International Women's Day 2011

[img via The Adventure Project]

From Jumo:
• Women perform 66% of the world’s work and produce 50% of the world’s food, yet they earn only 10% of the world’s income and own only 1% of the world’s property.
• According to the United Nations, girls make up the majority of the estimated 72 million children who are not in school.
• Close to 70% of the world’s 759 million adults who cannot read or write are women.

Today is International Women's Day! Unfortunately, this week is an insanely busy week for me so as much as I want to write a proper post dedicated to women, it will have to be slightly delayed.

However, I have been tweeting (or rather, RTing) for a good portion of today with posts revolving around #IWD11 :) When I get the time later this week to sit down and compile my thoughts, I will do so.

Before I go (and study my brains out about macroeconomics for international affairs), I just want to say that women should most certainly be celebrated, not oppressed! Honor the women in your life by pledging to make a difference in the lives of women across the globe :)

For a start, you can visit Google's IWD page (accessible by clicking on Google's doodle today) and seeing the various organizations dedicated to positively impacting our world through putting women's issues on the agenda.

And now I'm off. Have a fabulous rest of the week, folks! And remember that all of March is Women's Month!

2011

1. 365 days of pictures:
   In middle school and high school, I took a billion pictures; I was never without a camera (I had gone from disposable cameras to a point-and-shoot film camera to a beautiful Minolta xd-7 to a Canon G5, which was pretty much permanently attached to my hand from 10th grade until 12th grade). And then college hit and my camera suddenly stopped joining my on my daily adventures. Even after I purchased a Canon Rebel XS and a Canon SD780, my photo-taking increased a bit but still stayed at a significant low in comparison to my younger years. This year, I will document my life more -- because life is precious and my memory is seriously shot (note to self: take more fish oil capsules). Also, I'll try to post the week's pictures up.


2. Speak more than English:
   I will improve my Spanish significantly. I will learn to do more than read & write the Bengali alphabet -- I will actually learn words so that I can understand what I am reading & writing. I will improve my Cantonese. I will pick up more Mandarin. I will attempt French and Portuguese (again). The last sentence is a huge maybe.


3. Travel:
   Hong Kong. Macau. Nanning. Shanghai. Dhaka. Kolkata. Hyderabad. Mumbai. Rajasthan. Delhi. Kopila Valley. Dubai. Anywhere inspiring.


4. Read at least a double-digit amount of books:
   This excludes assigned academic texts and the Bible.


5. Read the Bible. Like, really read it:
   I once had about 10 books of the New Testament memorized word for word, references and all. And not just zombie-memorized; really studied and memorized. I sadly cannot say that I can recite most of them to you anymore. Time to brush up. Maybe not memorize word for word, but definitely take this reading way more seriously than I did in 2010.


6. Cultivate creativity:
   I will paint more than one piece this year. I will actually use my sketchbooks for more than propping up things and collecting dust. I will Sculpey. I will design. I will innovate. I will dance. I will get inspired in any way I can. I will spray paint. I will take photographs, not just pictures and snapshots. I will write. I will be someone's muse and model.


7. Listen to more music:
   I used to be a music junkie. The whole indie-punk stereotype. In 2011, I will discover new music and listen to it more. If you have recommendations, send them over. Music inspires me; I think that's why I stopped creating as much in college. I stopped listening to music like I used to.


8. Go on more daily adventures:
   This pertains specifically to my city. I don't know how much longer I will be in New York City, the best place ever. I may be here forever...but I may not. I already go on a good amount of excursions on these streets but I want to continue it and do it even more this coming year.


9. Listen to more sermons online:
   At least twice a month.


10. Select and maintain friendships better:
    In the past, I've gotten into a lot of trouble because of people misinterpreting my actions -- either I act too much and end up being seen as demanding or I don't act enough and I'm told I'm ignoring people. I will be more conscious of my friendships, make dates with people, enjoy company, be aware of girls' cattiness and boys' idiocies, and mold myself more to be a better friend who understands, accepts, and loves her friends around her. In an almost paradoxical attempt at a balance, I will also be more careful in choosing who I spend my time with and who I let into my heart. Not everyone should be so intimately deemed a friend, otherwise there may be a lot of hurt and heartache. Noted.


11. Say yes to dates/give him a chance:
    Since I was twelve, I have had some terrible stigma against the male population. I don't know if it's some need to prove I don't need a guy...that's likely it...but who knows. Guys who have shown interest in me I have shot down almost immediately. As I got older, the reaction time got faster too. And my reactions got meaner (ashamedly so).
    "Hey, are you friends with --"
    "Bugger off. I'm not interested."
    "But --"
    "BUGGER. OFF."
    "I was just --"
    "I'm a lesbian. And I have 5 kids. Go away."
    "Okay...nice chatting..."
    "Idiot."
    Okay, I exaggerate. I'm not that mean ever. But I really don't give guys much of a chance. It seems very counter-my-personality though to be so cold. With most new people, I'm cheery and excited to meet them. I think I just get turned off as soon as a guy shows interest. Anyways, I think it's time to melt the ice queen a bit (I was actually called that twice the past month) and start giving *some* guys a chance. It's unlikely (I reallyyy emphasize that word) anything will transpire beyond a coffee or a dinner but I don't see why we can't enjoy that coffee or dinner before realizing we're really nothing but acquaintances who like frapps or salmon rolls more than we like each other's company. It may be...nice. And who knows, a friendship may come out of it instead. Though guys almost never want to be friends with girls...whole 'nother story.


12. Take care of my physical self:
    Hopefully this means that I will work out more than once a month. But this definitely means that I will watch what and how I eat as much as possible (eat slower, chew more, go organic whenever fiscally possible, smaller portions, etc). I will drink more water and tea. I will take my vitamins and supplements (fish oil!!!). I will eat even more fruits and veggies than I already do. I will meditate. I will not sit on my butt all day. I will moisturize. I will definitely wear sunscreen (Baz Luhrmann).


13. Call home more:
    Or gchat or email or text. Whatever. And subresolution to this is to make sure I talk to Timothy more. I love my family and I want them to know that.

I think that's a pretty decent list for now. Broad enough to cover most things I want to do but specific enough to give a picture...actionable...measurable...timely...okay, yeah, I've been working on policy and business plan developments too much.

Stand-up economist

Why didn't I get him for Microeconomics???

Cutest costume of 2010.

Michael as a mailman! His mom made that mail truck for him and he drove house to house and walked up to each home to pick up his candy. Adorable!




Best: his mom also sewed a stuffed dog to the back of his leg, as if a dog were biting him. Hahaha. Love it.

Jessica Jackley: Poverty, money -- & love.

Poverty, money -- & love [Jessica Jackley, co-founder of Kiva]

"For me, the best way to be inspired...is to stop and to listen to someone else's story... Believing in each other, really being sure when push comes to shove that each one of us can do amazing things in the world. That is what can make our stories into love stories and our collective story into one that continually perpetuates hope and good things for all of us. So that, this belief in each other, knowing that without a doubt and practicing that every day in whatever you do, that's what I believe will change the world and make tomorrow better than today."

Love it.

More water talk. #BlogActionDay2010

Just earlier, Mark and I were talking, and the fact came up that a lack of clean water kills more people every year than all forms of violence, including war. He mentioned that this was the fact that struck him the most about the water issue. It's pretty horrific and really puts into perspective how deadly water can be for many in this world (one in eight billion, actually). Not to sound callous, but it sounds about right. If over 38,000 children are dying every week because of water-related illnesses, then yeah, I can believe that the issue kills more people than all the wars and acts of violence occurring in our world.

Mark went on to comment that the Nobel Peace Price should go to the person who most alleviates the water problem.

Honestly though, there are so many who are working on this issue from so many levels. The solutions are already there. But it takes more than just organizations like Charity:water or Lifewater International to change the numbers. It takes people and mobilization. Unfortunately, for every great idea or solution we have out there, there is even more apathy and inaction.

I read this quote from Christian just yesterday as he was presenting MakeSense at the i7 Summit in Paris yesterday:

"Reward success. Celebrate failure. Punish inaction."

I know it was more in relation to the work that MakeSense is doing, but it made me think yesterday. Yeah, "punish" is a strong word but it's true that the biggest hindrance to development and progress in our society today is inaction, often driven by apathy. It is one of the things that keeps me up at night -- how can we motivate people to bring social change or to do social good?

It's been one of the things that has been on my mind a lot. It's one of the main reasons why The 3:18 Movement was birthed. And it so happens we're currently focused on the clean water issue.


Moving onward, I do have to say that I am incredibly glad for today. It has been such an inspiring day -- what with Blog Action Day (#BlogActionDay2010 #bad2010), The Feast conference (#feastongood), the RSA animation on Sir Ken Robinson's talk of social change, and a work meeting with some amazing & dedicated NYC women in fighting sex trafficking.

Today was the reminder I needed of why I do what I do and how much I love doing it.

Lastly, consider doing some of the following:

• Blog/tweet/FB/whatever about the water issue.
• Join The 3:18 Movement's campaign by either walking for a cause or joining the 3:18 team
• If you can't do the walk on October 23rd, consider sponsoring one of a walker. The money raised will bring clean water, health education, and community development to hundreds in Northern Uganda.
• Sign the petition below:

Petitions by Change.org|Start a Petition »

Let's change the world :)

RSA Animate: Changing Education Paradigms.

RSA Animation on Sir Ken Robinson's view of how to bring up young leaders and thinkers.

Everything about this is brilliant. The animation is impeccably done and perfectly in line with what the lecture is about too. And of course, the lecture by Sir Ken Robinson is spot on and makes me want to jump into education reform advocacy, ha.

It's not the entire talk but you can catch the full length of Sir Ken Robinson's presentation on changing our educational system on RSA's website.

BlackBerry's answer to the tablet boom: The PlayBook. Sweet.

[via BlackBerry]

I'll be honest: I wasn't that excited about the iPad when it first came out. I thought it was nifty but I wasn't ecstatic or SUPER impressed. But reading up on RIM's response by creating the BlackBerry PlayBook? I'm pretty excited. I WANT ONE. I rarely want gadgets. It took me until this past month to want a smartphone. But this beautiful piece of technology? Oh yes, please.

This is BlackBerry's official preview video:


The tablet is arriving in the U.S. in early 2011 and hitting the international market in the second quarter of next year. It boasts 2 cameras (a 5MP in the back and 3MP in the front, both of which can record HD videos), allows for face to face conversations, supports Flash and HTML5, has Wi-Fi (3G and 4G...4...G...), and syncs everything up to your BlackBerry smartphone (not that I have one...yet) so that you can opt to view on your tablet any content (email, BBM, documents, calendar, etc) that resides or is accessible on your phone.

And physically? It's just sleek, small, and beautiful.

CrackBerry has a video that shows it IRL and in comparison to the iPad. Goodness me.



Read more about it at RIM's press release on the BlackBerry PlayBook.

Look for my picture in Soho.

I love making new friends.



Last weekend I met Roman, an artist living in Soho who is originally from Mexico, & we chatted about Polaroids, painting, transfers, human rights, life as an artist, etc. And then he took my picture and gave me the "negative" for free. You might find the transferred piece sitting on his table that he displays every weekend on Spring St.

08.20.10: Perfect Friday.

wandering MoMA // bike carriage rides along the westside
sending messages on paper boats in Central Park // pool halls

Dumpster pools on Park Ave.!

[img via NYT]

For the next 3 Saturdays, the dumpsters-turned-pools from Brooklyn last summer are going to grace Manhattan. Specifically, Park Ave. between 40th & 41st St. I'm super excited & will definitely be checking it out.

Slick move of the day: busting out the Bengali.

After I finished a film at the Angelika, I decided to wander around St. Mark's a bit in search of food & fun. Wanting to get a pair of glasses, I went to a shop on the corner where I knew for a fact the men who worked there were Bengali-speaking.

I got there and was trying on some glasses when I saw a hat I liked too. Seeing as I wanted to purchase glasses and a hat, and I still needed to pick up dinner, I knew it was haggling time. I asked for the prices -- $27 for both items -- and then waited for the inevitable question.

"Where are you from? Philippines?"

"No, Hong Kong."

"You live there?"

"No, I was born there but I live here in Manhattan now. Where are you from?"

"Bangladesh."

"Ah!" I feigned surprise, "Amar nam Gabrielle!"

At this moment, the two men burst into excitement with a bunch of oohs, ahhs, giddy laughter, & giant smiles like they just discovered the answer to a NY Times crossword puzzle clue.

I topped it off with, "Kamon achen?" which elicited an even more excited response (though neither of the men actually answered the question).

To top it off, I inquired where in Bangladesh they were from, guessing, "Dhaka?" (the capital city...and the only one I can remember off the top of my head, sadly). The men shouted yes so excitedly, I was convinced that they had just completed a Sunday crossword.

After pretending to peruse a bit more, I asked for the prices again. When I said $27 was too much, they dropped it down a good amount. Still, I shook my head and they, without any reluctance, responded with, "Okay, fine, for you, $17 for both, no problem."

Three letters, one word: WIN.