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April 21, 2013
US Host Great Basis Watch

In honor of Earth Day 2013 and the theme: The Face of Climate Change, IREX is pleased to recognize the work of our Community Solutions leaders in the field of environmental issues. Over the past two years, 18 environmental leaders from 13 countries have come to the US for practical hands on experience and leadership training.

March 11, 2013
by Michelle Weisse Trueheart
Patrick Temera won the service innovation award in Uganda for gender framework

“Where are all the women?” That is the simple yet profound question Community Solutions Program (CSP) Alumnus Patrick Temera asked himself when he returned to his work at the Ugandan Ministry of Defense in December 2011. Temera, a Social Development Officer who worked with the wives and widows of soldiers on income generation projects, is no stranger to women in the workplace, but he had never before noticed how few women held positions of power in his own. Fewer than five percent of the leadership positions within the Ugandan Ministry of Defense are currently held by women. “I doubt without my experience in the U.S., I would have been able to see the need to make a change.”

November 29, 2012
Penlope Kobugabe (right) worked with the AIDS Community Research Initiative of A

HIV/AIDS is a global pandemic that brings with it local challenges as well as local solutions. In observation of World AIDS Day, IREX is pleased to share some insights into the complex issues that surround the disease across the globe by giving voice to some of those individuals working in this field.

September 27, 2012
by Tyler Peterson
Noela Jonathan

When Noela Jonathan asks the Tanzanian government for a shilling, she considers herself lucky to get just half. Such is life at public universities across Tanzania, where an already cash-tight government is the largest source of funding.

September 19, 2012

Are you currently engaged in community development work?  Do you have the potential to be a leader and change-maker in your community?  Are you looking for a career development opportunity to increase your professional skills, experience and networks?  If you answered yes to the above questions then you may be an excellent candidate for this year’s Community Solutions Program.

September 17, 2012
Community Solutions

IREX is seeking qualified experts to serve on the 2013-2014 Community Solutions Program selection committee. The Community Solutions Program is a professional development program for the best and brightest global community leaders working to make positive, lasting change in their local communities.

If you are interested in participating in this year’s selection committee for the Community Solutions Program, please e-mail communitysolutions@irex.org by October 1, 2012

July 2, 2012
IREX congratulates Ricky Richard Anywar, recipient of the 2012 IREX Founders’ Da

IREX congratulates Ricky Richard Anywar, recipient of the 2012 IREX Founders’ Day Award. Anywar is Founder and Executive Director of Friends of Orphans (FRO) in Uganda, which works to reintegrate child soldiers into their home communities, train IDPs in managing and resolving disputes, and increase food production in local areas. A former child soldier himself, Ricky received the 2008 Harriet Tubman Freedom Award, given every year to exemplary organizations that work to create sustainable freedom in communities vulnerable to slavery. He also received the 2008 Humanitarian Award from World of Children for his work with former child soldiers, child mothers, and vulnerable children. He is an alumnus of IREX’s Community Solutions Program.

June 26, 2012

NEW speakers added.

Please join us for a public discussion of ways to support development through African leadership Thursday, June 28, 2012, 9:30am – 11:00am at IREX headquarters. Speakers include Ricky Anywar, Founder, Friends of Orphans Uganda, Anne W. Kamau, Africa Research Fellow, Brookings Institution, Samuel Tesfaye, The Sub-Saharan Press, and Anthony Cotton, Africa Team Leader, USAID DCA. Please RSVP to attend.
 

May 24, 2012

Although IREX began its work in the Soviet Union more than 40 years ago, today we implement a wide portfolio of programs in 41 countries in Africa. More than 20% of our program budget goes to African civil society actors, journalists, teachers, youth, and community leaders. Our programs draw on local expertise, NGOs and staff to deliver sustainable solutions well-suited for the African context.
In honor of Africa Day, and the in spirit of unity and diversity it commemorates, we are pleased to share our new factsheet on IREX in Africa and some snapshots and thoughts from recent IREX visits to Africa.
 

March 9, 2012
by Ricky Anywar
Ricky Anywar former child soldier of the Lord's Resistance Army Responds to Kony

Ricky Anywar, a former child soldier and a Community Solutions Program leader responds to the Kony 2012 video now circulating the web. He and his brother were just 2 of 25,000 Ugandan children abducted by the Lord's Resistance Army and forced into slavery. Few managed to escape with their lives, but Ricky did, and he turned his freedom into a lifeline for other child slaves. Read his response here.