Archive for 200932 results found.Happy holidays for some
Tropical Cyclone Laurence hit Northern Australia this past week which also meant a bit of rain in Timor-Leste. Too bad it wasn’t raining to put out this fire… but then again people usually use this part of the street to burn trash… it’s not an uncommon sight… there isn’t really a systematic way to get rid of trash. But it’s holiday season as Timor-Leste starts to see a small exodus … Read more → IDP Households and Projects Map
As part of an Early Recovery project with the United Nations Development Programme in Timor-Leste, one of the objectives of the project was to help communities that were displaced during the political crisis resettle back into their communities. UNDP and IOM were working on community infrastructure projects to help with reintegration of communities. The map was produced based on information submitted by both organizations and the number of internally displaced people … Read more → Flying – a great way to start a birthday!
Words can’t describe what a wonderful present I received from friends for my birthday. I was told to sleep early because I would have to wake up early the next day. Even though I knew it had to be something related to my birthday, I didn’t really expect much – at the most, it would have been waking up early to go for a walk along the beach. So … Read more → Day 4 (#GISDay) – It's all about the data!
More and more people keep attending the afternoon seminars… including today’s presentation by the National Statistics Directorate of Timor-Leste. One of the key things in this 10-year old country is to get a better understanding about its population and what are the challenges to its growth. Timor-Leste will be conducting its national census next year in July 2010.
Day 3 (#GISDay) – Timor-Leste event is half-way through
There’s 3 days left to With maps, we build the future of Timor-Leste at Casa Europa. I’ll try to get more pictures up of the different things that are going on for the week-long event. After three days, there’s been plenty of positive response from the event – a lot of people didn’t realize that there was so much mapping and GIS work going on in Tmor-Leste.
Day 2 (#GISDay) – Kids, military, uni students come for a visit
With maps, we build the future of Timor-Leste keeps going strong at Casa Europa. Day 2 was as popular as the first day. This time around there was a class field trip from the Dili International School who came for a visit – as you can see they were very interested in the 1:50000 floor map. Also, the military came to look around since they … Read more → Day 1 (#GISDay) – Success in Timor-Leste!
Coinciding with GIS Day, the first day of the GIS/mapping event in Timor-Leste (With maps, we build the future of Timor-Leste) was a success. Given this type of event is the first of its kind in the country, the opening day went smoothly… although there were some bumps along the way as I expected. But overall the turnout was great… in the morning, we … Read more → Ho Mapa, Ita Harii Futuru Timor-Leste (#GISDay)
I’m part of the Timor-Leste Geographic Information Group (GIG). For the past few months we’ve been planning to organize an event to raise awareness about mapping and geographic information systems (GIS) work that is going on in Timor-Leste. There isn’t much information about GIS and mapping in Timor. So this event hopes to educate the public and get people to start thinking about using data, information, maps, and geography … Read more → The Geographic Information Group – GIG
This flyer was created during preparations for GIS Day to explain the Geographic Information Group of Timor-Leste. With the help of members in the GIG, the flyer includes descriptions of the group in English, Tetun, and Portuguese. As the GIG became more established by the end of 2009, the GIG met approximately once a month and included a growing number of members from the government and international organizations. A temporary Google … Read more → GIS Day
In cooperation with the Government of Timor-Leste, I co-chaired the country’s Geographic Information Group (GIG) between 2008-2010. The GIG was used as a forum for all government bodies and international organizations using spatial information and data for development projects to come together to share information, challenges, and experiences. One of the key activities the GIG accomplished in 2009 was to organize a one-week event to celebrate GIS Day and to showcase … Read more → Jaco – and it's not about Michael…
Just got back from Jaco Island… at the eastern end of Timor-Leste. It’s a long ride to get out to the point (about 6 hours on some very questionable roads), but well worth the effort. The scenery changes (i.e. it’s really dry since it’s the dry season) and there is a definite shortage of civilization/people… The east is where you’ll also find the traditional Timorese spirit house … Read more → Website for The Cluster System in Timor-Leste
This collaborative website was developed for the humanitarian community in Timor-Leste to support their work and information exchange for coordination relief and response operations. One of the main issues from coordinating various United Nations organizations involved in humanitarian relief was understanding what each other were doing to make relief efforts more effective and efficient. This site was created as part of a request by the humanitarian coordination unit and the humanitarian … Read more → Greek Photos
I’ve just uploaded some photos from the Timor-Leste -> Bangkok -> Athens -> Santorini trip… You can check them out here. In case you haven’t read about why I went to Greece, you kind find the short blurb in my last post. Wedding in Santorini
Just finishing up on our trip to Greece to attend my cousin’s wedding in Santorini…. I think I’ve had enough souvlaki, gyros, and greek salad for a life-time. The trip has had it’s ups and downs – the nauseous boat cruise, the historic Greek ruins, and the olive oil. But the highlight was definitely seeing my cousin get married overlooking a beautiful sunset on the volcanic island of Santorini… … Read more → The Humanitarian and Recovery Update
In addition to designing the HR Update logo, I also edited and designed the layout and publishing of the newsletter. The quarterly newsletter on humanitarian, disaster preparedness and recovery activities in Timor-Leste highlighted current and potential humanitarian conditions in the country, which include the issues of food security, internally displaced people’s resettlement, housing, flooding, and contingency planning. You can find the three issues of the Humanitarian and Recovery Update here. HR Update Logo
This logo was designed for a quarterly newsletter on the humanitarian and recovery situation in Timor-Leste. The newsletter was produced on behalf of the humanitarian coordinator in the country. The logo is simple in design to highlight the topic of the newsletter, making it easy to refer to it (i.e. “The HR update”). Addiction to technology vs. common sense
One thing about Timor is that there isn’t that sense of technology addiction that has been plaguing the rest of the world… from Blackberry’s, iPhones, to other gadgets that seen to distract people from reality, there isn’t much of that in Timor. Of course, there are the technophiles who just loved to keep up-to-date on things, but outside of the UN, and other office’s, basic internet connection is very limited so … Read more → Cast away the computer – a relief at least for a little whileWe’re sooo dependent on electronic communications today, it’s a little scary. Have you ever tried not emailing or surfing the internet for more than one day? How does it feel? Not only are we dependent on computers and internet for our daily life (i.e. searching or buying stuff, reading the news, connecting with people via email, facebook, etc.), but our lives are unfortunately connected to a computer in one form or another. And, if these computers/electronics fails, we’re screwed. My computer … Read more → Comforts cost
Cost of living in Timor-Leste is expensive. The currency is US Dollars, but coins are Timorese – it’s a weird combination. A typical meal in a restaurant can range from USD$5-20, and that’s in the “expat” types of places. In typical Indonesian or Timorese-style restaurant that serves usually serves pre-made buffet-style food, the price drops drastically to about USD$1-5… I’ve even heard that meals could cost as little as USD$0.50! But overall, … Read more → Houses at Risk from Flooding
This map was created to provide an overall analysis of the flood vulnerability of areas in Timor-Leste, as part of an assessment prior to the rainy season in the country. The map was developed to support the humanitarian response as well as to help develop contingency plans by the United Nations and emergency preparedness measures to support the Government of Timor-Leste. The spatial and statistical data used was from national statistics … Read more → After 5 minutes, can you trust your gut?
It’s a weird feeling… not the conjunctivitis I caught in late May, but you know the one; where within 5 minutes of meeting someone you either like them or not. There’s not too much of a problem if you like them because you can just continue talking to them, trading stories, exchanging ideas or cracking jokes. But, it’s when you don’t like them after 5 minutes and you still have to … Read more → Seasons are changing and there’s excitement in the air.
Winter is coming. The days are shortening and the nights are cool… There’s a strange feeling in the air where people seem more relaxed and will be enjoying the season. Maybe it’s because on May 20 the Timorese celebrated their independence day and everyone was in good spirits. Not much happens in Dili, and much less in the rest of the country, so when May 20 came around, people took to the streets to … Read more → Bumped By Beer
Had dinner last night with some UN people, and they talked about taking the UN helicopter to Oecusse, the lone enclave/district of Timor-Leste surrounded by Indonesia. The only way in and out is by a) driving 8 hours through Indonesia, b) taking a 12-hour broken down ferry, or c) taking a 45-minute helicopter ride along the coast. The last option is usually only for the UN, but even inside … Read more → Watch your step.
April 22 is Earth Day. From last month’s EarthHour to this month’s Earth Day, there seems to be a lot of events on the environment. I get HBO, and even they are advertising about Earth Day. From what I saw, they’re going to be showing the “11th Hour“, a 2007 movie about looking at the state of the global environment and practical solutions … Read more → Non Formal Education in Oecusse
In preparation for a planning meeting with one of the poorest districts in Timor-Leste, this compilation was created to highlight the education issues in the district. The statistics were drawn from a database the Ministry of Education was maintaining. One of the areas that the government wanted to look into was non-formal education since the education sector required both formal and non-formal education opportunities, particularly in this isolated district. A-T-A-U-R-O
An hour and a half by speed boat (or a 2+ hour ferry ride) north of Dili brings you to Atauro Island. The island can literally be seen from the shores of Dili, yet the island is miles away in terms of activities and development. If the hustle and bustle of Dili is like a rabbit, Atauro Island is like a slug. People on the island take … Read more → Human Resources
Working with the Ministry of Education and UNIFEM in Timor-Leste, I developed a series of infographics to showcase the education statistics the government was collecting as part of a gender assessment. In this graphic, the idea was to highlight the difference between male and female staff in the Ministry to understand the gender balance in the government and potentially look at creating opportunities for both men and women to work in … Read more → Student Enrollment
In March/April 2009, I was approached by UNIFEM and the Ministry of Education in Timor-Leste to help them visualize statistics for a gender assessment of the education system in the country. At the time there was a big project to collect and organize stats on education to help the government develop a strategic plan to educate girls and boys in this newly emerging country. We worked to get the most basic … Read more → Savouring Singapore
This is the longest time I’ve spent in Singapore. Come next Tuesday, I’ll have been here for 2 weeks. Not that I can complain, it’s a spectacularly clean city/nation with plenty to eat and see, and is one of the most development countries in the world – this is a big contrast coming from the extreme opposite end where Timor is … Read more → Breathing in Baucau
Had a chance to get out of Dili last weekend and visit the second largest city in Timor-Leste. Compared to Dili, Baucau is a sleepy town about 120km east of the capital city. From what we saw, there isn’t much going on in the town, so you can guess how it is in even smaller towns in the country. Having a car helps in this country, and just a … Read more → Let’s Go Green & Get CreativeThere was a time when it wasn’t cool to recycle (maybe it still isn’t for a lot of people) – It takes too much time or too much effort. But really, isn’t it something small that you can do to help out the environment, because in the end, pollution, loss of biodiversity, climate change, lack of clean water, etc. eventually affects us all. Before you click away from reading this, I’m not trying to convince you to give up your living … Read more → Anymore 'afters' and there won't be a 'now'
The last month has been a whirlwind of craziness… first I was in Canada for about 3 weeks in January after finishing my job in Timor-Leste. It was a welcome break with all the snow that fell – I haven’t seen a “real” winter in about 3 years. But even 3 weeks went by quickly and the next thing I knew, I was interviewed for two jobs and found … Read more → |
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