Quote of the day

This isn't the sort of thing society grows out of. It's the sort of thing that society grows into

Clay Shirky for Felix Cohen

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OneWorld UK
OneWorld aims to provide the UK's best online coverage of human rights and sustainable development issues, news, campaigns, events and resources - thinking globally and acting locally.
http://uk.oneworld.net

Demos
Demos is an independent think-tank and research institute based in London which seeks to help reinvigorate public policy thinking. openDemocracy has worked with Demos to produce People Flow, the innovative global discussion about migration in Europe.
www.demos.co.uk

Goethe Institute Inter Nationes
The Goethe Institute is the largest organisation promoting German cultural and educational policy abroad. openDemocracy works together with it to explore the relationship between Europe and Islam.
www.goethe.de/enindex.htm

Alternet
AlterNet.org is a project of the Independent Media Institute, a non-profit organisation that supports independent and radical journalism.
www.alternet.org

Le Monde Diplomatique in English
The UK edition of the wide-ranging left-of-centre magazine. Originally published in French it has 17 language editions.
http://mondediplo.com

NYU's Department of Culture and Communications
Vibrant home of openDemocracy's New York office.
http://education.nyu.edu/education/dcc

from the arts and cultures theme

www.atopia.tk
A polylogic e-zine situated in the no-place between theory, artistic practice and political action.
www.atopia.tk

www.englishpen.org
The worldwide organization of writers which works to promote literature, literacy and free expression
www.englishpen.org

Other Africas
Could this be the way forward to overcome 'a fetishised Africa of colonial nostalgia'?
http://mccoy.lib.siu.edu/jmccall/otherafricas

signandsight.com
A great English-language website informing readers of cultural and intellectual trends in the German speaking world, funded by the German Federal Cultural Foundation.
www.signandsight.com

The Onion
Sharp, subversive, black, joyous…American humour at its best.
www.theonion.com

Tate Modern
A new palace of modern art, based in a converted London power station. The site has images from its collections and links to partner institutions.
www.tate.org.uk/modern/default.htm

The cave of Chauvet
The cave of Chauvet-Pont-d'Arc, the site of our 31,000 year old artistic contemporaries.
www.culture.gouv.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/index.html

American Museum of Photography
Spectacular exhibitions from the early days of camera
www.photographymuseum.com

Graffiti
The writing on the wall: spray-painted walls the world over
www.graffiti.org

The Gutenburg Project
Thousands of cover-to-cover texts, free for the asking online
http://promo.net/pg

from the conflicts theme

Conflict and Religion
Resourceful website dealing with conflicts in which religions plays an important role.
http://conflict-religion.boker.tv

Crimes of War
The Crimes of War project, a collaboration of journalists, lawyers and scholars, analyses conflicts from the perspective of international law.
www.crimesofwar.org

International Crisis Group
The ICG is an independent, multinational organisation working through field-based analysis and advocacy to prevent and resolve conflict. Its authoritative reports are a great resource for anyone with a serious interest in world affairs.
www.icg.org

Institute for War & Peace Reporting
IWPR strengthens local journalism in areas of conflict, and supports democratic change through training journalists from Afghanistan to the Balkans. Its site provides high-quality coverage of conflict-riven regions.
www.iwpr.net

Front Line
An independent charitable organisation working to support and protect those who champion the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, through advocacy and through provision of satellite phones, bulletproof vests, metal security doors etc. to human rights defenders at risk.
www.frontlinedefenders.org

Resist
The campaigning group Globalise Resistance has anti-war articles and resources from the US and British left.
www.resist.org.uk

The Globalsite
This academic, but accessible, site has wide-ranging and informed articles from Fred Halliday, Saskia Sassen, Martin Shaw, Mary Kaldor and many more.
www.theglobalsite.ac.uk

Ciriello
The Italian photojournalist A. Raffaele Ciriello has a fascinating interview with the anti-Taliban resistance leader, Ahmed Shah Massoud (assassinated two days before the US attacks), and a hard-hitting series taken in Ramallah in 2002.
www.ciriello.com/

Foreign Report
Jane's Foreign Report has a good track record of predicting international flashpoints and publishes handbooks for surviving any military nightmare - biological, chemical, even nuclear.
www.foreignreport.com

Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan
This radical group presents disturbing evidence of how far women's rights still have to go in one part of the world.
http://rawa.false.net/index.html

Peaceworkers UK
Established in 2000 to raise awareness about civilian approaches to the handling of conflict, this project currently researches the feasibility of a UK Civilian Peace Service.
www.peaceworkers.org.uk

Care of Victims of Torture
Provides care and rehabilitation to survivors of torture and other forms of organised violence.
www.torturecare.org.uk


from the democracy and power theme

Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world. It stands with victims and activists to prevent discrimination, to uphold political freedom, to protect people from inhumane conduct in wartime, and to bring offenders to justice.
www.hrw.org

Geneva Human Rights Tribune
News, comment and analysis surrounding human rights worldwide
www.humanrights-geneva.info

Actions Speak Louder
Find the local campaigning groups active in your area and be a part of a national campaign for political change
www.actionsspeaklouder.org.uk

Dissent Magazine
Dissent is a quarterly magazine of politics and culture that welcomes the clash of strong opinions.
www.dissentmagazine.org

Peru Politica: Open forum for political debate in Peru
Political and pro-democracy forum initiated by IDD (Democratic Development Institute) whose aim is to create fundamental tools for democratic consolidation in Peru (Spanish only).
www.perupolitica.com

Open Secrets: your guide to the money in US elections
A Washington based research group tracking money in US politics and its effect on elections and public policy. Its aim is to create a more educated and involved voter and a more responsive government.
www.opensecrets.org

Politics1: The Ultimate Guide to U.S. Politics & Elections ... since 1997
A non-partisan and complete guide to US politics and elections for the US electorate. A valid attempt at opening up democracy in America.
www.politics1.com

The European Union On-line
The official site of the EU, containing essential information its history, institutions, treaties, and statistics. A useful initial reference point for research and discussion. See in particular the sections on EU Enlargement and the Multilingual Citizens' Debate Forum.
www.europa.eu.int

Charter 88
The London-based movement for constitutional reform in Britain wants to 'unlock democracy'
www.charter88.org.uk

Eurozine
A Eurowide portal and network of cultural magazines which offers “a public space of a new type for open and critical debate on a transnational level?
www.eurozine.com

My Europe
The web-based project of European Schoolnet, advancing the idea of European citizenship through collaboration between schools in 23 countries.
www.en.eun.org/myeurope/about.html

Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty
Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty is a useful, US-funded resource which has survived its cold war role to provide in-depth news and analysis about the continent.
www.rferl.org

Central Europe Review
Consistently fertile, topical, and high-quality analysis and features from the formerly 'other Europe' that has become ours.
www.ce-review.org

The White House
The view from the US presidency can take time to load, but its comprehensiveness is hard to beat.
www.whitehouse.gov

The Russian Federation
The official Russian government site can be hard going for non-native speakers, but gives you the chance to email President Putin.
www.gov.ru

The Federal Republic of Germany
The official views of the Federal Republic of Germany - in English, and with a link to the excellent magazine Deutschland.
www.bundesregierung.de

Institute for Public Policy Research
IPPR: one of the most intellectually fertile British-based think-tanks, with an excellent links section.
www.ippr.org.uk

The New Republic
This influential US political magazine offers a fascinating window onto the conservative worldview.
www.tnr.com

The New Statesman
A UK current affairs magazine established in 1913 with the aim of permeating the educated and influential classes with socialist ideas.
www.newstatesman.com

Gozaar
A dual-language journal on democracy and human rights in Iran.
www.gozaar.org

Counterpunch
The US bi-weekly radical newsletter, edited by Alexander Cockburn and Jeffrey St.Clair, has an excellent links section, including many Middle Eastern sources.
www.counterpunch.org

The Axiom Foundation
An online international think tank working towards improved political accountability from governments and organisations alike, by raising the awareness of important issues and ideologies.
www.theaxiomfoundation.net

Intellectual Conservative
A lively, thoughtful resource and forum of libertarian and conservative ideas.
www.intellectualconservative.com

from the ecology and place theme

The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM)
The leading professional and examining body for scientists, engineers, other environmental professionals, students and those committed to the sustainable management and development of water and the environment.
www.ciwem.org

Greenactive
Greenactive encourages activity, e-activity, learning and donations around a loosely green UK theme.
www.greenactive.co.uk

The Ecologist
The consistently radical, monthly Ecologist magazine is a healthily argumentative place.
www.theecologist.org

Garden Web
Anyone whose fingers are the palest shade of green should check this out.
www.gardenweb.com

Greenpeace
Still active after all these years, under a new policy Director.
www.greenpeace.org

Coral Reef Alliance
A non-profit organisation working to protect a uniquely precious, endangered, underwater resource.
www.coralreefalliance.org

Friends of the Earth
Information on local and global campaigns from one of the most active environmental NGOs.
www.foe.co.uk

Countryside Alliance
Much more than hunting, shooting and fishing.
www.countryside-alliance.org

Resurgence
Resurgence is a magazine of ecology, spirituality and the arts. The editor, Satish Kumar was a Jain monk, and walked around the world in 1967 with no money, to take a packet of peace tea to the four nuclear nations at the time.
http://resurgence.gn.apc.org

Green Alliance
Working on the inside track to put sustainable development at the heart of decision-making.
www.green-alliance.org.uk

Comedia
Creative thinking about culture and cities.
www.comedia.org.uk

from the faith, ethics and ideas theme

Judaism portal
A gateway to the myriad of Jewish resources on the web.
http://shamash.org/trb/judaism.html

The Vatican
Official homepage and mouthpiece of the Pope in Rome.
www.vatican.va

Catholic Online
Catholic Online gives Catholics worldwide access to educational and timely information about their faith.
www.catholic.org

Buddhism
www.buddhanet.net

Hinduism
Dedicated to Hindu solidarity and culture, this is a public service of Himalayan Academy, publishers of Hinduism Today.
www.hindu.org

The Hindu Universe
Hindu dharma - the philosophy, culture and customs.
www.hindunet.org

Falun Gong
The Chinese dissident religious grouping now has millions of followers.
www.falundafa.org

Shinto
A non-profit organisation publicising Japanese traditions and an introduction to the Shinto religion, run by volunteer priests affiliated to Jinja Honcho (The Association of Shinto Shrines).
www.jinja.or.jp/english

Islam
The site is part of DILP, an ambitious project to digitise important Islamic resources and make them available through the net.
www.al-islam.org

Islam World
A big site with a basic layout, offering an introduction to non-Muslims, sections on Hadith, Jihad, fatwa, and sharia.
www.islamworld.net

Bahai
A friendly introduction to one of the world's newer religions.
www.bahai.org

www.newhumanist.org.uk
Promotes and debates rationalism in contemporary society.
www.newhumanist.org.uk

Bible Gateway
Read and research scripture online - in the language or translation of your choice. Includes "various tools to enhance your study of the Bible".
http://bible.gospelcom.net

from the globalisation theme

Policy Innovations
An online magazine featuring ideas for a fairer globalization and a database of innovators
www.policyinnovations.org

London Civic Forum
Engaging in London's civil society
www.londoncivicforum.org.uk

Globalizacion.org
Development, economy, ecology, and euality in Latin America
www.globalizacion.org

Integración Sur
Commerce, integration and devlopment in Latin America
www.integracionsur.com

Choike
A portal on Southern civil societies.
www.choike.org

WWW Virtual Library: International Affairs Resources
Over 2600 carefully selected, annotated links in 37 international affairs categories.
www.etown.edu/vl/

ILO
Working to promote international labour standards and stamp out child labour
www.ilo.org/public/english/index.htm

Corporate Watch
Corporate Watch believes that corporations are destroying the world; this is their evidence
www.corporatewatch.org.uk/

Adbusters
The Canadian-based 'culture jammers' Adbusters protest with imagination and humour as well as anger
www.adbusters.org

No Logo
Naomi Klein's No Logo gave intellectual impetus to the anti-globalisation movement
www.nologo.org

from the markets and work theme

EU Business
An excellent pan-European business site.
www.eubusiness.com/

G8
The G8 countries' accessible site has good links to governments, media, and academia
http://g8.market2000.ca/

International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund's country reports are a valuable reference source
www.imf.org/

The World Bank
Useful reports packed with information, courtesy of the World Bank
http://wbln0018.worldbank.org/...

UNITE Union
A comprehensive website devoted to an important chapter of the US labour movement
www.uniteunion.org/

International Confederation of Free Trade Unions
The title is self-explanatory: a frequently updated portal in French and Spanish as well as English - includes a Burma campaign
www.icftu.org/

New Economics Foundation
London based independent think-tank for sustainable economics
www.neweconomics.org/

The Work Foundation
The goal of this Foundation is to improve working life - through its research and publications, and a range of courses based in London.
www.theworkfoundation.com/index.jsp

International Chamber of Commerce
"The" World Business organisation covers a comprehensive range of business topics and subdivides into national committees and groups worldwide.
www.iccwbo.org/

UN Global Compact
First proposed by Kofi Annan, the Global Compact is a platform designed to promote institutional learning to make globalization work for all the world's people - no regulatory muscle but lots of good intentions
www.unglobalcompact.org

from the media and the net theme

www.panos.org.uk
Panos London is an international NGO working with the media to produce news, views and analysis on the most critical issues of today.
www.panos.org.uk

MIT re:constructions
A resource and study guide from MIT's program in Comparative Media Studies.
http://web.mit.edu/cms/reconstructions

Communications White Paper
The British government’s response to convergent global communications. Scintillating.
www.communicationswhitepaper.gov.uk

European approaches to media ownership
This report on media ownership and transparency regulations across Europe was prepared to assist Russia in crafting their media regulations and contains a detailed examination of the EU approach to media regulation. Not for the fainthearted.
www.medialaw.ru/e_pages/laws/ero_union/e-conc.htm

MediaChannel
Probably the best all round independent media website ?smart, scrupulous and tenacious ?with impressive international coverage from its network of partners. Top names, witty features, quizzes and debates; toolkits for media activism, and a comprehensive index.
www.mediachannel.org

International Association for Media and Communications Research
Only for serious media scholars, this is an international umbrella organisation which acts as a consultant to Unesco. The site offers the chance to review research programmes, investigate media courses, contact high profile media analysts and sign up for a free newsletter. High on policy issues, short on jokes.
www.iamcr.net

Ananova
Straight, factual news service which tries to keep the customer satisfied.
www.ananova.com

www.interworldradio.org
InterWorld Radio is a free online news and features service distributed to over 750 radio stations and journalists worldwide.
www.interworldradio.org

Democratic Thinking
A collection of references to democracy in global independent online media.
http://democraticthinking.blogspot.com

The Paperboy
Links to 5000 newspapers in 175 countries...without getting inky fingers.
www.thepaperboy.com

theViewPoint.org
A different view of what happens in the world, from blogger and local voices to space and visibility for the "old" art of photojournalism and photo reportage.
www.theViewPoint.org

from the arts and cultures theme

Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organisation
NGO whose members are indigenous peoples, occupied nations, minorities and independent states or territories that have joined together to protect their human and cultural rights, preserve their environments, and to find non-violent solutions to conflicts that affect them.
www.unpo.org

The Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Centre
All the background on peoples often depicted as endangered but who are also strong, adaptable - and modern.
www.itpcentre.org

The European Roma Rights Center
The ERRC is an international public interest law organisation which monitors the human rights situation of Roma people and provides legal defence in cases of abuse.
www.errc.org

Stalker's Guide to International Migration
In 2000, only about 3% of world population lived outside the country of their birth. But migration raises many contentious issues, some discussed in openDemocracy's People Flow debate. Here is Peter Stalker's useful, factual introductory guide.
http://pstalker.com/migration

Tribal people of Vietnam
An introductory overview of the many ethnic minorities of Vietnam
www.vwam.com/vets/tribes/minoritieslist.html

Survival International
An international organisation campaigning for the rights of indigenous peoples
www.survival-international.org

The Refugee Council
The largest organisation in the UK working with asylum-seekers and refugees, working to ensure their needs and concerns are addressed. Check out their list of publications.
www.refugeecouncil.org.uk

American Refugee Committee
The American Refugee Committee (ARC) works for the survival, health, and well-being of refugees. Its site contains many moving stories and pictures.
www.archq.org/index.shtml

Amnesty International
A truly global organisation carrying out truly urgent work researching human rights abuses and harnessing pressure to have them stopped.
www.amnesty.org

from the science and technology theme

The New Scientist
Themed articles, opinion, Q&A, jobs, archive, daily updates...a site you can trust from the respected weekly journal.
www.newscientist.com

Scientific American
The meaty site of the leading monthly, Scientific American.
www.sciam.com

Internet Geographer
A fine resource on all things geographic for those difficult years from seven to seventy.
www.internetgeographer.co.uk

Anthro.net
Anthropology is us.
www.anthro.net

The National Geographic
Behind the commercial facade, an opening out to the world's beauty.
www.nationalgeographic.com

Encylopedia Brittanica
Who needs the 32 volumes of the Encylopedia Brittanica? Their information is at your fingertips here - though at a price.
www.britannica.com

Homework High
A sparky approach to the learning game - bright, fast, clever and useful.
www.homeworkhigh.com

Woodys Webwatch
Functional and quirky information package for students and teachers.
www.woodyswebwatch.com

Higher Education and Research Opportunities
HERO in the UK brings together a mass of useful information and links for actual and prospective students.
www.hero.ac.uk

Dissect-a-Frog
Interactive frog dissection online - just follow the pictures
www.link.net/link