Author Archives: hlanthorn

traveling pants (absolutely nothing to do with a sisterhood)

From a letter home from India in 2008: The topic of this section is pants.  It requires a small introduction.  For the most part, I wear my own pants and have purchased some of the long tops with slits up the sides (kurta) that most of the girls with whom I work (unmarried, so generallyContinueContinue reading “traveling pants (absolutely nothing to do with a sisterhood)”

a collection of a few possible relevant articles (II): beyond sachs to karaoke and stuff

The discussion on the Bank President seems to have moved to a slightly more productive place now that the nominations are (nearly) out. That is, to humility, insider-ness, and karaoke. http://blogs.cgdev.org/globaldevelopment/2012/03/wanted-in-the-next-world-bank-president-courage-for-innovation-and-a-healthy-dose-of-humility-2.php The remaining uber-challenges of development—finding new ways to encourage private sector growth, delivering services in the world’s toughest places, creating incentives for better governance—are allContinueContinue reading “a collection of a few possible relevant articles (II): beyond sachs to karaoke and stuff”

a collection of a few possibly relevant articles (I)

http://blogs.cgdev.org/globaldevelopment/2012/02/does-it-matter-who-runs-the-world-bank.php “The tone the president sets matters for the great machinery underneath,” she explains. “They determine in what direction it will grind along, and if it will do so in a way that makes sense. Will there be openness to a new direction and a readiness to admit problems and failures? All that is setContinueContinue reading “a collection of a few possibly relevant articles (I)”

Asking people what they think (and want) (II)

In responding to a recent article about the Kony2012 debacle, Bill Easterly pointed out that “NGOs should screen advocacy material with beneficiaries.” Though I tend to be more on the research than the service delivery or advocacy end of work, I fully agree. Of course, intended beneficiaries – and other stakeholders – should be consultedContinueContinue reading “Asking people what they think (and want) (II)”

Wax prints (holland cloth)

A recent article came up about ‘African’ or ‘tribal’ prints. I wrote a bit about this while I was in Ghana: Cloth is a big deal in Ghana – every Friday is traditional cloth Friday and many employers have a special organizational print available for employees to purchase.  For women’s clothing, cloth comes in two mainContinueContinue reading “Wax prints (holland cloth)”

Asking people what they think (I)

This is only a small splinter off my much larger soapbox of “why don’t we ask a multitude of stakeholders at all levels what they think and why they think x program did/not work?” but… check it out. Instead of channeling the world’s poorest citizens through malfunctioning microphones, I am proposing a radical, yet extremelyContinueContinue reading “Asking people what they think (I)”

Rethinking the use of the word ‘simple’ in global health (II) – asking the right questions

I am not saying this is going to be all-time best solution (ha! ors pun!) but it does seem to be the result of asking the right questions, which include, if this (ors(+zinc)) is such a ‘simple’ intervention (in this case, meaning low-tech and cheap), why is not being taken-up? It is not clear toContinueContinue reading “Rethinking the use of the word ‘simple’ in global health (II) – asking the right questions”

Contraception, women, society – why are we (still) having this conversation in the US???

Plenty has been said about this, so I am going to highlight the points of a few others. but the whole frame of the present national media and political conversation is infuriating. Forgetting all the convolutions involved in saying that, in proposing an insurance mandate, anyone is asking anyone to use their taxpayer dollars toContinueContinue reading “Contraception, women, society – why are we (still) having this conversation in the US???”

toilets: the importance of ownership (also, really, the iPad of commodes?)

there are some cool ideas about local maintenance and ownership in the reported community-led total sanitation. we shouldn’t be too hasty to overlook the ‘conceptual ownership’ aspect, though. It’s really important that there is responsibility delegated for taking care of a toilet or latrine. i have encountered plenty of toilets – and lines for toiletsContinueContinue reading “toilets: the importance of ownership (also, really, the iPad of commodes?)”