Miscellany

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In the news —  By Maxine Joselow,  The Washington Post September 20, 2023 at 8:10 a.m. EDT     President Biden on Wednesday announced an initiative to train more than 20,000 young people in skills crucial to combating climate change, such as installinfg solar panels, restoring coastal wetlands and retrofitting homes to be more energy-efficent. 10 steps you can take to lower your carbon footprint The American Climate Corps comes as Biden seeks to win over young voters, a critical constituency, before next year’s presidential election. Polls show that climate change is a top concern for young people, who are more likely than older generations to face raging wildfires, stronger storms and rising seas in their lifetimes. The initiative resembles a proposal that was included in an early version of Biden’s signature climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act. The Civilian Climate Corps was ultimately dropped from the final version of the legislation during private negotiations last summer between Senate . . .

International Voluntary Services (1953–2002) by Gary Alex A Legacy Of America’s Global Volunteerism explores the history of international volunteerism through the story of International Voluntary Services, Inc. (IVS), an American 501(c)3 private voluntary organization founded in 1953 to provide volunteers for international relief and development programs. Paul Rodell (Peace Corps/Philippines 1968–71)) and 12 former IVS volunteers and academics, experienced in international volunteerism, tell the history of IVS as an organization, share insights on international service, and analyze lessons for future volunteer programs. Formed in a time of global uncertainty and change, this public/private initiative provided volunteers for 1,419 assignments in 39 countries over its 50-year existence. The foreword by Ambassador Wendy J. Chamberlin, a former IVS volunteer in Laos, reflects the appreciation most alumni have had for their opportunity to serve. Voices of individual volunteers give field-level insights on volunteer program programs and issues. The book is relevant for those . . .

  A TALE OF GRATITUDE    In the film, It’s a Wonderful Life, George Bailey longs to hear the sounds of “anchor chains, plane motors, and train whistles.” These were the sounds Patrick Logan (Thailand 1984-86) also longed to hear. To his father, however, they meant separation from the things he held dear. He’d fought in Italy during WWII and had survived through luck and by writing letters almost daily to the woman he’d married just before shipping out. In contrast, his youngest son eagerly sought overseas adventure, initially as a Peace Corps volunteer in Thailand. Once in Asia, he stayed. Following his father’s death, Patrick inherited those wartime letters, and in them he learned much about the man from whom he’d grown distant, emotionally at first and then geographically. He decided to trace the route his father had taken through Italy, guided by passages from those letters, and by books on . . .

  by Rowland Scherman (PC Staff 1961-64)   In June, 1963, I was working in Washington DC shooting PR pictures for the Peace Corps. That may sound mundane, but I had been doing it since the inception of the new agency, and had literally traveled the world photographing the volunteers at work in their newly adopted countries. In his inaugural speech, President Kennedy asked us what we could do for the country. And I, like thousands of others, responded. I was what one might call an “advanced amateur.” I knew what an f-stop was, and the other basics, but not a hell of a lot more. By answering JFK’s call, my chosen career was importantly enabled. I had been to a Peter, Paul and Mary concert in the area and later heard that they were to be the headliners at the Newport Folk Festival, along with Pete Seeger, Theo Bikel, and Joan Baez. That sounded as if it might . . .

Tyler Rossi (The Republic of North Macedonia 2017-20)  is currently a graduate student at Brandeis University’s Heller School of Social Policy and Management and studies Sustainable International Development and Conflict Resolution. Before graduating from American University in Washington D.C., he worked for Save the Children creating and running international development projects. Recently, Tyler returned to the US from living abroad in the Republic of North Macedonia, where he served as a Peace Corps volunteer for three years. Tyler is an avid numismatist and for over a decade has cultivated a deep interest in pre-modern and ancient coinage from around the world. He is a member of the American Numismatic Association (ANA). • By Tyler Rossi CoinWeek, December 13, 2021 Modern-day North Macedonia is a country of breathtaking natural beauty and ancient history that gained its independence in 1991 from the disintegrating Yugoslavia. A majority Slavic nation, North Macedonia has a rich monetary tradition stretching back through the socialist and royal iterations of Yugoslavia, medieval Bulgarian and Turkish empires, the Byzantines, . . .

  Recently my cousin (who never was a PCV) wrote his story of working with Asylum Seekers to sponsor a Palestinian emigrant. His story is insightful and touching and might suggest to some of us RPCVs how we might become sponsors ourselves. JC  • MONTHS AGO I came across a program, Asylum Seekers, which seeks to place such persons with sponsors. I began the interview process to become a sponsor. The sponsor incurs financial assistance, especially for the first six months, as asylum seekers are not allowed to work for pay. Finally, I began to receive notices about potential persons who ran the gamut from Russians to Africans to South Americans, etc. Subsequently, I narrowed down my interest to some French-speaking men from West African countries. Several never materialized for various reasons. Suddenly, on Wed. night, April 21, I received a call, inquiring if I would be willing to sponsor . . .

    We Are Living in a Failed State The coronavirus didn’t break America. It revealed what was already broken. SPECIAL PREVIEW: JUNE 2020 ISSUE Atlantic Monthly George Packer (Togo 1982-83) Staff writer for The Atlantic This article appears in the Special Preview: June 2020 issue. • The crisis demanded a response that was swift, rational, and collective. The United States reacted instead like Pakistan or Belarus — like a country with shoddy infrastructure and a dysfunctional government whose leaders were too corrupt or stupid to head off mass suffering. The administration squandered two irretrievable months to prepare. From the president came willful blindness, scapegoating, boasts, and lies. From his mouthpieces, conspiracy theories and miracle cures. A few senators and corporate executives acted quickly — not to prevent the coming disaster, but to profit from it. When a government doctor tried to warn the public of the danger, the White House took the mic . . .

    The National Peace Corps Association announces this important award.   ” Stacy Jupiter (Gabon 1997–99) is one of 26 MacArthur Foundation Fellows for 2019, citing her efforts to save lives and coral reefs as well as build on traditional practices to figure out when, where, and how long to close off fishing areas to best manage natural resources. The honor comes with a grant totaling $625,000. Stacy directs the Wildlife Conservation Society‘s Melanesia Program Fulbright scholarship.”   Here is the information from the MacArthur Foundation. “Stacy Jupiter is a marine scientist integrating local cultural practices with field research to develop conservation solutions that protect both the biodiversity of coastal ecosystems and the well-being of communities dependent on them. Working in concert with local communities, Jupiter is establishing and applying new approaches to natural resource management based on traditional ecological knowledge and practices that take into account the livelihoods and . . .