Elected President of the United States in 1992 and again in 1996, Bill Clinton left office determined to continue his life of service -- to build the kind of world he wants to hand down to his daughter. His William J. Clinton Foundation is focused on four critical areas: health security, with an emphasis on HIV/AIDS; economic empowerment; leadership development and citizen service; and racial, ethnic and religious reconciliation. Foundation projects include working with pharmaceutical companies to lower the costs of medicines to needy areas, and, through his Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI), developing an innovative health care system that can be successful and sustainable throughout the developing world. His Clinton Global Initiative brings together world leaders to discuss the world's most pressing challenges.Thanks so : http://www.ted.com/ ( less )

Madonna's Official Promo video of I AM BECAUSE WE AREThis is a heart wrenching peek at Madonna's new film about the AIDS crisis in Malawi. ( less )

Right to play wants to improve the lives of children in some of the most disadvantaged areas of the world by using the power of sport and play for development, health and peace. + info: http://www.righttoplay.com/ ( less )

Construction of Mogra dam in Chhattisgarh has left thousands in 14 villages landless. Bhan Sahu, our correspondent is one of them. Mogra dam is built on the Seonath River in Rajnandgaon district. The objective of the dam was to provide water for irrigation. However, currently it is only supporting a cluster of industrial units. Bhan Sahu has been leading the fight of affected tribal people from the front for several years. She visits the affected villages, organizes rallies, addresses people and encourages them to keep demanding what is their right. For her work she has become an inspiration for her community. According to Bhan Sahu her community is affected in following ways: • The land taken by govt for dam was agricultural land. As a result her community members have lost their main source of locals livelihood. • Compensation offered by the government is inadequate as it includes only money and no livelihood options. • The price of the land offered by the govt is also as per the market rate in the 1967 – when the dam was first planned. Despite the construction of the dam the fourteen villages continue to have acute drinking water shortage as they are not supplied the water of the dam. The situation has forced the locals to migrate to other areas of the state in search of a livelihood. The dam affects a total of 56 villages in the state. On an average over 200 people are forced to migrate each year from each of these affected villages. Bhan Sahu feels people in her community need land as compensation, not money. They need employment as the land taken by govt for dam was used for growing food. As a community correspondent she is dedicated to share the stories of her community’s struggle until they have succeeded. ( less )

Arunachal Pradesh government has drawn a hydropower policy which aims to build about a hundred dams to produce 56,000 MW. The Indian subcontinent is divided into five seismic zones with respect to the severity of the earthquakes. Arunachal Pradesh falls in seismic Zone V which is considered one of the most vulnerable areas. In 1950 Arunachal had an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.6 Mw. It has been measured as the second largest earthquake of the country and 8th largest in the world since 1900. Tremors from this earthquake were felt strongly in Kolkata, near 1,000 kilometres away. According to a seismic vulnerability study by Arunachal Pradesh Remote Sensing Application Centre, parts of the state such as Peki Medi village in Upper Siang district, continue to experience frequent tremors on a daily basis. However, the government’s power policy seems to ignore this. So, apart from Lower Subansiri Hydro Power projects, the government is building 4 other mega dams beside numerous micro projects. These mega dams are projects on Kameng River Basin, Siang River Basin, Dibang River Basin and Lohit River Basin. The Lower subansiri dam has been mired into controversy from the very beginning. An Assam Assembly panel has asked for work on the dam to be stopped immediately. Even the Ministry of Environment and Forest has admitted that the Environment Impact Assessment of the project wasn’t properly done. Among the many communities that are being directly affected by lower Subansiri dam are the Galos – the tribe that Apak Gadi belongs to. Based in west Siang district, where lower Subansiri dam is getting constructed, the Galos are a small community whose culture and heritage are entwined with the nature. So for Galos destruction of nature through mega dams doesn’t only mean threats of earthquake, but also loss of culture and identity through displacement. ( less )

The state of Manipur, a hill state in north eastern region, has about 3,218 sq. km area covered with bamboo forest. Production in this large forest contributes greatly to India’s Rs. 7,000 + Crore ($1.43 billion)+ bamboo industry. The local economy of Manipur also benefits a lot as bamboos are used practically for every reason – from building a house to cook a local dish. The world market for bamboo is valued at US $ 10. The mass flowering of bamboos is known as “gregarious flowering of bamboo”. Though it isn’t harmful to humans, it causes great economic loss. This is because after the flowering and seeding, the bamboo ‘clumps' die. Secondly, rats feast on bamboo seeds and multiply their numbers. Once all the bamboo plants die, these rats then start attacking agricultural crops. This year several districts in Manipur has witnessed bamboo flowering. The natural phenomenon of bamboo flowering has been recorded to have happened in 1862, 1881, 1911-12 and 1959 too. All of them resulted in severe famine. Tamenglong, the district that Achungmei Kamei is based in, is one of the 5 hills district of Manipur. This year the district has suffered severe economic loss due to a 69 day-long economic blockade. The blockade which Achungmei earlier reported on, created shortage all basic amenities, including food items. Destruction of bamboo due to bamboo flowering is feared to add to this loss. Already the price of bamboo shoots – a part of people’s daily diet – has gone up by Rs 5 The government usually releases fund to combat the impact of bamboo flowering. In the year 2006-2007, it had allocated Rs 1 crore. But it is not yet known if the state has a plan ready to fight the bamboo flowering impact this year. ( less )

In India primary education is free for all. But in rural areas students are forced to pay bribe to teachers to access education. Mukesh Rajak, a community correspondent of IndiaUnheard exposes this petty corruption rampant in India ( less )

As part of the construction of my house, I will be using a shipping container (mobile mini storage) for material storage. I looked into the rental cost of these units and found that It will cost between $1,200 - $2,000 per year. I continued researching and discovered there are thousands of surplus containers sitting in the port cities all over the county due to the export deficit with China. Essentially all of our goods are coming from overseas in these standard shipping containers, and once they reach our shores and are unloaded most of them aren't reused. So I found a source of used ones locally and for $1,700 I can own an 8'6" x 9'6" x 24' shipping container. Then I realized, that once construction was complete, I could utilize the watertight structure as the basis of a building. More research followed and I hit the boards. I came up with a system that removes one size (and optionally the doors) and adds 50% more floor area. I was planning on using this for a music room / play area for the kids. The roof will protect the walls and windows (all glazing is north facing) and an inside layer of Icynene will insulate the metal skin & roof. I will also be planting some form of vertical planting (bamboo shown) to create shade and possibly a microclimate to protect the south side (I'm in the Phoenix, desert). A Few ISBU links http://www.bobvila.com/BVTV/Bob_Vila/... http://www.mortgagenewsdaily.com/1010... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermod... www.aperturedesignaz.com ( less )

Three problems stopping people from getting the HIV drugs they need, and one solution to the problem. Join the push for the Patent Pool. One way we can help the millions of people around the world who need treatment for HIV but aren't getting it. ( less )

The Kayapó Nation is composed of indigenous Indians living in the Amazon rainforest. The Amazon forest is increasingly threatened by deforestation caused by fires burning massive areas for agriculture production. Logging, gold mining, and dam construction are other serious threats. Because deforestation is one of the leading causes of climate change, not only does this loss threaten the survival of many indigenous communities such as the Kayapó, it impacts people the world over. Often called the "lungs of the earth," tropical forests help stabilize climate by absorbing the carbon dioxide. The destruction of forests is the second largest source of carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere. Source: http://www.conservation.org/Pages/default.aspx ( less )