Greetings Tiger Nation,

As the New Year gets it’s start in this winter wonderland of Central Asia, I find myself drowning in opportunity for service in 2012.

Starting off on the right foot in a partnership with United States Air Force soldiers from the Manas Transit Center in Bishkek (the gateway for American soldiers entering and leaving Afghanistan), I worked to distribute 1500 coats and blankets to needy children in western Kyrgyzstan.  “Operation Warm & Dry” was a military humanitarian mission that partnered with Peace Corps Volunteers and PCV-counterparts to bring warmth to those who most need it.  It was an honor to work with US servicemen but most importantly the project made a great impact.

With only 18 more months of Peace Corps service left, I am starting to feel the time crunch in front of me.  Searching for ways to make an impact before I leave, I have started to turn my goals from more than the development of one community radio station, but instead the development of all independent and community media throughout the Kyrgyz Republic.

I participate in national conferences of community media outlets on a regular basis in the capital city and a reoccurring issue is the need for a virtual information exchange where discussions can continue beyond the conference, media can be uploaded/downloaded, journalists can connect with each other and stories can be shared with the world.

The major problem is that many of these journalists have poor access to internet and lack the facility to create websites.  They do however have great technical ability, are good writers and have at least some level of internet access.

So I came up with a solution.  I am building a network of websites that will serve to unify Kyrgyz Independent and community media under one internet brand.  This site will be part social network, part web hosting solution and 100% Kyrgyz media.  With the ability to share information with each other, file-sharing, host their own websites and have the world access their work, I believe that this can be a highly impactful resource for bringing more of Kyrgyzstan to the world.

You may visit https://kyrgyzmedia.kg to see the development of this site.

I wish you and yours a prosperous 2012 and encourage you to work for the betterment of the community in which you live!  As always, you may follow my adventure at https://www.judsonlmoore.com.

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Source: LSU Alumni Magazine, Spring 2012 Edition, p. 78 https://issuu.com/lsualumni/docs/spring2012_lsuaamag