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Immediately after the earthquake and tsunami disasters in
countries bordering the Indian Ocean, I began to think about
unique contributions the Kennedy School could make to help these
nations cope with the disasters. I was interested not only
because of the magnitude of the relief and recovery challenges
in general, but also for two more specific reasons: I had lived
and worked in the region for many years; and I wanted to help
implement the rebuilding strategy I had outlined in a policy
brief I had just co-authored for President Clinton and
Indonesia’s Minister of National Development.
Being a
school of government, we certainly are not wealthy. But we are
rich in experience and expertise. I suggested to Dean Ellwood
that we focus on providing technical assistance to the hardest
hit countries, Indonesia and Sri Lanka, in support of their
long-term recovery efforts. Independently, KSG students were
exploring ways to contribute their skills to these ravaged
countries.
We
decided to unify our efforts: the students polled their
classmates here at the Kennedy School, as well as at the
Business School and the School of Public Health, and developed a
data base of students interested in spending the summer of 2005
in Indonesia or Sri Lanka, including student skills,
experiences, and preferences; and I visited Indonesia and Sri
Lanka in the spring of 2005 to identify the needs and priorities
of institutions responsible for rebuilding activities, and to
gauge their interest in hosting KSG students for the summer.
These efforts were complemented by KSG administration, who
helped facilitate this initiative, and identified funding to
sponsor twelve students for the summer.
The
results are documented on this web site. They are indeed
remarkable. The students have had a tremendous impact in a very
short time, indicated most vividly by the desire of
collaborating institutions to host more Kennedy School students
next summer. As you can see from the student entries, these
activities have also been life-changing for many of the
students. They took the initiative and made a difference. This
embodies the best of the Kennedy School: good intentions
translated into effective action.
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