Sketches of Hope

+ 📸 Technology’s impact in their communities, 🐍 Why snakes kill so many people in India (#437)

'Tis me again, your diligent curator of everything truly noteworthy in the world wide web. Here's what I have for you this week:

1. Sketches from Ukraine

«I believe that in the West we have not gotten a full picture of life in Ukraine during war. It is infinitely richer and more alive and inspiring than we are led to believe.» Dave Eggers (whom you might know as the author of The Circle) shows a different side of Ukraine, stories and snapshots of hope, of surprising normalcy and formidable resilience. It's no easy undertaking. But at no point is he downplaying the horrors of the war, or cherrypicking feel-good stories to distract. A great read, worth all the time it takes.

Sketches from Ukraine - Believer Magazine
The stores were all full. We noticed it in our first minutes in Ukraine. We’d crossed the border from Poland in early December, and after passing through the Polish checkpoint, then the Ukrainian checkpoint, we stopped at a gas station that had a café within, and we were surprised to find that it wa…

2. The winners of Rest of World’s first photography contest

Rest of World is an excellent publication to read about technology off the usual focal points. For their first photography contest, they asked their readers for images of technology’s impact in their communities. Great images, fascinating stories. My favourites: #6, #4, #1.

The winners of Rest of World’s first photography contest
From images of solar cooking to snake radio telemetry, we received 548 entries from around the world.

3. ​​How many people die from snakebites?

Two astonishing facts: In India, around 1 in 270 people die from snakebites by the age of 70. And: Each year, around 50,000 to 60,000 people die from snakebites. In Australia, home to the deadliest snakes in the world, that number is 2 (as in: two). Why is this interesting? Because it tells a story of poverty, and of the importance of data in global health.

#14: How many people die from snakebites?
This week: Missing data – the most underrated problem in global health.