NGOs more effective for International IDEA. The NGO I chose to examine is the Westcliff Flats Residents Association (WCFA) in Chatsworth, a poor suburb of Durban. The head of the organization, Orlean Naidoo, is an amazing woman and is also not real keen on outsiders mucking around her organization (there is a big problem in South Africa with outsiders using social movements to advance their own agendas). For this reason, I worked really hard to get Orlean’s trust – but was never quite sure I had earned it. Needless to say I was more than a little nervous when I gave my final presentation. Not only did she like it, but she agreed to be one of the co-authors of the report and we have already begun work on some of the report’s recommendations (engage youth to keep them off drugs). This is one of the best compliments I have received in a long time. This was a worthwhile trip.

Other

The MA in Democracy and Governance at Georgetown University is now accepting applications for the 2012-2013 academic year. Find out more.

Founded in 2004, Democracy and Society is a biannual print journal published by the Center for Democracy and Civil Society at Georgetown University. The D&S Blog provides web-only content, including special reports and investigative series, on issues relating to democracy and development.

JNB

Homeward bound

A worthwhile trip

Sign up for our mailing list

Posts by Region

Posts by Topic

Recent Comments

Archives

Who we like