Filmmakers whose work is in Russian or German can participate in this contest.

Welt-Zeit Media GmbH, in collaboration with the Department of Journalism of The Russian State University for the Humanities (RSUH) and the International Academy of Television and Radio, is accepting documentaries and other short films for this contest in Celle, Germany.

The competition is part of the International Festival of Professional and Amateur Videos and will be held November 22 — 24. Participants may submit work for judging in one of three categories: «Man and Society,» «History, Culture, Tradition,» and «Children — Our Future.»

Videos must be in Russian or German and no longer than 15 minutes.

The winning videos will be posted on the festival’s website and recommended for display on the federal and regional television channels in Germany and Russia. All participants will receive diplomas.

Participation in the festival is free.

The application deadline is November 1.

For more information (in Russian or German), click here: http://www.festival-celle.de/pologenie.htm

http://www.festival-celle.de/pologenie.htm

Experienced journalists looking to hone their skills can apply for a 10-month fellowship.

The John S. Knight Journalism Fellowship enables international and U.S. journalists to conduct research at Stanford University.

At least 20 fellows will receive a US$65,000 stipend, and all tuition, housing, moving, health insurance, books and childcare expenses will be covered.

Ideal U.S. candidates will have at least seven years’ experience, and international candidates should have at least five years’ experience. Both domestic and international applicants should have and an interest in journalism entrepreneurship, innovation and leadership.

Some application requirements include an innovation project proposal, journalistic autobiography, letters of recommendation and work samples.

The deadline for international applicants is December 1. The deadline for U.S. applicants is January 15.

For more information, click here: http://knight.stanford.edu/become-a-fellow/getting-a-fellowship/

http://knight.stanford.edu/become-a-fellow/getting-a-fellowship/

International journalists can apply for a fellowship at Harvard.

The Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard will host up to 12 fellows for a year of research and scholarship.

Fellows will participate in Harvard courses, weekly seminars and writing and multimedia workshops.

The international fellowships program is for citizens of nations other than the United States, including non-U.S. citizens working at media organizations in the United States. English fluency is required.

Applicants must submit a personal statement, study proposal, work samples, recommendation letters and a letter of support from a current employer.

The deadline to apply is December 1.

For more information, click here: http://nieman.harvard.edu/NiemanFoundation/NiemanFellowships/TypesOfFellowships/InternationalFellowships.aspx

http://nieman.harvard.edu/NiemanFoundation/NiemanFellowships/TypesOfFellowships/InternationalFellows

Kazakhstan’s President Nursultan Nazarbaev says expanding global information access and transparency is increasing «requirements for the media and its moral responsibility to society.»

The Kazakh leader’s message was read out at the 10th Eurasian Media Forum, which opened in Astana on October 11.

Organizers said the two-day forum brought together more than 450 delegates from 40 countries, including reporters, politicians and public opinion leaders.

The Kazakh Foreign Ministry said the agenda will include the repercussions of the Arab Spring in the region and «the collapse of multicultural policy in European countries.»

Kazakhstan established the annual Eurasian Media Forum in 2001 to promote stronger cooperation between the East and the West.

Based on reporting by Itar-Tass and Kazinform

http://www.rferl.org/content/nazarbaev-leader—urges-greater-media-responsibility/24736030.html

Dushanbe, Tajikistan, October 8, 2012 – Today, Tajikistan’s network of scientific and academic researchers gained an important new resource with the launch of the Tajikistan Virtual Science Library (VSL).

The Tajikistan VSL is a website that provides free and easy access to more than 10 million full-text research articles across many scientific disciplines. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA), the site is part of a larger program of technical consultations and training.

It includes information on publishing in international journals and research proposal development, organized by the Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Culture, the Ministry of Health, the Academy of Agricultural Sciences, DOE/NNSA, and CRDF Global.

The Tajikistan VSL website (www.TajikistanVSL.org) was launched today at the National Academy of Sciences. After the launch, research institute directors, university leaders, government representatives, Academy officials, individual scientists, and librarians from across the country participated in seminars hosted by DOE/NNSA and CRDF Global, intended to familiarize them with the website and its use in research. DOE/NNSA and CRDF Global plan to implement an extensive national workshop series in 2013 to help users and librarians throughout the country derive the full benefit of the program.

The Tajikistan VSL consolidates access to more than 12,000 journals from major publishers and prominent international research repositories including the Directory of Open-Access Journals, ArXiv.org, CalTech University, CiteSeer, Cogprints, Eprints, HighWire Press, and research repositories from Lund University and Ghent University.

The Tajikistan VSL allows researchers to search and download articles from the United Nations Research4Life collections: OARE, AGORA, and HINARI. The website can also be expanded to provide access to new journal collections as they become available.

Researchers can start accessing the website today by visiting www.TajikistanVSL.org at their research institution or university. Later this fall, researchers will have the opportunity to access the site remotely by obtaining a log in name and password from their librarian or authorized representative.

For more information about the Tajikistan VSL, or to make sure that your institution has access to the website, please contact help@TajikistanVSL.org.

http://dushanbe.usembassy.gov/

ORAL, Kazakhstan — An appellate court in western Kazakhstan has upheld a guilty verdict against an opposition journalist in a controversial libel case.

In July, Lukpan Akhmedyarov, a correspondent for the «Uralskaya Nedelya» weekly in the city of Oral, was found guilty of insulting a local official and ordered to pay 5 million tenge ($33,000) in compensation.

International media-freedom advocacy group Reporters without Borders condemned the court’s decision, calling it a move «to strangle the journalist financially.»

In April, Akhmedyarov survived a vicious attack in which he was stabbed and shot with a pneumatic pistol.

In September, new charges of libel were field against Akhmedyarov.

That same month, Akhmedyarov won the prestigious international Peter Mackler Award for Courageous and Ethical Journalism.

Akhmedyarov says the attack and lawsuits against him are politically motivated.

http://www.rferl.org/content/kazakhstan-appeal-fails-journalist-akhmedyarov/24726998.html

The UN Human Rights Council has affirmed for the first time the importance of journalist safety as a fundamental element of freedom of expression.

The 47-member body passed the resolution, which was sponsored by Austria. It calls on all states to «promote a safe and enabling environment for journalists to perform their work independently» and to ensure «impartial, speedy, and effective investigations» into acts of violence against journalists.

The International Press Institute issued a statement saying it was pleased that the Human Rights Council «highlighted the impact of journalist safety on the right of citizens in all countries to be informed.»

http://www.rferl.org/content/un-rights-council-journalist-safety/24722164.html

WASHINGTON – On October 8, 2012, Tajikistan’s network of researchers will gain an important new resource with the launch of the Tajikistan Virtual Science Library (VSL). The Tajikistan VSL is a website that provides free and easy access to more than 10 million full-text research articles.

Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA), the site is part of a larger program of technical consultations and trainings organized by the Academy of Sciences, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Health, Academy of Agricultural Sciences, DOE/NNSA, and CRDF Global.

After the launch, seminars will familiarize the academic community with the operation of the website, its contents, and its use in research. An extensive national workshop series is planned for 2013 to ensure that users and librarians throughout the country derive the full benefit from the program.

For more information about the Tajikistan VSL, or to make sure that your institution has access to the website, please contact help@TajikistanVSL.org.

WHAT: Tajikistan Virtual Science Library Launch Event
WHEN: October 8, 2012 at from 9:30am-12:30pm
WHERE: Dushanbe, Tajikistan: Academy of Sciences hall, 33 Rudaki Ave.
WHO:
Speakers:
· U.S. Embassy: Information Officer Nicole Bayer
· Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan: Vice-President
· Ministry of Education: Minister, Deputy Minister, or representative
· Ministry of Health: Minister, Deputy Minister, or representative
· Ministry of Culture: Minister, Deputy Minister, or representative
· Academy of Agricultural Sciences: President or vice-President
· CRDF Global: Associate Program Director Charles Dunlap, PhD.

Attendees:
· U.S. Embassy: Public Affairs Section
· U.S. Department of Energy’s National Nuclear Security Administration (DOE/NNSA): Annie Winterfield
· Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Tajikistan: Vice-President, VSL coordinator Sakina Karimova
· Ministry of Education: Minister Saidov, leading specialist of International Relations Department Nasimova T.F.
· Ministry of Health: Minister, Deputy Minister, International coordinator, key staff
· Ministry of Culture: Minister, Deputy Minister, International coordinator, key staff
· Academy of Agricultural Sciences: President, vice-President, key staff
· Scientific Institutes: Directors, Deputy Directors, Head Librarians
· Universities: Presidents, Head Librarians
· CRDF Global: Associate Program Director Charles Dunlap, PhD., Program Manager Katherine Casey
· Press: invited in consultation with the U.S. Embassy Public Affairs Section

http://dushanbe.usembassy.gov/

DUSHANBE, October 3, 2012, Asia-Plus — To protect rights and interests of media and ensure solidarity of journalists of Tajikistan, heads of media and media organizations of Tajikistan have worked out a plan of actions to protect rights and interests of journalists, the National Association of Independent Media of Tajikistan (NANSMIT) reports.

The plan, in particular, includes an action, dubbed “100 Days of Freedom in Tajnet.” This action stipulates holding online events in Tajnet, posting modular advertising materials on social networking sites, airing public service announcements (PSAs) on radio, creating banners for all media, general avatar for journalists for 100 days, etc. The action has started today.

A statement released by the action organizers notes that by September 8, 2012, the number of websites blocked in Tajikistan has reached 50. “Among them are websites that failed to comply with norms of the country’s legislation and morals. At the same time, there are local news websites such as www.news.tj and www.tojnews.org among them. What unites them is they were blocked ILLEGALLY, without court’s decision, bypassing the country’s legislation. ‘Departmental feudalism’ is becoming a norm in such an important sector as ICTs (information and communications technologies), unintentionally turning the authorities into “enemy of Internet,” the statement said.

Media organizations also plan to carry out individual work with managers of all Internet-cafes, release elucidative leaflets, hold roundtables, and so forth.

They also plan to lodge application to the Constitutional Court regarding pre-trial blockage of access to websites.

http://news.tj/en/news/100-days-freedom-tajnet-action-launched-tajikistan?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm

DUSHANBE, TAJIKISTAN – A group of journalists from Dushanbe visited the Nurek 500 kilovolt (kV) switchyard reconstruction project funded by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Tajikistan.

The project supports the construction of a new 500 kV switchyard at the Nurek hydropower plant using an advanced gas insulated switchgear technology. The existing switchyard, built more than 30 years ago, is in need of complete replacement due to deteriorating equipment and unstable geological site.

“The project will ensure a sustainable and reliable electricity supply to support economic development,” said Asel Chyngysheva, Officer-in-Charge of ADB’s Tajikistan Resident Mission, who led the media tour. “It will also mitigate the risk of natural disasters disabling the switchyard and will stabilize the flow of electricity coming from this strategically important power plant.”

The Nurek hydropower plant with a total installed capacity of 3,000 megawatt produces more than 70% of Tajikistan’s total electricity supply.

ADB is providing a grant of $54.77 million, with the Tajik government and Barki Tojik contributing $12.1 million for the project, which is due for completion in 2014.

Tajikistan joined ADB in 1998, and to date the institution has cumulatively approved a total assistance of more than $966 million in concessional loans, grants and technical assistance to the country. ADB’s operations benefit the population by reducing isolation, increasing communication, broadening access to electricity, improving social services, and creating more income-generating opportunities.

ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth and regional integration. Established in 1966, it is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2011, ADB approvals including cofinancing totaled $21.7 billion.

www.adb.org