The Mumsnet Society for Environment, Development and Apple Pie

[policywonk]

Thought I'd start a new thread to keep up the conversation about the issues that we were concentrating on at the G20 (maternal and newborn health and a low-carbon future, among other things).

Maybe we can get a bit of momentum going. The next big event will be the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings at the end of April. This will be the first opportunity to assess how the IMF proposes to use the new money it's been given, and what sort of conditions will be attached to the money given or loaned to developing countries.

I'll kick things off with a link to Oxfam Man's excellent blog

And here is a picture of [[http://insanecats.com/images/cute-kitten.jpg a kitten] in case your lady brain is hurting.

Oh bollocks. a kitten

am thinking it needs an acronym.

you have the d.e.a. you need an 'I' at the beginning.

ooh excellent. i am an ACC.

And here's another link to a Kevin Watkins article about MNH

Right I'll stop with the links for now.

Great idea!

If I knew how to do such things, I would post a link to a video filmed in Tanzania by midwives on maternal health. It's on the White Ribbon Alliance website in the section on multimedia resources and is called Play your Part

www.whiteribbonalliance.org

The White Ribbon Alliance site is very good

Essie, what do you do if you don't mind me asking? Are you profesionally involved in development? (Don't answer if you'd rather not say.)

My brain is only up to appreciating pictures of fluffy kittens today.

ahhhhhh. What a luvly kitty.

[slaps self]

'Over the past decade, maternal death rates have barely changed. The world is hopelessly off-track for achieving the two-thirds reduction in mortality envisaged under the international development goals. Yet the issue gets little political attention. That's partly because most of the victims are poor, and partly because of deeply entrenched gender inequalities.'

Love it when people says there are no gender inequalities anymore....

Puppies tomorrow, BIWI!

I still haven't transcribed Douglas Alexander's response to my q about entrenched gender inequality and how it can be tackled. Will try to do that tonight.

Right, I've stuck the transcript up on the blog.

One of the big issues surrounding gender issues in development - and development in general - concerns the give-and-take between the values of the developed world and the various cultural regimes of developing countries. How far should Western governments collaborate with, or fund, regimes that are oppressive by Western standards?

Karzai's regime in Afganistan, for example - especially given the recent law legalising rape within marriage and the severe circumscription of women's rights: despite his many failings, presumably we all agree that it's better to support Karzai than to let him flounder and contribute to the return of the Taliban. In a country like Afganistan, in which the cultural subjugation of women is so entrenched, the sudden imposition of Western levels of female empowerment would simply not be tolerated.

Or would it? This is the realpolitik of the NGOs, anyway. Admittedly it's a bit depressing.

One of the sure signs you are being sucked into the Void of Mumsnet is when you resent going on holiday anywhere with unreliable internet access.

Just back: PW, loving your work on that blog. Inevitably, I'm interested in your half ton of carbon comment - can you direct me to the source for that?

Oh alright then, I'll post them

I am obviously a complete dunderhead, and not worthy to be on this thread... but what is MNH please?

Maternal and Newborn Health?

Ah.. could only think of mothers' natal health, but seemed tautological to me