Afghanistan's Great App Escape

OZY

Security issues shut down businesses in the Western world, but Afghans are increasingly using technology to keep work going. An explosive boom in mobile phone usage and in apps is shaping the way people communicate, stay safe, keep informed and fill governance voids. This fast growth has spawned some concerns within the Afghan government over the possibility of terrorists also using technology. But the wide support these web-based platforms tailored to Afghanistan’s specific needs enjoy has stymied government efforts to overregulate the internet.

Twila LaMarMarch 1, 2018Afghanistan, Tim ReceveurComment

Simple Tools Offer Path Out of Conflict

SciDevNet

Divisions between the people on either side of the Sudan-South Sudan border run deep. South Sudan’s declaration of independence in 2011 has yet to end the decades-long conflict between Misseriya Muslims and Dinka Christians.

Twila LaMarJuly 13, 2016Tim Receveur, PTX, media, South Sudan, OSRx, Iraq Comment

The Little #Hashtag That Changed the World

Voice of America (VOA)

You might not give much thought to the hashtag – that little # symbol you sprinkle between your daily tweets and online messages. But what started as a tool to classify topics and relevant conversations has now become a rallying cry for sociopolitical action.

Kelly HoyeOctober 30, 2015Tim Receveur, social media, peacetechComment

Maker Pioneers From Iraq Visit MIT Campus

MIT - The Tech Online

Three Iraqi technologists who founded the first makerspace in Basra, Iraq visited MIT on Monday and Tuesday to meet with various labs and student groups as part of a tour hosted by the Media Lab and the Undergraduate Association Innovation Committee.

Kelly HoyeOctober 1, 2015Tim Receveur, Iraq, PTXComment

PeaceTech Lab Believes Gear, Gadgets, and Know-how Can Sow Peace Amid Conflict

ZDNet

Can technology drive positive change in conflict areas? The founders of PeaceTech Lab, an organization created by the U.S. Institute of Peace and spun off as a separate entity earlier this year, certainly think so. This weekend they're at Maker Faire in NYC celebrating the achievements of an Iraqi man who embodies that ethos.

Kelly HoyeSeptember 26, 2015Iraq, PTX, Hackerspace, Tim Receveur, peacetech

Mapping Early Warning and Early Response Systems in one Nigerian state

Build Up

Anyone who follows events in Nigeria understands that the conflict environment is complex. Extremist violence affects the northeastern part of the country and increasingly the Middle Belt as well. In the Niger Delta, conflict dynamics are complicated by economic interests and community demands related to oil extraction. Across Nigeria, inter-communal conflicts are fueled by access to resources and complicated by issues of ethnic or religious identity.

Kelly HoyeMay 20, 2015Tim Receveur, mapping, technology, NigeriaComment