Juliana Rincon is video editor of Global Voices, which monitors citizen media in the developing world. Thomson Reuters is not responsible for the content of this post — the views are the author’s alone.

On May 2nd, 2008, Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar (Burma), generating massive damage and tens of thousands dead or missing. The situation would be considered critical for any country. However, the military government or “junta” has restricted the entrance of aid by requiring all donations to pass through them. The junta has also set up guidelines for journalists on how to report on the cyclone, restricting their communications, particularly on showing dead bodies or reporting about insufficient aid for victims, according to Burma News, a local online news source.

In spite of these restrictions on people carrying cameras and taking pictures, some have gone out to record the extent of the damage. There is anger over the failure of authorities to evacuate the affected villages, even when they were allegedly aware of the impending cyclone and the possible devastation it could cause. The following images, uploaded by YouTube user aungsayapyi may affect sensitive people: they are very graphic, include dead bodies and should be viewed with discretion and an adult’s consent:

YouTube user AfterNargisYgn has been uploading a multi-part series of videos featuring images of the effects of the Cyclone in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city, previously known as Rangoon. People removing downed trees, wading through waters and drying their mattresses, clothing and in general trying to clean up and move on.

YouTube user Burma4u uploaded a video of the aftermath in Latbutta, with Cyclone Nargis’ victims crowded in refugee shelters, trying to sleep as they mull over what will happen to them in the future.

An insightful video about the Burmese people’s future has come from myochitmyanmar, another YouTube user who has uploaded a video with some English subtitles, interviewing Laputta survivors and refugees on their current situation. Meanwhile, a picture on Burma News shows what looks like Red Cross aid, which is supposed to be for Cyclone refugees, being sold on the streets.

The following video, also from aungsayapyi shows how people are experiencing life in the refugee camps with donations from private donations, and a Military General’s arrival, carrying promises instead of clothing, food or water. They proceed to tell refugees that the people who died, died because of bad karma, and that they should consider themselves lucky to be alive. They give some recommendations about grouping themselves according to villages and then leave. It has been subtitled in English for a better understanding of the events:

In the YouTube Blog they’ve also highlighted the video community’s efforts to help Myanmar and provide aid, and they highlight both news networks and private initiatives that are documenting the cyclone and letting the world know what is going on in this small Southeast Asian country. For example, Nightwatcher1982 of the Netherlands has promised that for every video response to his video he gets, he will donate $5 to the Red Cross, and if it’s a good video, he’ll donate $10:

Global Voices Online has been providing extensive coverage of the disaster, aggregating information from different citizen media sources in the region on what is happening with food aid, water and the refugee situation as death tolls continue to rise. Please don’t hesitate to go over to our Special Myanmar Cyclone Coverage page and read the posts that the team of volunteer authors have been writing with translations of Burmese blogs giving first-hand accounts of life in Myanmar right now. You can also follow our Myanmar feed on twitter.

There will also be a global blog action day on behalf of the Burmese victims on May 17th, when people are asked to tell others about the crisis in Myanmar, and some are already organizing fundraisers and events.

Juliana Rincon is video editor of Global Voices, which monitors citizen media in the developing world. Thomson Reuters is not responsible for the content of this post — the views are the author’s alone.

Pangea Day took place Saturday, and people from different parts of the world got together to watch movies and to be a part of a worldwide event in which movies, speakers and music showed us a bit of life on the other side of the globe, uniting people from all walks of life. It also included a mobile video contest with an international lineup of winners.

From Kigali in Rwanda, one of the 5 main screening locations, a slide-show of photographs from the event uploaded on OVI, the video and image platform used to promote PangeaDay content:

From Haifa in Israel, another slide-show of the gathering that watched the event near the Caesarea Port:

During the event, the friends of Pangea website had live streaming feeds from different places in the world including US, Colombia, Italy, Japan, New Zealand. Other sites, like the Colombian Medellín PangeaDay [es]  had their own website where liveblogging, streaming video and photographs were posted during the event. Nokia, a PangeaDay partner, hosted the 2008 Nokia Mobile Filmmaking Awards Contest and the five finalists were flown into one of the five different screening locations.

You can view the winning videos at this pangeaday OVI site. The finalists were: Rounds all around us by kayoom in India, smile by goofylopez in Indonesia, amazing rainbows! Shot and Edited with my Nokia 93 by ruperthowe in the United Kingdom, The Game -South African Children having fun in a Video Games Room by ecachucho and Clouds Running by pierba in Italy.

The Grand Prize winner on the Pangea/Nokia OVI website is ecachucho. For his video on South African children playing arcade games he won a trip to the Rwandan Gorilla Reserve, together with a full crew to help record his trip.

David Howell from David Howell Studios presented the winner of the 2008 Nokia Mobile Filmmaking Award with a Nokia N82 and accessories. 

The winner, Amazing Rainbows by Rupert, was chosen because it portrayed best the spirit of the mobile video: recording those once in a lifetime moments that  never repeat themselves.

Juliana Rincon is video editor of Global Voices, which monitors citizen media in the developing world. Thomson Reuters is not responsible for the content of this post — the views are the author’s alone.

Reasons not to Overeat by BreezeDebris

The international food shortage and crisis is doing its rounds on the blogosphere, and videos are no exception. From Haiti: people eating dirt to survive, and a plan to help feed hungry Haitian children. Haiti is the poorest country in the American continent, and hunger has been an important issue since before this crisis took to the headlines.

On YouTube toddgsapp shows us a video of the process by which a family makes mud cakes, not only to eat themselves, but also to sell. These dirt cookies or mud cakes are made out of dirt, shortening and salt, and are sometimes their only means of sustenance.

Food for thought, isn’t it?

lovinitwithhim uploaded a video on the Haitian Food crisis for Kids Against Hunger you can see here.

With the following video by mfkhaiti for Meds and Food for Kids (MFK) in Haiti we are given an insight into an NGO seeking and testing a possible solution for malnutrition in children, based on a high energy peanut butter product that is ready to use and to be given to the children. Said to contain peanuts, powdered milk, sugar, oil, vitamins and minerals, it is produced locally using Haitian peanuts harvested from local farmers and all the other ingredients are purchased locally, helping the economy. According to MFK, it costs $68 for a full dosage of the ready to use therapeutic food, or Medikal Mamba as it is known locally, to be given to a child and bring them back to life. Following, the first of three videos on their peanut butter product to help cure malnutrition in children.

Juliana Rincon is video editor of Global Voices, which monitors citizen media in the developing world, Thomson Reuters is not responsible for the content — the views are the author’s alone.

On May 10th 2008 at 18:00 GMT, 24 films will be broadcast during a 4 hour event. What makes this different is that this event, PangeaDay will be broadcast from six locations worldwide in seven different languages to be viewed through internet, television or cellphones with one unique purpose: to make each other know about the lives of others and focus on what makes us similar, instead of what makes us different and let us work together towards peace. This initiative came from Egyptian filmmaker Jehane Noujaim’s wish. As a TED Prize winner she was granted a wish in addition to a $100 000 USD award. PangeaDay is her wish, to change the world and create a day in which people of the world could come together through film. Her 2006 acceptance speech can be found here.

Because PangeaDay is about bringing people together, an invitation was made for audiences to upload their own videos on the pangeaday video channel where you can view the 1037 videos people uploaded in reply.

As an example, one of the uploaded videos is about an Art student in Tanzania, telling the story of his day to day life and how he wants to teach homeless kids about art. Following, the story of Chado by jamesstephenbrown:

The logistics of PangeaDay are awe-inspiring: from Cairo, Kigali, London, Los Angeles, Mumbai and Rio de Janeiro, films, live music and speakers will come together to inspire the whole world. The films chosen have been selected from more than 25000 films from over 100 hundred countries.These movies all share some characteristics such as being able to inspire, transform and enabling us to experience life through another’s eyes. Queen Noor of Jordan, will be one of the speakers, along with musician and activist Bob Geldorf, Christiane Amanpour from CNN and the Iranian rock group Hypernova. While at these locations people will be getting together, all around the world parties and groups of friends can sign up and show that they will be tuned in: you can attend an open event in your hometown or even host your own.

However, Pangea Day isn’t just about getting together during 4 hours. The idea is for the event to get people inspired, talking and making changes. It has also allowed others to participate not only as viewers. Through partner organization Nokia, aspiring filmmakers in different locations throughout the world have been given video enabled mobile devices to some people in rural areas, refugee camps, and film schools, so they too can portray their stories. People can also upload their own videos for a chance to win a Nokia N95 8GB mobile device. This partnership brings us a Myanmar refugee in India recording children’s laughter, an Iranian family in a refugee camp in Afghanistan recording their idea of Hope, and an Indian in Bangalore filming the cutting down of Banyan trees… and children planting new trees. You can view these and other videos on this page.

So there are many different ways to participate. Don’t miss the chance to be a part of this and make sure to tell others and spread the word.