24 July 2008 Newsletter
STUFF HAPPENING AT JUST FOCUS
Just Focus is now live on both Bebo, Myspace and Facebook. If you’re a member of any of these sites, please add Just Focus as your friend. It’ll go a long way to spreading the word about what we do and what we have to offer! The sites are as follows:
Myspace:
www.myspace.com/justfocusnz
Facebook:
- the Just Focus group
- the Just Focus page
RECENT NEWS AND EVENTS
Radovan Karadzic was arrested Monday in a raid in Serbia that ended a 13-year hunt. He was one of the world’s most wanted war criminals for his part in the massacre of nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys in Srebrenica in 1995. Serge Brammertz, the prosecutor of the United Nations war crimes tribunal in The Hague, hailed the arrest as an important step in bringing to justice one of the architects of Europe’s worst massacre since World War II. More here.
President Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe and his bitter rival, opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai, shook hands for the first time in a decade Monday, agreeing to settle the country’s violent political crisis. The handshake in Harare, the Zimbabwean capital, came after 120 opposition activists were killed in recent months in state-sponsored violence, thousands were jailed and tens of thousands of opposition supporters were driven from their homes. The framework for talks between the two men allows two weeks to reach a viable solution to the crisis, despite the deep-seated differences between the sides. More here.
After Senator Barack Obama’s Monday meeting with Iraqi leaders and American military commanders, the Iraqi government left little doubt that it favors a withdrawal plan for American combat troops similar to what Senator Obama has proposed. More here.
World Youth Day 2008, 
a week of celebrations held by the Catholic Church, has officially ended this week. This years celebrations took place in Sydney, culminating in the World Youth Day mass on Sunday with an estimated 400,000 people packed into Randwick Racecourse - the largest single gathering in the Australia’s history. Over the course of the week the Pope gave several speeches, including an historic apology from the pope for a series of child sex abuse incidents by his Catholic clergy in Australia. A few different perspectives on the event here.
UPCOMING EVENTS/ACTIONS FOR YOU TO BE PART OF
TWO $100 MUSIC VOUCHERS UP FOR GRABS!
Deadline for designs: Friday August 29th
Are you addicted to Myspace or Bebo? Are you creative? Then we have some good news for you!
Just Focus is now live on both Bebo and Myspace, but the staff here don’t have the talent or time to make the pages look pretty. That’s where we need your help! We need some talented young people to make the Just Focus pages on Myspace and Bebo look flash. The best-looking designs that reflect the values of Just Focus will each win a $100 music voucher!
If you are keen to give it a go, email will@justfocus.org.nz for more info on what you’ll need to do first. We’ll send you a designers brief and some images to get you started. The deadline for designs to be in to the Just Focus team is August 29th.
Check out the Just Focus sites to see what state they’re in at the moment.. there’s a lot of room for improvement!
www.bebo.com/JustFocusNZ
www.myspace.com/justfocusnz
SHIP FOR WORLD YOUTH - DON’T MISS THE BOAT!
Deadline for applications: 5pm Wednesday 6 August 2008
The Ship for World Youth is a unique international youth exchange programme run and sponsored by the Cabinet Office of the Government of Japan. Approximately 140 foreign young people from 12 countries and 120 young people from Japan live together on board the ship for 42 days and broaden their perspectives through various seminars, sports events and workshops.
Young people between the ages of 18-30 are invited to apply for a placement on the Ship for World Youth programme. Check out the Ministry of Youth Development website for all the info and to download an application form.
LINKS TO OTHER INTERESTING STUFF
Check out Swap-O-Rama-Rama. It’s a US based clothing swap with a difference. You bring your 2nd hand clothes to swap for others and onhand are talents sewers, screenprinters and other creative types to help you turn that second-hand top into a one off designer piece. This is a great ethical alternative to shopping! Ladies if you are in Wellington and then check out the Big Shwop this Saturday.
Celebration of three decades of mockery: Kevin Kallaugher, better known to Economist readers as KAL, discusses his hilarious drawings in this video.
Cycle to Walk is a project that aims to raise funds and awareness to forward the global eradication of polio, to educate about the continuing need for immunization against polio and to support the rehabilitation of polio survivors in poor countries. The initiative is driven by Polio-survivor Ramesh Ferris as he covers 400 km every ten days for six months on a 27-speed hand cycle! Learn more about his amazing story here.
NEW STUFF ON THE JUST FOCUS WEBSITE
We’ve been focusing on strengthening the connection between the Just Focus site and our pages on Bebo, Myspace and Facebook. The URLs are above, be sure to check them out!
IN THE FORUM…
There’s some interesting discussions going on in the forums, around topics like Darfur, the Beijing Olympics, and Condoleezza Rice’s visit to Auckland… go check them out and get amongst it!
WANNA GET MORE INVOLVED?
Want to add stuff to the next newsletter or the Events Page, or to write an article/review, or take a photo/create an image for the Just Focus website? Reply to us at info@justfocus.org.nz, it’s always great to hear from you!
