Why Don’t Women Vote For Other Women? Reconsidering Automatic Privilege and Tokenism in Political Processes As Zanzibar gearsup for a rerun of Presidential, Legislative and Local Councils Elections annulled in October 2015, the Regional Commissioner (RC) of Mwanza, Magessa Mulongo on March 8th while commemorating International Women’s Day made some remarks worthy of a response. Mr. Mulongo used a familiar trope to try to explain women’s low numbers in representative structures-elected or nominated: he chastised women for being each other’s worst enemy.
Elective Politics: No Walk in the Park Women & Leadership: Transforming Kenyan Leadership - Hbs Nairobi Watch on YouTube This external content requires your consent. Please note our privacy policy. This video is a short peek into the experiences of a handful of women who have tried their hand in elective politics.
Missing Voices - Gender Forum On January 28th, 2016, HBS Nairobi convened a panel to discuss the relationship between civilians and the police in a discussion dubbed “Missing Voices”. The panel, comprised of L. Muthoni Wanyeki, Regional Director for Amnesty international in East Africa; Wanjeri Nderu, a social media activist and the founder of the Empowering Communities Community Organisation and Ruth Mumbi, a community organiser and activist, and moderated by Yvonne Okwarah from the Kenya Television Network (KTN), aimed to give voice to victims of police brutality and violence, but also the challenges facing the police, in order to point out some of the contextual issues that have led to an alarming rate of police brutality in the country and completely eroded the trust between individuals and police.
Civil Society Under Pressure Shrinking – closing – no space: Governments across all continents villainize civil society actors. Where does their sense of threat emanate from?
COP 21 and the Paris Agreement: A Force Awakened Globally, political leaders are lauding the acceptance of the global and legally binding Paris Agreement on Climate Change at COP 21 as a historical moment. It achieves a goal long believed unattainable. However, judged against the enormity of the challenge and the needs and pressure from people on the ground demanding a global deal anchored in climate justice (“system change, not climate change!”), the Paris Agreement can only be called a collective failure and disappointment. Read a critical assessment by HBS colleagues from around the world.
Coal Atlas 2015 The Heinrich Böll Foundation and Friends of the Earth International have published the first English edition of the Coal Atlas 2015 in Brussels.
Sustainable Development Goals 2015 - Focus on Goal 5: Gender Equality The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) were agreed upon in September 2015. The goals, 17 in total, aim to complete what the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) didn’t achieve as well as address the root causes of poverty and inequality.
Europe Must be Strong on Climate Risk at COP21 As the world's poorest and most vulnerable populations suffer huge losses from climate change, the entities most responsible for the problem - the so-called "Big Polluters" - continue to reap billions in profits. This has to change.
Gender Forum in Samburu County - “Beyond the Tarmac” Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is a vice that has affected Kenya for decades. Despite several interventions by the government and NGOs, FGM continues to persist in certain communities in the country. National statistics indicate that the FGM prevalence rate stands at 27%.
Chance for Africa to Rewrite its Narrative Global discussions on Africa have lately changed from references to a dark continent to “the next frontier for growth and expansion.” What has led to this “Africa Rising” narrative? Is it true? Are we prepared for it? Who will benefit? One need only see the ongoing scramble for Africa between the West and China and other emerging economies to realise what is at play. In the midst of this, a lot of strategic imperatives can be overlooked to the detriment of African countries which may end up being mere pawns.
