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Headshot 1.jpg About Alanna

Professional: health consulting, writing about global health for UN Dispatch and about international relief and development at Blood & Milk, developing winning proposals, monitoring and evaluating social sector projects, helping small groups avoid beginners' mistakes [read my resume] [connect on LinkedIn]

Personal: mothering, food blogging, caregiving, living abroad, taking the occasional picture

Want to contact me? Use the form at the bottom of this page or reach out by skype - I'm alanna.shaikh.

News: I am now working with UNAIDS and the government of Tajikistan to support preparation of the national plan for 2010-2015 on fighting AIDS

Blood and Milk

  • Tapping the Fanatical Surplus
    [27 Aug 10, 1:54pm] I have a confession to make: I am a fan. I read fan fiction. I participate in Livejournal communities. I have actually written fan fiction on occasion. It’s been a great hobby in a life where I can’t have hobbies that involve material things, and…
  • Beautiful Poverty
    [12 Aug 10, 10:06am] This is an unusual post for me. It’s old, first of all – I wrote it in my personal journal, on actual paper, about six years ago, while on a work trip to a country I’m not going to name here. It’s moodier than I tend to be now. And it kind of…
  • Me in Two Other Places
    [6 Aug 10, 4:51pm] 1) I am feeling very pleased with this piece I wrote for End the Neglect on the health impact of the Pakistani floods.2) This post at Aid Watch triggered a lot of response posts that were way better thought out than my initial salvo.

UN Dispatch

  • The Top Four Innovations in Emergency Response
    [2 Sep 10, 6:35pm] Innovation is the word of the year in international relief and development. Here are four recent innovations we've seen in disaster response--and their potential downsides. Innovation is…
  • Channel 16
    [1 Sep 10, 12:22pm] Channel 16, a new effort from a coalition of NGOs, aims to be a fully crowdsourced multimedia resource on humanitarian disasters. Crowdsourcing continues to gain attention and resources.  Chan…
  • African Nations Supporting More Science Funding
    [1 Sep 10, 7:48am] African governments are replacing international aid to science with their own domestic funding. It’s a good trend – if it’s for real – and if governments maintain their funding levels.…

My Tajikistan

  • Varzob
    [19 Jul 10, 7:16am] Taking our son swimming all day in the pools in Varzob.Permalink | Leave a comment  »
  • parking
    [6 Jul 10, 5:13pm] No idea why I love this, but it cracks me up that when you park illegally they take your license plate instead of just giving you a ticket.Permalink | Leave a comment  »
  • seeds and nuts
    [9 Mar 10, 10:14am] Especially peanuts coated with sesame seeds and honey, and almonds with a white sugar coating.Permalink | Leave a comment  »
  • Sunny afternoons
    [5 Mar 10, 10:27am] My whole family is sitting out in the yard, getting sunshine.Permalink | Leave a comment  »

Twitter

Global Dashboard

  • Obama explains climate deal at G8
    [22 Sep 09, 10:49am]
  • Modern Piracy – No One Say Arrr
    [23 Jul 09, 11:24am] I was all set to write a doom and gloom report on ocean freight for my first Global Dashboard post.  After all, fuel is getting more expensive, and piracy is getting worse. This can’t bode well for the industry that transports at least 90% of the…

Recipe Blog

  • Recipe: Pretending You're Not in Tajikistan Sauce
    [10 May 10, 4:54am] This is a spicy Asian-y sauce. It reminds me of the sauce they bring you with spring rolls in Vietnamese restaurants. I like it on fried food and with steamed vegetables. It tastes exotic to me, and unlike anything you would normally eat here in Dush…
  • Recipe: My Mom's Persimmon Bread
    [16 Feb 10, 12:57pm] Ingredients:1 ¼ cups sugar½ cup butter, softened2 large eggs1 ½ cups persimmon pulp½ cup buttermilk (or ½ cup milk + 2 tsp lemon juice)1 tsp vanilla2 ½ cups flour1 ½ tsp baking powder1 tsp salt1 cup chopped nuts, if desiredInstructions: Heat o…
  • Recipe: Embarrassingly Easy Quiche
    [9 Dec 09, 12:52pm] I am bitter about this quiche because it’s so good. Why have I wasted so much time making real quiche when I could done this all along? Tools: Oven, pie plate Ingredients: ½ cup bread crumbs Butter to grease pie plate 3 eggs 1 cup whole milk…

Photos of Central Asia

IMG_0035mausoleum doorstonesminaret3Khiva photos mom 026Khiva photos mom 166

Contact Me

Advice for Caregivers

Selected Writings