Global Pulse 2010 – A 3 day online forum for international development

Today marks the first day of Global Pulse 2010. From Monday March 29th  to Wednesday March 31st 2010, the U.S. Agency for International Development is partnering with the U.S. government’s departments of state, education, commerce, health and human services to bring you an online collaboration event unlike any other! The U.S. Government wants to engage, and partner, with the international community in a meaningful way. Everyone can join the conversation which will hopefully help to shape the future.

As self-described on their website:

“Global Pulse 2010 is a 3-day, online collaboration event, that will bring together individual socially-engaged participants and organizations from around the world.

As the name implies, the event will take the pulse of thousands of participants on key issues facing communities around the world. Global Pulse 2010 will connect participants who are champions for the same social issues to build new, or strengthen existing relationships, and inform U.S. foreign assistance and diplomatic strategies on major themes and ideas that emerge across the span of the event.”

*This event is free, and open to everyone who feels that they have something to contribute to the event. Other bloggers, please note – they have specific rules in place for blogging about the event, which can be read in the rules when you sign up.

– Sarah Topps (See you on the forums!)

Flu Pandemic

Since the H1N1 virus first emerged, panic about the possibility of a global flu pandemic has subsided substantially. It seems that while the virus may be moving fast enough to kill people, it is not moving fast enough to scare them. However, a press report released today said that this outbreak could infect up to 2 billion people – one third of humanity!

The World Health Organization raised their estimation of the threat of a widespread pandemic to phase 5 on April 29th, but more recently a spokesperson has mentioned the possibility that it will go to phase 6 – the highest level of threat, indicating a widespread outbreak in communities in at least two WHO regions globally.

Interestingly, while browsing the available information on what exactly we would do if a full-blown pandemic were to erupt, I found startlingly little concrete information and almost no one who said they would actually be in charge during such an event. Would it be the local governments? The state? The UN or the WHO? The Red Cross perhaps? No one really seems to know.

I also came across a talk given at TED by Laurie Garrett in 2007 in response to the outbreak of Avian Bird Flu, which is shown below. It is quite a riveting 20 minute video and she really covers, or at least asks, all of the questions and common answers that we would find ourselves giving if a flu pandemic were to occur.

– Sarah Topps