Global Voices

English

The world is talking, are you listening?

Russia

Photobloggers nl [RUS], bb-mos [RUS], zyalt [RUS] share pictures of today's concert in defense of the Khimki Forest Park. The concert, that gathered from 1,000 to 5,000 people in the center of Moscow, transformed into a political rally of people protesting against the government.

Japan

The Slick blog is thrilled [ja] that a selection of photos by astronaut Soichi Noguchi will be published as an iPhone/iPad application. As @Astro_Soichi, Noguchi posted more than 600 photos to Twitter from space.

Japan

News that the Japanese word hikikomori was included in the newest edition of the Oxford Dictionary of English prompted some bloggers to think of English equivalents of the word. Perhaps “shut-in”, one blogger offers.

Hikikomori - Social withdrawal in Japan, Hiroshi Tomishige's blog about his experiences with hikikomori and thoughts about related social issues, is an excellent first-hand resource in English.

South Africa

Ukash is the ideal online payment solution for Africa, argues Malawian blogger Nyirenda: “As some African geeks are trying to come up with their own solutions, it is interesting to see the emergence of the Ukash service, currently the the world’s fastest growing prepaid-cash issuing network.”

Angola

African folklore: why the warthog is so ugly: “God created the warthog to be a fine-looking pig. He was so good-looking that he became vain and rude to all the other animals.”

Tanzania

E.B writes about the work of the non-profit organization Solar Hope in Tanzanian schools: “Nine OIT students and two faculty members have landed in Tanzania and are currently installing the first round of solar panels, converters and chargers.”

Tanzania

AfricanPress links to a story about Zanzibar renewing its bid for independence. Zanzibar and Tanganyika joined to form Tanzania in 1964.

Angola

Mark and Jana writes about the the biggest open-air market in Africa, the Roque Santeiro Market in Angola:”…is known for being the biggest open-air market in Africa, for transacting thousands of dollars a day, and for being the main stage for the sale of every imaginable product.”

Tanzania

Tanzania Odyssey Blog announces photo Tanzania Odyssey Photo Competition: “We are delighted to launch our new photo competition. This is in response to the vast number of amazing photos that we have received over the years.”

Bolivia

Bolivia is in a state of fire emergency, with 25,000 blazes affecting 1.5 million hectares. Pablo Andrés Rivero writes [es] about the lack of resources to put out the fires; he also expresses his unbelief at declarations from the Minister of Rural Development, Nemesia Achacollo, who said that only rain could stop the wildfires.