Spring 2007
Dear MAIC Friends,
The snow is gone and the flowers are blooming; the MAIC is in the midst of a flurry of activity as spring emerges in the Shenandoah Valley. I will let the newsletter articles speak for themselves but wish to report on one segment of our outreach.
Over the years, the MAIC has spent considerable time and effort focusing on survivor support mechanisms, and this year we are engaged in three projects sponsored by the U.S. State Department which bring some of those efforts to a culminating point.
Dr. Suzanne Fiederlein, our victim assistance team leader, is managing two of those actions: the creation of a Best Practices Guidebook for the Use of Casualty Data, and the development, under the leadership of the Polus Center for Social & Economic Development, of a series of survivor assistance training workshops for program planners and implementers.
Ms. Lois Carter Fay, the editor of our Journal of Mine Action, is working with Maureen Morton of Project Assistance in Ottawa to develop a catalog of tools specifically selected or adapted for victims of landmines or explosive remnants of war.
I recently provided an interim report on these exciting projects at the meeting of National Mine Action Managers in Geneva in mid-March. I want to take this opportunity to invite any of you with an interest in these important subjects to contact either Suzanne or Lois at +1 540 568 2718 to stay engaged as these projects develop.
Cheers!
Dennis Barlow
Director
P.S. You can change your subscription to this newsletter or view archived MAIC newsletters by visiting: http://maic.jmu.edu/newsletter.
Revamped ORDATA (Ordnance Identification Tool) Available
The Mine Action Information Center in conjunction with Colin King of C King Associates Ltd is making the updated version of the ORDATA database available to everyone.
To make ORDATA more convenient to use, we've created a button to navigate easily to both the old and new applications from the MAIC website homepage (see image at right).
The revised ORDATA has been designed:
- To supplement the existing data with more information
- To create a "living" system that can be updated continuously
- To reorganize the data structure to make it more useful
- To allow more powerful and flexible searching
- To eliminate misleading and potentially dangerous errors
To view the new ORDATA mines Web site, visit http://ordatamines.maic.jmu.edu .
Current Journal of Mine Action
The Winter 2006 issue of the Journal of Mine Action is now available online at http://maic.jmu.edu/journal/10.2/. We added a new section this time, the "Letters to the Editor" pages to highlight your comments about our content. Five R&D articles discuss some of the latest research going on in mine action. This issue boasts 39 in-depth articles covering such topics as explosive remnants of war and the consequences of today's advanced and legacy weapons, stories about helping civilians—especially children—learn about the dangers of landmines and ERW, and a couple of articles about quality assurance in mine action. We've also reviewed two books that might interest you and profiled an unsung hero. Plus there are numerous short articles that are quick to read and full of information. Two staff-written articles you may be interested in cover the recent conflict in Lebanon, with one focusing on the issue of cluster munitions and other ERW in that conflict. By now, you should have also received your printed copy in the mail, but we encourage you to take a look at our online edition, where you will find even more content, including country profiles.
If you are not currently on the subscriber list and wish to be, please visit the MAIC website to subscribe.
JMA Issue 11.1 Submissions Closed; Issue 11.2 Accepting Articles
Submissions are closed for Issue 11.1 of the Journal of Mine Action, which will focus on Eastern Europe and the Caucasus, and feature articles on national ownership and capacity building. Issue 11.1 is expected to be published during the summer of 2007.
The editors are now accepting articles for Issue 11.2 through 1 July 2007. The issue's Focus section will publish articles about the Middle East and North Africa; the Feature section will discuss the environmental impact of mines and demining. As always, R&D articles can be slightly longer and more technical in style. For more information and to view our submission guidelines, visit call for papers.
We're also looking for great photos. If you would like to have your photos published in the JMA, please send them to us! We don't pay for photos; we request permission to use them as needed. We will give credit where credit is due, however! So don't forget to send captions for each, along with photographer credit information. For more information about our Call for Photos visit call for photos.
Send your articles and photos as soon as possible to Lois Carter Fay at editormaic@gmail.com.
Multi-talented MAIC Staff
Over the past two years, the MAIC has diversified its staff in order to expand the services we offer. For example, our website development and maintenance skills have been enhanced with the addition of Ms. Amy Burkhardt and her team of several outstanding JMU students. Amy holds a master's degree in computer programming and has extensive web and programming experience. These skills allow us to create clean, functional, innovative websites that help our clients communicate their messages quickly and efficiently to web visitors. We can also develop secure Intranet sites to allow selected groups or individuals to log into reserved sites to access forms, documents, chat rooms, online forums, etc. in a secure environment.
Not only do we publish an outstanding biannual magazine, the Journal of Mine Action, but since Ms. Lois Carter Fay joined the staff, we can now offer the ability to create marketing materials, such as brochures, trade booth displays, newsletters, books, e-books, and other printed materials. We can also prepare marketing plans and publicity plans if the need arises. In fact recently, we created a new newsletter for The Polus Center, "Making Strides," and produced the past two issues of Safe Passage for the Office of Weapons Removal and Abatement, Bureau of Political-Military Affairs.
Expanding on our research and writing capabilities, we have hired Ms. Daniele Ressler as a Research Associate and Assistant Editor of JMA. Daniele has become the staff expert on the diplomatic and policy implications of the use of landmines and other ERW.
We are delighted to be able to offer such an expanded menu of services. If you or your organization has a need for any of these services, contact us to see how we can help you.
What are you doing on April 4th? It's International Day for Mine Action!
The United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution declaring April 4th as the International Day for Mine Awareness and Assistance in Mine Action. We would like to know what your group is planning to do to commemorate International Day for Mine Action 2007.
Last year, students at James Madison University hosted International Mine Action Week. They worked hard to educate their peers about the perils of landmines and explosive remnants of war (ERW). This year, Dr. Suzanne Fiederlein will be visiting Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, for campus outreach. At JMU, the students will again host a booth in the commons area including a photography exhibit, display of landmines, ERW and other visual and interactive displays.
To get your event on the comprehensive list of Mine Action Day events, send us an email at maic@jmu.edu
New Fact Sheets and Cluster Munitions FAQ
The MAIC has created two new fact sheets, which are now posted on our Web site. One fact sheet offers details about the use of cluster munitions in Lebanon and the second provides "the basics" about anti-personnel mines/unexploded ordnance and the five pillars of mine action. For quick reference, these sheets provide an easy place to find recent facts and figures.
Tell Us What You're Doing!
Have you moved? Changed jobs? Does your organization have a new program? Have your accomplishments been featured recently in the news? The MAIC wants to know! As an information clearinghouse, we strive to keep others informed about your activities. Help keep us up-to-date by sending an e-mail to: maic@jmu.edu.
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