My MARS mantra: Stories from changemakers in disasters and development

জাকির হোসান বাংলাদেশের একটি তৃণমূল সংস্থা "কৃষকের স্বরের" সভাপতি। ছোটবেলা থেকে বরিশালের ছোট্ট এক গ্রামে শিমুলভাঙা নামের এক নদীর পাড়ে প্রকৃতির ভেতর দিয়ে বড় হওয়া একজন মানুষ যেন নিজের পুরোটা জীবন কাটিয়ে দিলেন সেই প্রকৃতির ভেতরেই। প্রকৃতি আর কৃষির জন্য অগাধ ভালোবাসা থেকেই তিনি কৃষক ও কৃষির জন্য কাজ করা শুরু করেন। আর সেই কাজের কান্ডারি হিসেবে তিনি বেছে নেন স্কুলের ছাত্র ছাত্রীদের। দূর্যোগের সময় দ্রুত আ...

অধ্যাপক খন্দকার সাব্বির আহমেদ বাংলাদেশ স্থপতি ইন্সটিটিউটের সভাপতি এবং বাংলাদেশ প্রকৌশল বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের (বুয়েট) স্থাপত্য বিভাগে শিক্ষকতা করছেন। এই পর্বে, আপনি জলবায়ু এবং ঝুঁকি সংবেদনশীল বিল্ডিং ডিজাইন, নগর পরিকল্পনা এবং বৈশ্বিক উষ্ণতার প্রভাব কমাতে স্থপতিদের ব্যাপক ভূমিকা সম্পর্কে জানবেন Professor Khandaker Shabbir Ahmed is the President of the Institute of Architects Bangladesh and teaches at the...

Zafar Alam is a former civil servant shares his story of growing up during the independance war of Bangladesh. Zafar alam helped many climate-displaced landless families to restart their lives, by allocating them a new piece of land in the remotest parts of the country. He was active during the COVID-19 pandemic keeping the port authrorities and the hospitals running, training future civil servant...

আমাদের পৃথিবী প্রতিদিন উষ্ণ থেকে উষ্ণতর হয়ে উঠছে। আর আমরা শীঘ্রই মঙ্গলগ্রহে পালানোর কল্পনা করছি। ‘মঙ্গলগ্রহে পালানোর মিশন মার্স’ দ্বারা প্রতারিত হবেন না! আসুন আমাদের এই বাস্তব পৃথিবীতে ফিরে আসি! আমরা এই পৃথিবী কে কিভাবে শান্তিপূর্ণ আর বসবাসের উপযোগী করবো তাই ভেবে দেখি। আমি ফারহাত আফজাল আপনাদের আমার মঙ্গল মন্ত্র বা My MARS Mantra পডকাস্টে এ স্বাগত জানাই। ইংরেজিতে MARS শব্দটির সংক্ষিপ্তরূপ হচ্ছে, Mo...

Farah Kabir is an activist from Bangladesh and has led the world development stage to amplify voices against injustice. In this episode, Farah Kabir highlights the root causes of disasters worldwide, from a human rights perspective. She also celebrates the achievements made in Bangladesh, such as creating dignified lives for street children, and acid survivors; and rebuilding resilient homes by br...

Jordan Oster works for the Massachusetts Emergency Management Authority (MEMA). He shares his stories of dealing with day-to-day disasters and how it feels to help people in times of distress. Jordan is concerned that the intensity of climate-induced disasters is increasing all over the United States of America (USA), from heavy snowfall in California, and ice storms in Texas to an increased numbe...

Rumana Kabir starts My MARS mantra podcast to spread stories from changemakers she has met throughout her career in disasters and development. She was inspired by the authors of 'Story Listening project' and wanted to create a platform for people to listen to each other's stories from around the world. Her journey began in Bangladesh, where she witnessed the disparities between her own privileged...

Ines Smyth, is a Gender & Women's Rights and Climate Activist. She grew up in a working-class family in Italy and had a desire to see the world. She recalls her time in Indonesia. Ines also highlights the need for a comprehensive understanding of intersectionality in addressing inequalities. She shares stories of working with marginalized communities in Asia. and explains why women died of Tsunami...

Stephen Pine, a Humanitarian Researcher, mentions the status of modern warfare that is silently destroying many lives around the world. He is curious about international events which go unnoticed by the mainstream media. Stephen passionately examines the ways in which people are denied their human rights during times of conflict. He also shares his research on the social effects of drone warfare,...

Arwin Solaksono, shares his story of rebuilding Aceh, in Indonesia that was devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. This tsunami affected 14 countries and killed 240,000 people, mostly Indonesians. When he was invited by an aid agency to advise them in rebuilding Aceh, he was moved by the emptiness caused by the Tsunami. This changed Arwin's career from an Engineer to a Shelter & Settlement P...

Rumana welcomes her post-grad students, Daniel and Simon, to share their stories of growing up in a turbulent time in Uganda - how they helped people affected by conflict; and how conflict, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic are all interconnected. Daniel and Simon will surely inspire you to think twice, about how you can make a difference from your own position, as a lawyer, as an aid work...

Rumana Kabir invites Ian Davis to look back at his 50-year long career in the field of disaster risk reduction and recovery. Rumana and Ian have one thing in common, that is the 1970s cyclone in Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) that drew them to similar career paths. Ian first volunteered to help his friends to produce awareness raising materials titled 'Just Another Disaster' on the 70's cyclone,...

Are you an optimist? Are you interested to know about 'all the problems in this world and how we can try solving them?' Then listen to real-life stories from Changemakers working in disasters and development. Find out what motivates them to do what they do, how they find their inner resilience to overcome challenges and cherish successes. Their stories of Motivation, Actions, Reflections for a Sus...