Ayiti- The Cost of Life

1. What was it like playing the game?

It was like living another person’s life because you had to make the same decisions as if you're the person who is struggling in life.

2. What was the game about and how would you describe it to a friend?

There are lots of decisions to make which makes it hard.

3. Which primary objective did you choose, and why?

I chose "health" because it is easier to keep someone alive for as long as possible rather than spending money on education and happiness.

4. What types of decisions did you have to make about the family members while playing the game and trying to achieve your objective?

The main objective is to keep them alive till the end of the game. Thus I had to decide for the family which member is to go to school and work.

5. What strategies did you use? For example, did you combine work and school, or did you send anyone to school? Which worked? Which did not?

I made the adults get a higher paid job outside their farm since they cannot go to school because they’re too old for it. The younger children worked at the farm whereas the older kid goes to school so that he can get better job opportunities.

6. Why would parents choose to devote so much effort sending their children to school?

Because if the children have good education, it would be easier for them to find a high paying job and be independent.

7. How many children were you able to keep in school?

I I I was able to keep at least two children in school.

8. What obstacles did you face in trying to keep them in school?

I had to try to keep the ones who are working and the children healthy so that they can earn more money to bring the children to school.

9. How do the situations and options in the game compare with those in your own community?

In my community, the children don't work because our parents can earn enough money.

But in the third world family, they are so poor that the children also have to work. The similarities that the two communities share is that the adults are also working to support the family.

Why might access to education be a challenge in another country?

Because in other countries, the people are so poor that they can’t provide enough money for education.

11.What factors would make it easier for the children in the game to gain access to education? What conditions could be changed and how?

With enough money, the children would be able to gain access to education. Conditions could be changed if the family could start off with some money so that only the adults work and the children could go to school.

Global Issues Portfolio Reflection - 3rd World Farmer Reflection

1.   R The 3rd World Farmer game required a lot of strategies as we need to make good use of the limited money and resources we have to help the poor farmers survive or get out of a bad situation. The purpose of the game was to help us understand the hardships a third world farmer faces every year and how we can help them overcome.

2.      The strategy I used was to slowly earn the money until I have enough to buy a representative and insurance so that I could buy more crops without worrying about droughts, thieves, etc.  The representative can help the farmers when they are in trouble and the insurance can ensure that the farmers will be paid even if their crops are destroyed.

3.      A short term decision is one that helps the farmers for the time being such as providing them food.

4.       Short term decisions are bad because it is only a temporary solution. They can’t just depend on people to provide them with food. They should learn how to grow their own crops and be able to provide themselves with food instead of depending on others to provide that.

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5.       A person in a situation of poverty can get stuck in a cycle of short term decision making because his main concern would be of the situation he is in now, such as hunger. He would want to be fed first rather than learn how to plant crops and be independent.

6.      To get them out of this poverty cycle, short term solution such as solving their hunger first is needed. After that, they should learn to be independent and learn to grow their own crops to sell and feed themselves

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7.       A long term decision is a decision that will help you for the rest of your life such as learning the skill to grow the crops and buy insurance so that even the crops are destroyed, the farmers could still get some money to help them restart  plantation.

8.       Long term decisions are good because they help the farmers solve their problem permanently.

9.       Because long term decisions get rid of the problem forever,  thus the farmers could earn more money and come out of poverty. With education, they could even look for job elsewhere. These long term decisions will help to increase their standards of living.

10.    I learnt that making the right choices can lead to a better life. For example, with the help of a representative to help the farmers to set up and purchase insurance to protect their crops even if the crops are destroyed. Education and clinical care are also important to help increase the standard of living.

11.    Think creatively. Because in the game, you have to think outside the box to be successful. To be successful you need to have a long term solution as well as a short term solution. Solve the farmers' current situation first with a short term solution, then help them with a well planned long term solution.

            

      This is a happy farmer who has been helped by the global organization World Vision.

 

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Worlds Aids Day

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What is World Aids Day???

World aids day is the day when people come together to raise the awareness of aids. By doing this, we are getting people to contribute their money to help the people suffering from aids and to educate the public about aids. It also aims to fight prejudice against aids. The money from this contribution can be used for research in aids and provide medication to the aids victim to control the growth of the virus.

When did World Aids Day start?

World Aids Day started on the 1st December 1988.

Theme for 2009 is "Universal Access and Human Rights."

According to AVERT (International Aids Organization):

Global leaders have pledged to work towards universal access to HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care, recognising these as fundamental human rights.

How many people are infected with HIV (human immunodeficiency virus)?

33.4 million people are infected with HIV including 2.1 million children.

Around half of these people infected with HIV are infected before they are 25 years old and are killed by Aids before they are 35.

What is HIV?

According to the Center for Disease Control:

"HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) is the virus that causes AIDS. This virus may be passed from one person to another when infected blood, semen, or vaginal secretions come in contact with an uninfected person’s broken skin or mucous membranes."

What is AIDS (Acquired ImmunoDeficiency Syndrome)?

Aids is the disease cause by the virus HIV. 

How is HIV transmitted?

3 main ways HIV is transmitted:

1. sexual transmission

2. transmission through blood

3. Mother-to-child transmission

How to prevent spread of HIV?

1. Educate people on how HIV can be transmitted and prevented

2. HIV positive people should be responsible for making sure they do not pass it to others.

3. People aware of this disease should take precautions so that they will not be infected.

We can create awareness in school by:

* showing different videos of aids program to the students.

* setting up pictures and banners all over the schools.

* give a talk to the students about different aspects of aids, such as treatments and prevention.

* Let the students know why they  need to contribute money to help those who cannot afford the medicine and the research for the cure of aids.

What Are Global Issues? Why Should I Care?

Global issues such as global warming, poverty, aids, H1N1, etc, are problems that the world is facing. The world has been facing most of these problems for a long time. Only lately we have been dealing with the pandemic of H1N1. Because of these problems, we as a community lose one member of the world every minute. Should we care about these people dying? Yes! Being part of the community we should be concerned with these issues. We are the only hope for these people suffering. We are the only ones who can help them get out of poverty, help to stop the widespread of aids and other viruses like H1N1 and help slow down global warming and make the world a better place for not only ourselves, but also for the future generations. Without our help, these people who are suffering would not have a second chance in life. Thus we should all contribute to the world and be responsible to our big community. We can make a difference. Like what Professor Yunus would say: Yes We Can!!

                                                                                                                                         

                                                                                                                                            

Professor Muhammad Yunus is the founder of Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, which makes tiny loans for self-employment to some of the poorest people in that country. He is also one of the world's most effective champions of Obama's "yes we can!!" spirit. Prof.  Yunus is a Nobel Peace Prize winner of 2006.