South Korea
A South Korean Buddhist monk shaves the head of Hye Oh during a service to celebrate Buddha’s upcoming birthday at Jogye temple in Seoul, May 13. The boy was one of nine children who entered the temple to participate in Little Buddha Camp, which allows youngsters to experience a monk’s life for three weeks.
Lee Jin-man / AP
Source: MSNBC
India
Rajni, a severely malnourished 2-year-old girl, is weighed by health workers at the Nutritional Rehabilitation Center of Shivpuri district in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, Feb. 1. India has failed to reduce its high prevalence of child malnutrition despite its economy doubling between 1990 and 2005 to become Asia’s third largest. A recent government-supported survey said 42 percent of children under age 5 are underweight - almost double that of sub-Saharan Africa - compared to 43 percent five years ago. The statistic - which means 3,000 children are dying daily due to illnesses related to poor diets - prompted Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to admit that malnutrition was “a national shame” and was putting the health of the nation in jeopardy.
HELP
Adnan Abidi/Reuters
Source: MSNBC
Nangarhar, Afghanistan
A young girl attends one of the thousands of community based schools, supported by the United Nations Children’s Fund to make formal education accessible to children.
UN Photo/Roger Lemoyne
Source: Flickr / un_photo
Illinois, USA
Chicago marathon. This adorable little girl was cheering on her “dadda.” She was actually past the area that the cheerers were supposed to be, but no one stopped her.
Allison Hilger
Source: samilice
North Korea
A North Korean child suffering from malnutrition rests in a bed in a hospital in Haeju, capital of the area damaged by summer floods and typhoons in South Hwanghae province, Sept. 30. Isolated North Korea has appealed for food aid following the disasters and years of mismanagement. In South Hwanghae province, which traditionally produces about a third of the country’s total cereal supply, officials say a savage winter wiped out 65 percent of the barley, wheat and potato crops. Then summer floods and storms destroyed 80 percent of the maize harvest and may also impact the October rice harvest. The United States and South Korea, the North’s two biggest donors before sanctions, have said they won’t resume aid until they are satisfied the military-led communist regime will not divert the food for its own uses and progress is made on nuclear disarmament talks.
Damir Sagolj / Reuters
Source: MSNBC
Iceland
Schoolgirl during recess in Austurbæjarskóli, Reykjavík.
Gunnar Salvarsson
Source: flickr.com
Kenya
Two-year-old Aden Salaad looks toward his mother on July 11 as she bathes him in a tub at a Doctors Without Borders hospital, where he is receiving treatment for malnutrition in Dagahaley Camp, near Dadaab, Kenya. U.N. refugee chief Antonio Guterres called drought-ridden Somalia the “worst humanitarian disaster” in the world. His comment came after he met with refugees who endured unspeakable hardship to reach the world’s largest refugee camp in Dadaab.
Rebecca Blackwell / AP
Source: MSNBC
Washington D.C., United States
“My name is Alycea. I am five-years-old and I go to elementary school. I like school because we learn about math and can dance during music time. We also learn about stuff in the world. Did you know that there were earthquakes in Haiti and Japan?
“I have never been to an earthquake before, but I learned that they happen when the earth breaks apart and things start shaking. We also learned about the tornadoes in Alabama. I have never been to a tornado either. I guess that all of those things happen far away from Washington.
“That’s good because it would make the children here scared. Did you know that we have lots of buildings in Washington? One of those buildings is my home and one is your home. The president also lives here with some other famous people. If those buildings fell down, we would all be in big trouble. That’s why I don’t want to go to Haiti or Japan. I just want to go to my grandma’s house and cook pizza and cake. Those are my favorite foods.
“I want to tell all of the kids in Washington not to worry about tornadoes and earthquakes because if they come here, I will punch them in the face. I will punch them and then step on them so they won’t knock our buildings down.”
“Now can I ask you some questions? Have you ever seen an orangutan eat his own poop at the zoo? Have you ever had a baby in your stomach? Have you ever put cake on your pizza?”
Source: peoplesdistrict.com
Afghanistan
A girl out of place and time. She seems to be a little European girl dressed in Afghan clothing and placed here somehow.
Michael Palmer
Source: flickr.com
Bangladesh
A child in Dhaka’s Karial slum, Bangladesh. One billion people, or roughly one out of three urban dwellers, live in slum conditions.
UN Photo/Kibae Park.
Source: unmultimedia.org
