Research and Education
http://lnweb18.worldbank.org/LAC/LAC.nsf/ECADocByUnid/937A45EE3F62F2D085256FA5007286CF?Opendocument
The situation of rural communities in Latin America and the Caribbean is in some cases quite dire, and this report from the World Bank offers some timely commentary on the economic opportunities in these areas of the world. Released in February 2005, this 352-page report prepared by a team of researchers led by Guillermo Perry evaluates the effect of the rural sector on national growth, poverty reduction, and environmental degradation. The casual visitor may want to peruse some highlights from the report, browse through a presentation, or listen to an audio interview with co-author Daniel Lederman. In the report, Lederman remarks that "The rural contribution to development in the region has been hampered by insufficient investment in public services". The report offers a number of policy recommendations, including the suggestion that "success in reducing poverty in marginalized regions will depend on the ability of both central and local governments to work with local communities to identify economic opportunities and constraints and to balance local needs with national interests.". [KMG]
http://www.justiceinitiative.org/
With offices in Abuja, Budapest, and New York, the Open Society Justice Institute "performs law reform activities grounded in the protection of human rights, and contributes to the development of legal capacity for open societies worldwide." To that end, the Institute offers a wide range of helpful resources on its website, including access to its in-house journal, Justice Initiatives, information about its advocacy efforts around the globe, and an events calendar. The "Books & Monographs" area provides a host of helpful research and primary source materials, such as a handbook for monitoring election campaign finance and a section dedicated to combating discrimination in Russia. Those persons looking for information about the Institute's work in a specific part of the world will want to look through the geographically organized material in the "Regions" area. [KMG]
http://www.futureofinnovation.org/PDF/Benchmarks.pdf
In recent years, there has been a great deal of national and international talk about the so-called "knowledge economy" which is of particular interest to policy-makers, economists, and a host of other groups. One of the consortium groups interested in the knowledge economy is the Task Force on the Future of American Innovation. The Task Force is comprised of a number of related member organizations (including the American Physical Society). This February 2005 report from the Task Force explores the possibility that the United States may in fact be losing its leadership role in science and innovation, a position it has retained since the conclusion of World War II. Some of the benchmarks that the report mentions include the fact that the proportion of US citizens in science and engineering graduate studies within the US declined by ten percent between 1994 and 2001. This very timely report will be worth a read, particularly for those in the fields of academia and innovation studies. [KMG]
http://www.climatechange.gc.ca/english/default.asp
At this Government of Canada website, visitors can "learn about the science, impacts and adaptation to climate change and how individuals, governments, businesses, industry and communities take action by reducing greenhouse gas emissions." Through maps, graphs, and clear text, users can learn the basics of climate change and the greenhouse gases. The website details many of the ecological, economic, and global impacts of climate change. Users can find out about the One-Tonne Challenge, which encourages everyone to reduce their emissions. Teachers can find questions and activities to educate their students about climate change. The website also offers a calculator to estimate a user's current emissions, a series of videos instructing individuals how to create an energy efficient home and car, as well as publications and media resources. This site is also reviewed in the March 18, 2005 NSDL Physical Sciences Report [RME].
http://newspapers.umsystem.edu/archive/Skins/Missouri/navigator.asp?skin=Missouri&BP=OK
A number of digitization projects have been completed over the past few years, and more than a few of them have involved digitizing local newspaper collections, whether they are from Sheffield or Pittsburgh. This rather novel project, sponsored by the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the University of Missouri, brings together a clutch of newspapers from around the state of Missouri from a host of time periods. The papers themselves are drawn from a wide variety of holding institutions, including the Kansas City Public Library, the State Historical Society of Missouri and the Lincoln University Library. The newspapers included in this archive are the Columbia Missourian, the Hannibal Courier, and the Liberty Weekly Tribune. Besides serving as a nice source of primary historical documents from Missouri, it's rather entertaining to browse through the newspapers. This site is optimized for the Internet Explorer browser. [KMG]
There is always a great demand for educational materials regarding the most important US Supreme Court Cases and this website is an outgrowth of that sustained interest. Developed by Street Law and the Supreme Court Historical Society, this website was developed in order to provide teachers with a full range of resources and activities regarding such cases. The general teaching strategies offered here include political cartoon analysis, moot court, continuum exercises, and website evaluation. Some of the cases covered here include Mapp v. Ohio, Gideon v. Wainwright, and Miranda v. Arizona. The site also offers some detailed explanations of important related concepts, such as federalism, national supremacy, and judicial review. Additional, the site provides background summaries of each case and pertinent discussion questions for a variety of reading levels and abilities. [KMG]
http://www.iied.org/index.html
The question of sustainable development is one that has garnered significant attention during the past few years, and there are a number of organizations doing work around the globe to promulgate these principles. The International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) is one such organization, and it has been working in this field since 1971. As the mission statement on its site indicates, the Institute seeks "to promote sustainable patterns of world development through collaborative research, policy studies, networking and knowledge dissemination." The homepage is a great place to start, as visitors can quickly delve into the latest reports and newsletters. Also, a dropdown menu titled "IIED Research" allows visitors access into its work in such areas as human settlements and sustainable agriculture. Finally, visitors can read seventeen issues of the IIED journal, Environment and Urbanization, (dating from 1995 to 2002) at no charge. [KMG]
The Archive of American Folk Medicine is the result of more than 50 years of work by UCLA-associated folklorists who "documented beliefs and practices relating to folk medicine and alternative healthcare. In order to make the data more readily available to the worldwide community of researchers and medical practitioners, the Online Archive of American Folk Medicine was established in 1996 under the direction of Dr. Michael Owen Jones, a professor of folklore and history at UCLA." The Archive draws from over 3,200 published works, and is intended to serve folklorists, sociologists, and historians. The website provides basic and advanced search options; and records include brief entries for Citation, Condition, Belief, Method of Treatment, and more. Users should be aware that the Archive website has not been updated in several years but it remains a valuable resource for researchers and others interested in folk medicine. This site is also reviewed in the March 18, 2005 NSDL Life Sciences Report. [NL]
