Carolyn Neunuebel
I am a second-year postgraduate student at Trinity College Dublin and University College Dublin pursuing a MSc in Development Practice. My BSc is in Economics with a focus in Asian Business.
Location Dublin, Ireland
Activity
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Great point, Faye. I try to keep in mind that statistics only work in the aggregate and can't be applied to draw assumptions about one data point, i.e. person. The numbers do provide a certain value, but in the end we are talking about real people who are far too complex to summarise in a few select figures.
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I agree about the need for both qualitative and quantitative research. There is a constant inflow of new information to learn in our complex world and both methods provide different values in how to gather that knowledge. Thanks, Fiona!
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Great point, Liam! I recently read an article from the Brookings Institution (a public policy think tank in the U.S.) that outlined the general challenges that we face in goal setting. The short piece is intended as a critique to a specific paper titled "Remaking Economic Development" by Amy Liu; but it serves nicely as a brief snapshot to why development...
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The women used as role models are indeed also suffering from HIV; I, myself, find them quite inspiring!
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I appreciate your analysis, Rod! One of the most interesting studies that I've learned about in regards to qualitative versus quantitative research is the follow-up for the Cambridge Somerville Youth Study in the United States. This was one of the first times that a randomised control trial was applied in a sociological setting. The study strived to measure...
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Great point, Phil! The most common definition for sustainable development that I have encountered comes from the Brundtland Report: http://www.iisd.org/topic/sustainable-development
"...development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs."
Which does, indeed, leave the term...
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I think that most researchers would use indicators of psychological freedom, such as evidence of livelihoods within communities - the rationale being that if you feel psychologically free then you will show signs of this by providing for yourself. That somewhat goes back to the habit that we have to use GDP per capita as an indicator of wellbeing though,...
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Thanks for the wonderful personal assessment, Judy. I especially enjoy hearing about individuals who care about sustainability wanting to get involved in politics; power to you!
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Agreed, Phil. Depending on the action being encouraged for men, the power of peer pressure might be worth exploring: https://hbr.org/2017/03/incentives-dont-help-people-change-but-peer-pressure-does
As much as we all like to think that we act at an individual level, quite a few studies find that what influences us the most is what those around us are doing....
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Thanks for the wonderful input on the topic of ethnic fractionalisation, Charlotta. Some might find this paper on the relationship between ethnicity and civil war interesting (Kosovo is not the focus, but is referenced multiple times): https://web.stanford.edu/group/ethnic/workingpapers/apsrfin1.pdf
The article advocates for the idea that ethnic...
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Tim Vierhout
I appreciate your perspective for how to tackle multiple issues through sanitation, Tim! This article is a few years old, and I assume you're probably versed in how various municipalities around the world have managed to use human waste for energy, but I find this to be an especially interesting way to address sanitation for urban slums:...
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The visual you describe sounds very similar to Doughnut Economics, Colin! This concept by Kate Raworth introduces a new way to visualise and measure economic sustainability in place of the typical growth models: http://www.kateraworth.com/doughnut/
It would be interesting, as you say, if the UN requested that countries report their sustainable progress with...
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It's great to hear that the government is taking steps to address this issue with a bus system, I'm sure that will be a relief for many. Have you ever seen the photo that depicts how much space it takes to transport 60 people depending on the mode of transportation, Suleiman? It's a fun visual: https://i.imgur.com/u8oImkP.png
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Phil Crook
It's wonderful to hear that the information provided is able to be applied practically for you, Phil. I feel like we could all probably think a little more about how to incorporate these sustainable ideas into our lives. Thanks!
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Judy O'Hanlon
Very interesting story, Judy! Thanks for sharing. Would you say that most of these rural areas have changed their mindsets since then? It's usually mind-boggling for me to think about how much times can change within a generation. It's a quite optimistic reminder, in a way, though I always say that it's important not to assume that things will just naturally...
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Very interesting to learn about the Reed Beds! Thanks for the informative comment, Agnes.
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I always appreciate your in-depth comments, Neil. I hadn't heard about Freiburg until Federico's video, but your description alone has really piqued my interest about the city. Here's an interesting article by the Guardian for anyone else who had a similar reaction: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/mar/23/freiburg.germany.greenest.city
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I love TED Talks, thanks so much Pascal! Is there one here that you particularly enjoyed?
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Hi, Doris! The communities for which the pumps are installed collectively own the access to the water and a voluntary "water point committee" will collect payment from community members if repair is required. Overall, it is been found that this works well: community members value the pump enough to contribute and the repairs are rare and inexpensive enough...
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I appreciate this comment particularly because it draws attention to the differences between regions and localities in terms of water availability. As with many topics for development, it is common to operate at the country level but doing so misses the differences that exist between areas within a country. Not to say that using countries isn't useful in many...
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Chiezugolum odilinye
That's really interesting, Chiezugolum. It made me want to learn more about Enugu, so I did a quick Google search and the geology and water were mentioned in the first article I chose (a piece by the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2017/sep/26/enugu-spotlight-50-years-flame-biafra-independence). Thanks for enlightening us about your own local...
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Thanks for such a detailed response, Doris. It's great that you point you how urbanisation puts a strain on infrastructure and water sources. In Ireland, the urbanisation rate is estimated at 2.5 percent; compare that to Oman, which is over double, at 5.8 percent. Similar to how small figures in GDP growth add up to significant amounts over time, these...
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Great input for illustrating the interconnectedness of the SDGs and drawing attention to the risk imposed by climate change, Colin. Although those with easy access to water might tend to forget the importance of such a resource, the fragility that a state faces when water becomes scarce cannot be undermined.
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Your point about SDG 6 potentially receiving higher priority and aid especially resonates with me because it is much easier to measure the impact of "Clean Water & Sanitation" in comparison to the goal of "Sustainable Cities and Communities." Yet, as you said, dependence on aid is not "sustainability" - and it is difficult to prioritise at times, especially if...
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Thanks for sharing your own experience with combating illness and how you utilise traditional methods, Rosita. It's really interesting how well this has worked for you!
There is a really interesting database that provides scientific analyses on the effectiveness of natural medicines, maybe you're interested in checking it out:...
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Thanks for drawing attention to that, Delphine. This is something I think about as well. You might be interested in this study done on valuing the work of the CHWs: https://academic.oup.com/heapol/article-lookup/doi/10.1093/heapol/czv042
It is suggested that scaling up these so-far successful efforts might be difficult if the cost of compensating workers is...
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Thanks for inspiring such a great conversation, Brenda! A lot of the information you originally cited, and more, is included in this report about the Ethiopian food crisis by the FAO: http://www.fao.org/emergencies/resources/documents/resources-detail/en/c/853939/
The organisation is striving to empower local agriculture in the country, as well as conduct...
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Lisa Zimmermann
Everyone seems to agree that the differences between Robert and Sarah in living with HIV are significant, but I appreciate your use of the term uncertainty here, Lisa. While Robert certainly faces a certain amount of uncertainty in regards to the disease, Sarah undoubtedly experiences more. That difference can be crippling, because uncertainty has major...
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Welcome to the course, Brendan! Nice job at contributing early-on and I hope you enjoy the remainder of the content.
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Thanks for the thoughtful comment, Paula. The problems outlined in this course are certainly broad. As such, as you said, there are no straight-forward, simple answers and solutions typically need to be diverse to address the many different subsets of the larger issue.
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Thanks for that perspective, Delphine. Indeed, how governments allocate their budgets make a statement about what is being valued and prioritized - and is very much a challenge for SDG 3 as healthcare is an expensive, but necessary, service to provide.
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GDP per capita is only one way of valuing the standard of living in a country, and one that understandably receives plenty of critique - thanks for drawing attention to that, Yousuf. The OECD has an interesting interactive that allows users to weight the importance of 11 different categories, including work-life balance and health, and check which countries...
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Cuba is a unique case in that regard; thanks for contributing, Judy! You're right, accessibility to healthcare seems to be the reason why Cubans live so long. Here is an interesting article by the BBC highlighting key aspects to the country's system: http://www.bbc.com/news/health-35073966
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Great points, Lisa and Vera. I suspect that Martina's point was closer to the interpretation that peace is not sustainable without healing community health, as a post-conflict environment is extremely unstable already, but certainly agree that peace is foundational and necessary to progress.
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I feel the same way Trevor! The consensus of the SDGs from so many countries is a huge accomplishment in itself. Glad to hear that you enjoyed the first week materials.
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Sarah F
Great point to highlight, Saidatul. The two types of violence Galtung outlines certainly should not be viewed as completely separate from one another. Thanks for contributing.
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Thanks for such a great comment and links, Daniel. The numbers for Peru are staggeringly different. Being aware of different methodologies and comparing multiple sources is certainly key.
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Great question, Cynthia! Short answer: yes, the success of the MDGs were assessed, and critiques/praises are a bit mixed, but seem to lean more positively than negatively when assessed empirically.
Here is a UN report assessing the MDGs (2015): http://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/2015_MDG_Report/pdf/MDG%202015%20rev%20(July%201).pdf
Common critiques...
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Thank you for relating the recent history of South African Apartheid to the lesson in such a concise way, Caroline. As you said, institutional persistence is a real challenge in attempts to address corruption and poor governance. If anyone is interested in learning more about the theory of institutional persistence, here are notes from Daron Acemoglu's class...
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Thanks for the comment, Charlotta! I think that this idea cannot be stressed enough as so many individuals in high-income countries have never experienced the effects of a war fought within our borders.
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Wonderful point, Daniel. In fact, UNESCO highlights gender-based violence and the key role that instructors play on their website. If the intersection of educators and GBV is a topic anyone is interested in exploring further, that might be a good place to start:...
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Carolyn Neunuebel replied to Neil Alldred
Great comment, Neil! Indeed, I do think that Galtung's definition of violence forces us to rethink and broaden the term. I have found that there are quite a few concepts that I associate in one way at a micro-level and need to approach differently at a macro-level. In this case, how I think of violence when it is between two people as being physically or...
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I also appreciated this exercise for illustrating the difference between how most people live and what individuals might experience or be aware of. In regards to action, I understand the fear that one could be doing more. I don't know if there is any clear answer for feeling confident in that regard; but I do believe that making changes to one's own lifestyle,...
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Carolyn Neunuebel made a comment
My name is Carolyn and I'm one of the moderators for this course. I grew up in the U.S., but I'm a postgraduate student at Trinity College in Dublin. Although I am studying in a program that relates largely to sustainable development, I'm sure I will learn a lot from the discussions and ideas that will arise in the next few weeks. I look forward to interacting...
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Thanks for the great comment and holistic point of view, Sally! The interconnectedness of the SDGs is something that the course will emphasise. It's an important point to keep in mind for sustainable development, so it's wonderful to see people highlighting that on the first day.
