The following was submitted by Andrew Dallaston – TEAR Fund Education Officer. A lot of kiwis have been trekking in Nepal. One notable kiwi trekked all the way to the top of Everest and then spent a fair chunk of his remarkable life helping the Sherpa people build schools and hospitals. But apart from Sir Edmund and the Himalayas most of us don’t know much about Nepal – that little country about the size of [...]

A friend asked me a little while ago if I had any ideas relating to what they could do to use the business they are establishing, building and promoting to make it a more ethical entity and to make it something that is making a positive difference in the world. It is an exciting question to hear as I believe responsible business and business where the profit margin is not the be all and end [...]

Following on from the general election just held here in Aotearoa/New Zealand I have been reflecting on many of the discussions I had the pleasure of being involved in during the lead up to it and directly following it. In many of those conversations there was one topic that consistently made itself known – social welfare. Social welfare is often a political issue in Aotearoa/New Zealand, but I got the impression that it was much [...]

Earlier this week I had the privilege of interviewing Paul Childers. Paul, along with Susanne (his wife), runs PhotogenX. The purpose of PhotogenX is to advocate for those who do not have a voice by using photography as a means to tell stories. Susanne is mostly responsible for the photography. The imagery is absolutely stunning. If you want to see some of it, just check out their website www.photogenx.net Together Paul and Susanne have traveled [...]

Christmas is looming up fast and with it, the usual pressures of gift giving amongst people who already have everything they need. So once again you’re going to be wracking your brains about what to give your loved ones and chances are, you’re going to spend more than you can afford. Welcome to the ghost of Christmas consumerism. As the world faces a financial crunch, many of us are probably hoping for a different way [...]

The following was sent to the Humanitarian Chronicle by someone who shall use the pseudonym, Jon Shannow. When they vote tomorrow, far too many Christians in Aotearoa/NZ will allow their choices to be influenced by a single issue – the so called “anti smacking” bill. Voting on the basis of a single issue is always blinkered and unbalanced but voting on one issue that isn’t fully understood is downright stupid. There has been too much [...]

I am not American, but yesterday I watched the U.S election with interest, with my chief concern as someone from outside of the U.S, being foreign policy. There were two very different approaches to international relations on offer. American foreign policy interests me because it influences the world greatly. Over the last 8 years, under the Bush administration, the view of the U.S in the eyes of the world has greatly diminished. I don’t think [...]