World Student Community for Sustainable Development

A column from Nour T. Dar Tawil

We are living in the aftermath of hurricane Katrina. Katrina unleashed its mighty power against the United States South Eastern coast, bringing devastation as never seen before. It also brought disaster to thousands of people who were unable to evacuate to safer areas inland. The hurricane and its consequences brought support for the United States from all around the world, including the Palestinian refugees, in a gesture to the mighty world power that found itself stranded as the refugees of the Louisiana flooded into streets.¦

I am bringing the issue of Hurricane Katrina, not to analyze the scientific precursors that brought about this dramatic change to the World climate, nor to identify the probabilities for similar events to take place in the future. I simply want to put forward the following argument: that in the world’s first power, social divisions exist, while the rest of the world is still struggling to close the very widening gap between rich and poor. We are talking about the differences present inside each country on its own; as opposed to the north – south rift. An article for the British Guardian by Polly Toynbee first brought my attention to the issue. The writer discussed the differences present between the different sectors of society and brought as proof worrying statistics about the area of central London, indicating that if it were to go through the same conditions as was seen in New Orleans, the city would not have come off any better. The main point of argument being that there is a large underprivileged population that will be unable to bear the costs of relocating to other areas; and thus remain developmentally disadvantaged.

Development is not specific to any particular population. Everybody looks to prosperity and tries to achieve it. The problem with available development models is that they are usually the result of uninformed decisions that result from a quick consultation visit. There is no contact with the affected populations, nor an honest attempt to identify the real causes of the problem. Development organizations are changing their modus operendi to use methods better suited for problem identification and solving.

Development success is not to be measured using the available economic indicators, as these do not reflect actual figures. There needs to be a system to measure the varying abilities of communities within one society in a manner that reflects truly their economic situation. This will direct aid to those who need it most and conduct evaluations of validity of aid to these sectors. The reality of development work lies in understanding the true and real factors that impact one society through extensive relations building with grassroots bodies and the local population. The first hand experience is so valuable that it results in formulating policies that hit the nerve and encourage community participation and support to aid efforts. Another level of engagement within a formulated policy approach is the relation with government bodies and the wider civil society organizations. Working with government bodies give aid a further push, and enables wider systems of support through utilization of government resources. Engaging civil society organizations gives way to exchanging experiences and adapting successful models to other communities. By integrating efforts of the aforementioned systems, aid could be maximized and larger populations would benefit. Any failure in any part of the triangle would lead to a catastrophe and waste of valuable resources. It will also have a direct long term impact on affected populations.

In conclusion of this first article for the Vision Journal, I would like to emphasize the importance of sharing knowledge about activities that have a global character and could be adapted to other areas. In this sense, we need close collaboration between development organizations from around the world, something which is becoming a reality due to the advances in technology and communications, and local development initiatives. Yet at the same time, this advantage should not become a burden for those who do not own it, or where the infrastructure is unsupported. The real essence to achieving global prosperity is considering everybody as equal and deserving of the best of chances.