An interview with Stefanie Then from ZAN – Aid organization for the promotion of the rights of Afghan women
StayIN is working on various projects that aim to improve the educational and living situation of Afghan women in Afghanistan. ZAN (www.zanev.de) has very similar goals, although unlike StayIN, the focus is on Afghan women living in Germany. Due to these parallels, we asked Stefanie Then from ZAN for an interview, which she kindly agreed […]
Dealing with Depression (May 2024)
Petra Steiner completed her Masters of Arts in Media and Communication Sciences at the Freie Universität Berlin, Germany. She also completed the Second State Exam for teaching. Furthermore she has participated in a training to become a resilience coach. Momentarily Petra Steiner is employed as a teacher in photography, audiovisual media and social studies at […]
On the road from Kabul to Jalalabad
By Kai Pflug Fridays are good days to get away from Kabul and take a trip outside of the city – both because it is not a good day to work with other people as it is a holiday, and because the traffic is much lighter than on weekdays. So, we left Kabul early and […]
Teambuilding (Aug 2024)
Dr. Maike Otten works as head of department at a federal audit office in Germany. She and her team audit public spending on education, research, universities, state aid and point out legal, economic, and structural shortcomings. She studied law, specialized on commercial and tax law, and worked as a judge before entering her present position. […]
Project Management (Sep 2024)
Sohrab Heydari holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Industrial Engineering. He has extensive experience working in numerous large companies, primarily in the areas of procurement and project management. For the past year, Sohrab has taken on the role of a workstream lead in the construction of a new IT building. In this […]
Afghanistan and its Birds
By Kai Pflug As I am very interested in birds, I naturally paid attention to them during my recent trip to Kabul. Indeed, they are quite visible in Kabul. For example, in the Kabul Zoo – though seeing birds in that environment makes me feel sad. Or in the city center, particularly around one specific […]
An urban planning workshop in Kabul
By Sanam Ahmadi A recent workshop entitled “Planning Culture and Participation in the Revitalization of Kabul” attracted great interest, particularly among the urban planners among the participants. The aim of the workshop was to record and recognize the wishes and visions of people living in Kabul (especially women). UCODE (Urban Co-Design Environment), a 3D participation […]
Keeping Ancient Afghan Heritage Alive
By Kai Pflug According to a recent article by TOLOnews, the Afghan authorities are now taking measures to protect ancient Afghan relics. Hayatullah Mahajer Farahi, Deputy Minister of Publications at the Ministry of Information and Culture, stated “We do not allow anyone to destroy and smuggle our historical artifacts as in the past”. Other recent […]
More beautiful than imagined: Band-e-Amir
By Zarina Reza and Kai Pflug Band-e-Amir is a chain of six lakes in central Afghanistan, and the first national park in the country. Kai visited the place in November 2023 while Zarina went there a few years earlier. Zarina: Band-e-Amir was an incredible place for me to see. Ever since the first time I […]
Bridging the Divide: Transforming Afghanistan’s Workforce Through Vocational Training, Drawing from German Experience
By Hamid Arefi For decades, Afghanistan has grappled with the dual challenges of instability and an underdeveloped workforce. Despite receiving substantial aid, the country’s economy remains fragile, largely dependent on foreign aid, and susceptible to the whims of climate and politics. With more than half of the population estimated to be under the age of […]