Drop the Debt, Invest in People Tour

International Activists Address Global Debt Crisis:
Activists Draw Links Between Debt and Global Poverty and Women's Lives

WHAT: Local students learn from international activists from Kenya and Indonesia how to raise awareness of the debt crisis and why 100% debt cancellation is needed for all impoverished countries in order to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.

WHO: Florida Atlantic University’s Women’s Studies Graduate Student Association & College Democrats, the UN Millennium Campaign and Jubilee USA Network

WHERE: Florida Atlantic University (Boca Raton) University Center ¬ Live Oak Room

WHEN: Thursday, October 20, 2005 at 7:00pm

FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC


Speaker Biographies


Wahu Kaara is the Millennium Development Goals campaign program coordinator at the All Africa Council of Churches in Nairobi, Kenya. Ms. Kaara is the former director of the Kenya Debt Relief Network where she led campaigns for debt cancellation and economic justice. A 2005 Nobel Peace Prize Nominee, Ms. Kaara has written extensively on the problems of global poverty and economic injustice and has been a featured speaker at the World Social Forum. Ms. Kaara is a teacher by profession and has taught History and Kiswahili language in various high schools in Kenya. Ms. Kaara retired from teaching in the 1990s to concentrate more on human rights, governance and gender issues. She has a long history in building solidarity locally, continentally and globally for economic and social justice. Kenya, though impoverished and heavily indebted, has been excluded from the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries Initiative and thus will not benefit from the recent G-8 agreement on debt cancellation.


Kusfiardi Ardi St. Majo Endah is the Coordinator of the Anti-Debt Coalition (KAU or Koalisi Anti Utang) in Jakarta, Indonesia. Founded in 1999, KAU is a network of trade unions, religious groups, womens’ organizations, farmers, fisherfolk and students whose mission is to free Indonesia from dependency on foreign debt and to stop harmful economic conditions imposed by creditors on Indonesia¹s economy. KAU engages in public education, serves as an information clearinghouse on Indonesia’s debt, publishes policy analyses, advocates with the Indonesian parliament, and organizes popular mobilizations. Kusifiardi has led recent campaigns by KAU to highlight the need for debt cancellation for Indonesia in light of the December 2004 Tsunami which was so destructive to the Aceh region of Indonesia. Kusifiardi is also a member of Jubilee South and speaks on the odious nature of Indonesia¹s debt dating to the era of the Suharto dictatorship. Indonesia is an impoverished country that is not part of the IMF/World Bank’s HIPC Initiative, and thus did not benefit from debt cancellation as part of the 2005 G-8 deal on debt cancellation.

THINKING OUTSIDE THE VOX: FAU LAUNCHES STORYTELLING SLAMS

Get involved and have fun!

One of the hottest tickets in New York City has taken on a Florida flavor: the storytelling slam. VOX, a new offering from Florida Atlantic University's School of the Arts, is based on the more familiar concept of the poetry slam, a friendly competition of non-professionals who have something--often quite eloquent and entertaining--to say.

The first monthly event takes place Sunday, October 23, 8:30 p.m., at Dada Restaurant, 52 N. Swinton Avenue, one block north of Atlantic Avenue in Delray Beach. Future slams are scheduled at venues throughout South Florida, including nightclubs, shops, bookstores, private homes, and other locations. In addition, a young people's version will take place in libraries and community centers.

At a VOX event, anyone can sign up for a five-to-seven-minute performance slot. Judges from the audience rank the stories on a scale from 1 to 10. At the end of the evening, the winning storyteller and first-runner-up win $50 and $25 respectively in cash, gift certificates or other prizes.

VOX is modeled on storytelling slams held by the Moth, a highly successful New York City venture that is spawning similar events throughout the country. In the FAU approach, the emphasis is on participation from a diverse range of communities. VOX stands for vox populi, Latin for "voice of the people."

"VOX is great entertainment," says Susan Reilly, chair of the Department of Communication. "Everybody loves a good story. But equally important, it's about community engagement. It makes the point that everybody's story is valuable, that in a democracy, every voice must be heard."

Adds George Sparks, director of the School of the Arts, "I see VOX taking its place among the finest offerings of the School of the Arts. We value the contributions not only of professional performers, but also of the artists all around us: our neighbors, family and friends."

VOX is a program of The South Florida Storytelling Project, directed by Caren S. Neile, in the Department of Communication at FAU's College of Arts & Letters. Admission is free of charge. For more information, including slam rules and requests to host a VOX event in your location, call 561-297-3850 or e-mail cneile@fau.edu.

BACKGROUND

VOX: The Storytelling Slam as Creative Strategy
for Social Action

It is no accident of etymology that communication and community share a common root. After all, for Aristotle, a state is a community bonded by the communication of the various perspectives of its members.

As one of the oldest forms of communication, storytelling holds a privileged position in the maintenance and regeneration of community. This is due to at least three factors: (1) Since earliest times, the storyteller has been the community's sacred repository of history, genealogy, and the primary tools of acculturation, (2) narrative thought is a reflection and expression of ethos, and (3) folklore represents the confluence of communal tradition and individual innovation.

With this in mind, VOX takes its place as a new storytelling initiative of the Department of Communication and School of the Arts at Florida Atlantic University. It is the latest offering in a growing movement in storytelling, the public slam, or friendly performance competition. The storytelling slam was brought to national prominence by the Moth, a highly successful New York City-based organization now in its seventh year.

Unlike the Moth, however, which tends to showcase young, middle class artists and performers, VOX, short for Vox Populi, is based not only on the concept of personal artistic expression, but also on community engagement and participatory democracy. By sharing the stories of their lives, a broad spectrum of the public will take a creative role in the life of the community, whether by maintaining the status quo or through the expression of subversive ideas. In either case, VOX underscores the notion that speaking truth to power begins, ultimately, not only with the discovery of one's voice, but also with the recognition that we all have something to say.



VOX STORYTELLING SLAM RULES

1) Know your time. Stories must be five-to-seven minutes long. You will get a six-minute warning. After seven minutes, you will be asked to leave the stage.

2) Know your audience. In the adult slams, we welcome G, PG, and R-rated stories, as long as they are told with some measure of taste and dignity. Think primetime network TV (except more entertaining).

3) Arrive early. But don't worry: If you miss your chance to sign up for a slot one night, you will have more opportunities in the future.

4) Practice your story in front of others. We want our performers to be comfortable on stage and well-rehearsed.

5) Do not memorize your story. Storytelling is not like theater. Know your story well, but don't learn it word-for-word.

6) Make sure it's a story. A story has a beginning, middle and end. It takes place at a particular time and place, with specific characters, dialogue and plot. Your story can be humorous, sad, exciting, poignant or something in between. But it must be (more or less) true.

7) Consider taking a storytelling class or workshop. This is not mandatory for participation, but will give you valuable insights and experience.

8) Ask us. If you have any questions about your story, storytelling classes or VOX in general, e-mail cneile@fau.edu or call 561-297-0042.

******9) Register. Please let us know ahead of time that you wish to participate. E-mail cneile@fau.edu or call 561-297-0042.

Shout Out! Student Accomplishments

Shout Out!

Are you delivering a paper at a conference? Having an Art Showing? Having a Paper Published? Let us know so we can post your success and honors here for all to know!

Fall Graduate Workshops

Workshops for November/December 2005
Fri., Nov. 18th, 3 pm – 4 pm

Learn how to find employment opportunities outside of higher education and how to market your Masters or Ph.D. degree and your transferable skills to employers.


Tues., Nov. 15th, 3 pm – 4 pm

If you’re applying for a faculty, teaching, research, or postdoctoral position, most likely you will be asked to submit a CV. Learn how to design & tailor your CV for particular positions and institutions.


Wed., Nov. 16th, 3 pm – 4 pm

The workshop provides an overview of the common components of higher education applications: cover letters, teaching portfolios, statements of research interests, and dissertation abstracts.

Thurs., Nov. 17th, 3 pm – 4 pm & Thurs., Dec. 1st, 11 am – 12 pm

The workshop describes screening and on-campus interviews, provides a handout on sample academic interview questions, and offers insight into negotiating multiple salary components.


You MUST register to attend the workshops.
All workshops will be held in the Career Development Center, Boca Campus, SU 220. To register, visit www.cdc.fau.edu and click on the “Calendar of Events.” You can register on-line 24/7 by clicking on the title of the workshop of interest. If you have questions regarding these workshops and/or graduate student career services, contact Jennifer Blythe (jblythe@fau.edu & (561) 297-3533).

Announcing the Conference Theme for 2006!

Conference theme has been voted on and the tallies are in! The Comparative Studies 2006 conference will be: “The Arts, Culture and Society : Intersections of Class, race and gender.”

Dates: Friday and Saturday, February 24-25, 2006.

How do the intersections of race, class, and gender inform historical, sociological, linguistic, literary, and media studies? This conference will provide avenues of discussion relating to ethnic, class and sexual identity, collective consciousness, collective action, as well as the contribution that academic research can bring to such issues.

True to its interdisciplinary nature, PISA will welcome speakers from the academy as well as community activists and journalists. The goal of this conference would be the creation of a dialogue toward the discovery and promotion of new insights on how definitions of race, class, and gender affect academic and public discourse.

The conference activities will also include performance(s) by students in the program at/after the opening reception on Friday and an exhibit of student art (program and College) relating to theme/panels of conference.

Because we also had very strong showings for the Humor, Education and the Protesting Faces of War categories, we have decided to add these themes under the umbrella of the main conference theme. Thus, we will incorporate panels that look at intersections of Class, Race and Gender within:

a) Education and the Community
b) Framing War and Protest
c) Humor and Resistance

Thanks to all who voted and offered feedback. More information will be forthcoming!
PISA