How Campus California is helping Create Development

IICD Michigan is funded through school fees paid by the participants, fundraising campaigns and grants from other organizations and companies. Campus California, a major supporter of IICD is a non-profit organization that is raising funds through running two clothing collections, in California in the San Francisco Bay Area and in Arizona’s Phoenix metro area. Part of the proceeds for the sales of collected clothing are donated to IICD and other organizations working towards sustainable development.Donations received from Campus California have meant we can increase the quality of the educational programs we offer. We will also be starting a new teacher training program in 2012, addressing the pressing need for more teachers in our public and other schools. Our new curriculum will be specifically geared towards preparing teachers to educate young people and others to face the challenges and demands of living in a rapidly changing world.  IICD Michigan appreciates very much these donations from Campus California.The goal of Campus California is “to do good for people, nature, and all its beings”. Running a clothing collection program has many benefits for people and the environment. Millions of pounds of textiles annually are kept out of the landfills and instead are resold to be worn again or recycled. This saves huge amounts of water, fertilizer and other chemical products that would be needed to produce new clothing. Sustainable and decent paying jobs are created in the process as well, and any surplus generated by the sales of collected textiles supports many different charitable causes. Check out Campus California's web site: www.campus-california.org

Meeting former president of Mozambique - Joaquim Chissano

This October 20th, the volunteers and staff of IICD had an opportunity to meet the former president of Mozambique and Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for LRA-affected areas, Joaquim Chissano, at the Wayne State University, in Detroit.

Brief Story: Joaquim Chissano represented the FRELIMO in the 60’s, He went on to fight in the Mozambican War of Independence against the Portuguese colonial government. He became president in 1986 when Samora Machel's presidential aircraft crashed in mountainous terrain in South Africa. On 4 December 2006, the United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed Chissano the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General to Northern Uganda and Southern Sudan, in an effort to bring about a comprehensive political solution to the ongoing conflict with the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA). In 2007 President Chissano received the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership to honor his commitment to a just and fair majority rule.

On his speech, Chissano talked about the importance of democracy during the Mozambican and African History and how much is important to develop it in the society as an ongoing process. One of the most important moments was when the ex-president explained that his government was to promote the peace and not the war. “We have to try everything to find a peaceful solution”, he said. Peace must be inside the villages and inside the family houses too, giving an example about the democratic and peace process. He also cited ADPP and Humana People to People as an example of an international organization that has helped in developing the democratic process in Mozambique. In his words: “…a good example of those who helped us to start our march towards democracy”.

The panel discussion was one component of a three-day examination of the status and future of democracy in Africa featuring Joaquim Chissano.  In 2007 President Chissano received the Ibrahim Prize for Achievement in African Leadership to honor his commitment to a just and fair majority rule.