Sunday, June 1

aboutme

8 December 2006

Since my last post Jenny & I have got settled in London, living right in the center near Oxford Circus. She's now training as an accountant (focusing on non-profits) and I've been doing a variety of project. I helped www.peacemakers.tv consult with British Muslims about the films it is making. I've been doing some consultancy for my old firm New Philanthropy Capital, researching international charities working on street children and the environment. Also I'm doing some work on the Isreali-Arab conflict for the Middle East Policy Initiative Forum. I'm still staying connected to friends in Iraq and helping where I can, which is sadly increasingly limited to supporting people escaping to safety abroad.

18 July 2006

I'm a 28yr Brit just finishing off a year working with the UN Assistance Mission in Iraq on the constitutional process and national reconciliation. Since my last aboutme post I've fallen in love and got married (on 17 June 2006) to a wonderful American girl Jenny who I met in Palestine when I was there with CPT. We're going to be settling in London now for a couple of years to build a shared community and I'm in the process of looking for an interesting Middle East related job based here (any ideas?).

21 March 2005:

I'm a 26yr old Brit, currently living in Baghdad. I'm here with Christian Peacemaker Teams which works in solidarity with Iraqis, addressing some of the abuses of the Occupation and helping Iraqi organisations develop non-violence. I first came to Iraq in 2001, while campaiging against the economic sanctions, and came again in 2003 and 2004 working on Jubilee Iraq, a campaign to get Iraq's odious foreign debts and war reparations written off. My previous visits have only been for a few weeks, but now I'm here for a longer stay, maybe until the end of the year and beyond.

I studied Physics & Philosophy at Balliol College Oxford and then worked for a while in finance for Schroders Investment Management in London. More recently I have done research on organisations tackling HIV/AIDS in Africa and on other subjects for New Philanthropy Capital.

I'll write some more on a rainy day (not that they come very often here!)

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I was moved by your description of the CIVIC girl who died. It is amazing how many good people there are around. You too. I keep up with events through the net and find myself grieving for individuals in a way one never really does through newspaper reports. Like many others I am ouraged by what has happened and is happening. Anyway, this message is just a thankyou for doing what I am not ...from an OAP ..but not in spirit! Julia

Anonymous said...

Your assessment of whether to leave or stay in the face of convincing evidence that you have a high risk of being kidnapped seems to me thorough, realistic and to have included consideration for up close and a more objective distance. So I think you can be assured that you have come to a good decision. Be at peace. Go. Keep up the fight, as you surely will. Fred

Anonymous said...

I'm old and have lived a long life. But I cry for the earth and her children.

Anonymous said...

I just want to say that the work you do is inspiring. As a teenager, I feel so helpless reading the endless reports of brutality and violence across the world but people like you give me hope. I wish that I were eighteen so that I could do more to struggle against the occupation of Iraq. As it is I can just hope and pray that things will restore to order once more.

Anonymous said...

Is this your site?
Why is there porn on this site? This doesn't have a thing to do with the
Iraqi people. their needs or the image for their country. Porn in the blogs.
Must pass this info on to friend and family not to use this site if this is
the Future of Iraq Portal's mission.

Anonymous said...

Hi, we have never met but I recognise many of the people in your photos from Emily's birthday (people from Edinburgh - I've mostly lost touch with them now).

Anyway, I was in Iraq during the war, working for the Royal Navy, vainly thinking that I was doing something to help bring peace, freedom and democracy to that country. What I have realised by visting your site is that the work continues, and could be continued in a more Christian way (i.e without bombs).

It is uplifting to find out about the work you folks are doing. Keep it up.

Elliot