Conflict

As you may have heard, May 21 was the World Day for Cultural Diversity. I love the idea of having a day to celebrate our world’s amazing cultural heritage; its diverse languages, traditions and arts. Personally, learning about the customs, festivities and beliefs in other countries has added a huge dimension to my understanding of the world and my ability to see things from different perspectives. In fact, a lot of projects these days are focusing on inter-cultural understanding and tolerance as a means of promoting peace. Check out the work of the Alliance of Civilizations and UNESCO to  learn more.

Images courtesy We Are What We Do

Mindanao, the third major island group in the Philippines, strikes most of us as a culturally diverse region—along with many Muslims and Christians, its population is also made up of many local ethnic groups. This cultural diversity, in as much as it accounts for Mindanao’s uniqueness, has also been the root of the ongoing war which is taking its toll mostly in the regions of Sulu, Jolo, and some parts of Cotabato.

Continuing on Saadia’s discussion of climate change, I want to point out one part of the world where the effects of climate change are being felt now. Unfortunately, it just may be the one region of the world that can least afford another problem.

The Sahel is the region in Africa where the Sahara desert meets sub-Saharan tropical Africa.  This semi-arid belt runs east to west across the continent and includes the countries of Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, Nigeria, Chad, Sudan, and Eritrea.