Wise Monkey News is here to provide young people an opportunity to discuss the issues that affect their lives. We hope that, through your participation, this website serves as a forum for the development, exchange, and expression of ideas that will prepare us to assume our positions as the leaders of tomorrow's world. Have something to say?
When life on the streets meets the yellowbrick road
by: Erin Goodling - printed on 02-27-2002
What began as a mild interest in the homeless issues of Portland (thanks to my morning bike commute past Dignity Village, Portland's tent city), soon became a logistical understanding of homeless youth services in Portland (thanks to a term paper for Br. Stabrowski's Urban Politics class at the University of Portland). Shortly thereafter, I found out that my friend, Scott, works at Yellow Brick Road, the street outreach component of Willamette Bridge Youth Services.
Struggles in the European Union - Spain
by: Mono Vergara - printed on 02-20-2002
Spain: Integration and Isolation
One of the Spanish governments biggest concerns is that people in Spain lack interest in their membership in the European Union. The euro was adopted in Spain last January and will be fully adopted at the end of February, and it seems to be one of the only signs and reminders that Spain belongs to the EU. Another important and often ignored fact is that the current president of the EU is Spanish - President Aznar acts as the head of the European government.
One Child Policy
by: Ben Hays - printed on 11-07-2001
People pack the streets of China everyday from sunup to sundown. Bicycles fill the lanes with a steady blur of baskets and business suits. The sound of ringers is a constant melody, with the addition of a few mopeds thrown in for an offbeat. This is a typical day for Chinese people, who migrate to work through a sea of people. With China?s large population of over 1.2 billion, how could it ever change?
Population decrease has already begun when the Chinese government imposed a One Child Policy in 1978.
A lesson in education gaps
by: Charity Adolf - printed on 10-18-2000
When you think of the American school system, what comes to mind? Is it negative? Does it make your body become tense and your stomach turn to knots? I know this is what happens to me at times, and I am going into the field of education! Thinking about the school system in the United States provokes thoughts concerning the lack of funding for our schools, the increasing needs of students, the growing class size, the decreasing diversity of classes and opportunities and, especially, the ever-widening gap between high socioeconomic schools and poor, underprivileged schools.
Monologues help women
by: Sruthi Mathews - printed on 09-25-2002
It was on a whim really. I had no idea. I wasn’t prepared for the depth of experience and truth which would resonate the theater walls on the day of auditions. Some of the women recalled the basic and occasionally humorous frustrations of simply belonging to the female gender— PAP smears, tampons, etc.—
Nurturing our Bodies/Nurturing Mother Earth
by: Tim Crump - printed on 03-28-2001
My morning bicycle ride to the University of Portland is one of the few times in the day that I feel good, truly and deeply good, about what I am doing. In our lives, so many of our decisions and actions involve trade-offs. To keep the apartment warm we have to turn up the heat and burn more energy. To learn more about an important subject, we print out an article, using a few more sheets of paper.