Feb 2023: Misconception, Roundness and Escape

[ssandino]

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Misconception, Roundness and Escape

Some stats first

• 179 people donated USD 184,806
• 1,883 mobile money payments made
• 17 countries originating contributions

Team up with GitHub

We can’t say too much about it yet, but we will be joining Activating Developers, a newly developed GitHub Open Source program. The new initiative will be revealed on March 10, 2023 on Tech for Social Good.

Human rights on the screen

The 21st International Film Festival and Forum on Human Rights (FIFDH) will be held in Geneva on 10-19 March. The festival will showcase films followed by debates that address human rights violations wherever they occur. This year’s program includes topics like decolonization and femicide, with many livestreams available to viewers worldwide.

Misconception of poverty

Jason Hickel was invited by Google to talk about global inequality and its solutions. He eloquently presented trends in global poverty, and showed how the dominant narrative that global poverty is diminishing quickly is far from reality. Watch him here, or see his input at the Doha Debate on capitalism.

Escaping the conflict trap

It has been 20 years since the civil wars in Sierra Leone ended. You can still feel the aftereffects, however. There have been improvements in poverty, disarmament, reintegration of armed groups, and post-conflict leadership since the war ended. Extreme poverty declined to 43% (2018) from 75% (2002).

Stat of the month

This new section will impress with a nerdy number every month.

Sierra Leone is the roundest country on earth, with an impressive roundness of 0.934. You can read up on the math behind this statistic here.

Around the web

Stories that made us think, sparked discussions in the team, or are just too good not to be shared with you.

• Women in Sierra Leone have a newfound sense of empowerment – they can finally own land. (Quartz)
• Philadelphia’s first Guaranteed Income Program is successfully running. (Next City)
• Thanks to AI and WiFi, it is now possible to see through walls. (Hackaday)
• Mobile money is not immune to scams. This is how fraudsters get their hands on the money in Malawi. (Rest of World)

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