KUED Programs

"Daughter from Danang" tells the story of a Vietnamese mother and her Amerasian daughter who are joyously reunited after 22 years -- but whose illusions are quickly shattered as the reality of cultural differences and years of separation sets in. In "Balikbayan," a migrant worker sends her mother back home bringing a taste of a 'better life' at all cost. This is one of the absurd but practical realities of mixing consumerism along with tradition in a developing nation.

Is it worse to be born poor than to die poor? 130 million babies are born each year, and not one of them decides where they'll be born or how they'll live. In Cambodia, you're likely to be born to a family living on less than $1/day. In Sierra Leone chances of surviving the first year are half those of the worldwide average. Brian Hill takes a worldwide trip to meet the newest generation - In the US Starr's new baby could well be one more of 1.6 million homeless children now living in the streets.

What does an education get you? In ancient times in China, education was the only way out of poverty, in recent times it has been the best way. China's economic boom and talk of the merits of hard work have created an expectation that to study is to escape poverty. But these days China's higher education system only leads to jobs for a few, educating a new generation to unemployment and despair.

How do you feed the world? 75% of Mali's population are farmers, but rich, land-hungry nations like China and Saudi Arabia are leasing Mali's land in order to turn large areas into agribusiness farms. Many Malian peasants do not welcome these efforts, seeing them as yet another manifestation of imperialism. As Mali experiences a military coup, the developers are scared off ? but can Mali's farmers combat food shortages and escape poverty on their own terms?

Do we know what poverty is? The poor may always have been with us, but attitudes towards them have changed. Beginning in the Neolithic Age, Ben Lewis's film takes us through the changing world of poverty. You go to sleep, you dream, you become poor through the ages. And when you awake, what can you say about poverty now? There are still very poor people, to be sure, but the new poverty has more to do with inequality?

How much profit is fair? Ruschlikon is a village in Switzerland with a very low tax rate and very wealthy residents. But it receives more tax revenue than it can use. This is largely thanks to one resident - Ivan Glasenberg, CEO of Glencore, whose copper mines in Zambia are not generating a large bounty tax revenue for the Zambians. Zambia has the 3rd largest copper reserves in the world, but 60% of the population live on less than $1 a day and 80% are unemployed. Based on original research into public documents, the film describes the tax system employed by multinational companies in Africa.

How do you change the world? From Live Aid to Make Poverty History, celebrities have become activists against poverty. Bob Geldof and Bono have been the most prominent voices advocating on behalf of the poor. But have their concerts and campaigns really lifted millions out of poverty? Geldof, Bono and Bill Gates speak candidly about how to lobby effectively and how to play to politicians' weaknesses for glitz and popularity.

Dictator or liberator? General or president? Pakistani filmmaker Sabiha Sumar sits down with former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, prior to his resignation, to find answers. In an intimate and hard-hitting interview, the former president discusses his vision for the future of Pakistan and its people, and reveals childhood stories that have shaped his life.