Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Building resilience rather than just reaping resources

People who work with the poor in oil rich countries (that don't know their own poverty often ) need a lot of support
Nothing is more upsetting for someone like myself who is steeped in dealing with the poverty traps in rural cultures ( insisting on resilience approaches) than to see those poor communities  take quick fixes. They risk letting their countries fall victim to WAR .
 Libyans like many in Africa aren't alone in having a challenge to live off the land,  but they are all the poorer for believing the  simplicities of the moment - that removal of strong leadership will solve their problems and that guns rather than grassland policy is the key to a sustainable future. All Africa and Asia need a dose of grassland therapy - what basic things make their culture stable and able to grow.
American and media policy that carelessly names the catharsis answer as" parliament " is the same simple  stupidity . imperial ignorance and mistargeting that prevents America selling its foreign policy in poor countries everywhere ( incl iraq and karsakstan?)  When is Australia going to be a leader of the pack of the poverty breaking advisors