Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Weekly Meeting: October 29th 2009


The I.C. Plunge is only ONE MONTH AWAY!

Be sure to come to tomorrow nights meeting to get pumped up for the plunge! We will also be assigning task groups, so get involved and help make this years Plunge the best yet!

8:00 PM in Damen Room 236

Check out this video of the kids of Dwon Madiki talking about the I.C. Plunge 2007 and get motivated: IC PLUNGE 2007

Monday, October 26, 2009

Child Death: An Invisible Conflict

Today, over 25,000 children died around the world

Author And Page Information

Over 25,000 children die every day around the world.

That is equivalent to:

  • 1 child dying every 3.5 seconds
  • 17-18 children dying every minute
  • A 2004 Asian Tsunami occurring almost every 1.5 weeks
  • An Iraq-scale death toll every 16–38 days
  • Over 9 million children dying every year
  • Some 70 million children dying between 2000 and 2007

The silent killers are poverty, hunger, easily preventable diseases and illnesses, and other related causes. In spite of the scale of this daily/ongoing catastrophe, it rarely manages to achieve, much less sustain, prime-time, headline coverage.

Here is an article sent to us by IC member Derrick. Did you know that over 25,000 children die around the world EVERY DAY? Probably not, because it's an invisible conflict!

Read more HERE!

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

CELL OUT


The Congo Week CELL OUT takes place tomorrow! 

Turn off your cell phone for 24 hours to help raise awareness of how coltan mining is fueling Africa's longest running war in the Congo. If you aren't familiar with the horrible effects of Coltan mining check out these links: 



Thursday, October 15, 2009

Congo Week





Be sure to check out all of the great IC Congo Week events this upcoming week at Loyola!

Friday, October 9, 2009

"Flow" Screening at Loyola

Who Owns Your Water?


Loyola's Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy (CUERP) and the University Libraries will kick off an environmental film series with the documentary "Flow," which examines the question "Who owns the water?" when it comes to the privatization of water by companies extracting ground water to bottle and sell.

"Flow" will be shown on October 22 at 6:30 p.m. in Damen Hall's Finnegan Auditorium, followed by a question and answer period with Dr. Mark Luttenton, Professor of Aquatic Ecology and Water Rights Expert from Grand Valley State University, Michigan. Dr. Luttenton has served as an expert witness in a case of the State of Michigan vs. Nestle (owners of Ice Mountain bottled water) for the past nine years, and he will discuss the issue with participants.

Free popcorn and licorice will be served. Bring your own drink (not bottled water, though). For more information, e-mail cuerp@luc.edu.   

BBC: Kenyans Must Leave Displacement Camps

Here is an interesting article on the status of displacement camps in Kenya. The full article is here. 


A Kenyan deadline expires on Friday for people displaced by post-election violence to leave their camps.

Two weeks ago President Mwai Kibaki ordered the closure of the camps, which at the peak of the violence were home to around 500,000 people.

But more than a year-and-a-half later there are Kenyans still living in tents some of whom are reluctant to leave.

Stanley Wanyoike said he will only leave if the president keeps his promise to give them land.

"We are ready to leave if the promise made by the head of state is fulfilled," said Mr Wanyoike, who was forced to flee his home with his wife and five children on 30 December 2007 - the night President Kibaki was controversially declared the winner of the election.

Elizabeth Wanja
 The government says you can't be given that money unless you pull down the tent. But if you pull down the tent you don't have anywhere to go 
Elizabeth Wanja

"That is being given a place to settle - some land. We are waiting to hear if we are to get land."

Early last year the agricultural showground in the town of Eldoret was home to almost 25,000 people. Less than 2,000 remain.

Each family has been offered 35,000 Kenyan shillings (about $470, £290) for leaving but to receive the money they have to dismantle their tent.

Tent is a generous word for leaky structures which are made out of shabby pieces of plastic sheeting and old sacks.

Thursday, October 8, 2009