Afrikaans :  Geseënde Kersfees

Afrikander :  Een Plesierige Kerfees

African/ Eritrean/ Tigrinja :  Rehus-Beal-Ledeats

Albanian : Gezur Krislinjden

Arabic :  Milad Majid

Argentine :  Feliz Navidad

Armenian :  Shenoraavor Nor Dari yev Pari Gaghand

Azeri :  Tezze Iliniz Yahsi Olsun

Bahasa Malaysia :  Selamat Hari Natal

Basque :  Zorionak eta Urte Berri On!

Bengali :  Shuvo Naba Barsha

Bohemian :  Vesele Vanoce

Brazilian :  Feliz Natal

Breton :  Nedeleg laouen na bloavezh mat

Bulgarian :  Tchestita Koleda; Tchestito Rojdestvo Hristovo

Catalan :  Bon Nadal i un Bon Any Nou!

Chile :  Feliz Navidad

Chinese :  (Cantonese) Gun Tso Sun Tan’Gung Haw Sun

Chinese :  (Mandarin) Kung His Hsin Nien bing Chu Shen Tan (Catonese) Gun Tso Sun Tan’Gung Haw Sun

Choctaw :  Yukpa, Nitak Hollo Chito

Columbia :  Feliz Navidad y Próspero Año Nuevo

Cornish :  Nadelik looan na looan blethen noweth

Corsian :  Pace e salute

Crazanian :  Rot Yikji Dol La Roo

Cree :  Mitho Makosi Kesikansi

Croatian :  Sretan Bozic

Czech :  Prejeme Vam Vesele Vanoce a stastny Novy Rok

Danish :  Glædelig Jul

Duri :  Christmas-e- Shoma Mobarak

Dutch :  Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar! or Zalig Kerstfeast

English :  Merry Christmas

Eskimo :  (inupik) Jutdlime pivdluarit ukiortame pivdluaritlo!

Esperanto :  Gajan Kristnaskon

Estonian :  Ruumsaid juulup|hi

Ethiopian :  (Amharic) Melkin Yelidet Beaal

Faeroese :  Gledhilig jol og eydnurikt nyggjar!

Farsi :  Cristmas-e-shoma mobarak bashad

Finnish :  Hyvaa joulua

Flemish :  Zalig Kerstfeest en Gelukkig nieuw jaar

French :  Joyeux Noel

Frisian :  Noflike Krystdagen en in protte Lok en Seine yn it Nije Jier!

Galician :  Bo Nada

Gaelic :  Nollaig chridheil agus Bliadhna mhath ùr!

German :  Fröhliche Weihnachten

Greek :  Kala Christouyenna!

Haiti :  (Creole) Jwaye Nowel or to Jesus Edo Bri’cho o Rish D’Shato Brichto

Hausa :  Barka da Kirsimatikuma Barka da Sabuwar Shekara!

Hawaiian :  Mele Kalikimaka

Hebrew :  Mo’adim Lesimkha. Chena tova

Hindi :  Shub Naya Baras

Hausa :  Barka da Kirsimatikuma Barka da Sabuwar Shekara!

Hawaian :  Mele Kalikimaka ame Hauoli Makahiki Hou!

Hungarian :  Kellemes Karacsonyi unnepeket

Icelandic :  Gledileg Jol

Indonesian :  Selamat Hari Natal

Iraqi :  Idah Saidan Wa Sanah Jadidah

Irish :  Nollaig Shona Dhuit, or Nodlaig mhaith chugnat

Iroquois :  Ojenyunyat Sungwiyadeson honungradon nagwutut. Ojenyunyat osrasay.

Italian :  Buone Feste Natalizie

Japanese :  Shinnen omedeto. Kurisumasu Omedeto

Jiberish :  Mithag Crithagsigathmithags

Korean :  Sung Tan Chuk Ha

Lao :  souksan van Christmas

Latin :  Natale hilare et Annum Faustum!

Latvian :  Prieci’gus Ziemsve’tkus un Laimi’gu Jauno Gadu!

Lausitzian : Wjesole hody a strowe nowe leto

Lettish :  Priecigus Ziemassvetkus

Lithuanian :  Linksmu Kaledu

Low Saxon :  Heughliche Winachten un ‘n moi Nijaar

Macedonian :  Sreken Bozhik

Maltese :  IL-Milied It-tajjeb

Manx :  Nollick ghennal as blein vie noa

Maori :  Meri Kirihimete

Marathi :  Shub Naya Varsh

Navajo :  Merry Keshmish

Norwegian :  God Jul, or Gledelig Jul

Occitan :  Pulit nadal e bona annado

Papiamento :  Bon Pasco

Papua New Guinea :  Bikpela hamamas blong dispela Krismas na Nupela yia i go long yu

Pennsylvania German :  En frehlicher Grischtdaag un en hallich Nei Yaahr!

Peru :  Feliz Navidad y un Venturoso Año Nuevo

Philipines :  Maligayan Pasko!

Polish :  Wesolych Swiat Bozego Narodzenia or Boze Narodzenie

Portuguese : Feliz Natal

Pushto :  Christmas Aao Ne-way Kaal Mo Mobarak Sha

Rapa-Nui (Easter Island): Mata-Ki-Te-Rangi. Te-Pito-O-Te-Henua

Rhetian :  Bellas festas da nadal e bun onn

Romanche :  (sursilvan dialect): Legreivlas fiastas da Nadal e bien niev onn!

Rumanian :  Sarbatori vesele or Craciun fericit

Russian :  Pozdrevlyayu s prazdnikom Rozhdestva is Novim Godom

Sami :  Buorrit Juovllat

Samoan :  La Maunia Le Kilisimasi Ma Le Tausaga Fou

Sardinian :  Bonu nadale e prosperu annu nou

Serbian :  Hristos se rodi

Slovakian: Sretan Bozic or Vesele vianoce

Sami: Buorrit Juovllat

Samoan :  La Maunia Le Kilisimasi Ma Le Tausaga Fou

Scots Gaelic :  Nollaig chridheil huibh

Serbian: Hristos se rodi.

Singhalese :  Subha nath thalak Vewa. Subha Aluth Awrudhak Vewa

Slovak :  Vesele Vianoce. A stastlivy Novy Rok

Slovene :  Vesele Bozicne Praznike Srecno Novo Leto or Vesel Bozic in srecno Novo leto

Spanish :  Feliz Navidad

Swedish :  God Jul and (Och) Ett Gott Nytt År

Tagalog : Maligayamg Pasko. Masaganang Bagong Taon

Tami :  Nathar Puthu Varuda Valthukkal

Trukeese: (Micronesian) Neekiriisimas annim oo iyer seefe feyiyeech!

Thai :  Sawadee Pee Mai or souksan wan Christmas

Turkish :  Noeliniz Ve Yeni Yiliniz Kutlu Olsun

Ukrainian :  Srozhdestvom Kristovym or Z RIZDVOM HRYSTOVYM

Urdu :  Naya Saal Mubarak Ho

Vietnamese :  Chuc Mung Giang Sinh

Welsh :  Nadolig Llawen

Yoruba :  E ku odun, e ku iye’dun!

*************************************

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is planning to invest €1.1 billion in Ukraine in 2010.

Speaking to Interfax-Ukraine, EBRD Principal Advisor in Ukraine Anton Usov said: “Our investment in 2009 has exceeded €1 billion. Next year, the indicator will not be any less than this year’s.”

The largest financial investor in Ukraine, the EBRD has been a supporter of many sectors in Ukraine, including its agribusiness sector. As of the end of June this year, the EBRD had committed a massive €4.3 billion through 179 projects in Ukraine

Sector breakdown of current EBRD projects in Ukraine

Source: EBRD, Ukraine Country Factsheet, April 2009

In December 2009, the Food and Agricultural Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and the EBRD agreed to help the Ukrainian agricultural industry by developing a new crop forecasting methodology. This will help the Ukrainian grain sector to attact more potential investors as farmers will be able to anticipate price changes and assess market risks accurately.

In April 2009, the EBRD offered a US$20 million loan to Astarta Holding, a Ukraine-based sugar producer, to help it purchase equipments for its agricultural farms.

Why Ukrainian agricultural land?

Ukraine, once called the “bread basket of Europe,” has a long agricultural history. In recent years, as rich nations begin to worry about a looming global food crisis, many are rushing to snatch up agricultural land from abroad to grow crops.

The country is among the many targeted states worldwide, including Sudan, Brazil, Uganda and regions in south-east Asia.

The post-Soviet state boasts of having 70% of its land arable, but more importantly is its abundace of black earth soil – 40% of chernozem in the world is located in Ukraine.

Although the economic performance was heavily affected by the global economic downturn in 2009, its agricultural industry continued to achieve outstanding performance.

Following a bumper harvest in the last marketing year, the Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation is expecting grain exports in the country to hit 23 to 24 million tonnes, just 1 million tonnes short of last year’s record.

Find out more download a Ukrainian Agricultural Investment report by CLICKING HERE

]]> http://booksinsync.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/books-in-sync-announces-romance-author-thomas-c-almond/ Thu, 10 Dec 2009 15:11:30 +0000 booksinsync http://booksinsync.wordpress.com/2009/12/10/books-in-sync-announces-romance-author-thomas-c-almond/

Author’s Bio:

Thomas C. Almond was born in Spokane, Washington. Almond served 4 years in the USCG, followed by 27 years as a firefighter for the city of Portland, Oregon. Almond lives in Bend, Oregon and is married to Olga Kucherenko of Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. Thomas enjoys stories that evoke thoughts and emotions from the reader. In his writing he feels as if he is telling you his story in person.

‘Goodbye, Kiev’ is based on a true life experience. It is a collaboration of this experience and my idea of writing a love story involving a difficult situation that would test this love and commitment.

I desired to write a book that would evoke emotions and thought in the readers.

‘Goodbye, Kiev’ is a story largely set in Kiev and Dnepropetrovsk, Ukraine. In addition to the main story readers can learn a little about life in Ukraine, history of Ukraine, and a little about the workings of an International Marriage agency.

‘Goodbye Kiev’ is a story of love and commitment with a bit of mystery thrown in.

Don’t miss out on a Love Story of our time!

Books In Sync Honors & Appreciates Author Thomas C. Almond For His Service To His Country (US Coast Guard) In The United States Military.

До свидания Киев (Russian)

Goodbye, Kiev by Thomas C. Almond

A story of love and commitment even in the presence of overwhelming odds. A story of one man and one woman. One American, the other Ukrainian.

The man travels to Ukraine to meet the woman he has corresponded with through an international marriage agency. They meet and fall in love. He returns home engaged, but soon the woman seems to mysteriously change her mind. He cannot understand what has happened and cannot get over the feeling she does not really want to end this relationship. Without even an agreement that she will meet with him, he returns to Ukraine to solve the mystery and save the relationship with the woman he loves. He is not prepared for what is to be the answer to this mystery, an answer that will repeatedly test his love and commitment.

Goodbye Kiev Book Review:

До свидания Киев

“Moving, Heart-Rending, and Spiritually Fulfilling!

At some point or another, we all pine for that special someone who will one day come into our lives and ease the lingering pain of being alone…our only fear: that when they finally come along, they’re too good to be true…

Such is the case with Tom, a veteran firefighter looking to mend the broken pieces of his heart after an unpleasant divorce. Of all places, he selects the countries of the former Soviet Union to seek his ideal mate – and, as unlikely as it may seem, he soon finds the new love of his life, Lyubov, through a Russian matchmaking agency. Everything about Lyubov convinces Tom that she’s the woman of his dreams, and, after traveling to her native Kiev to meet her in person, the two of them soon fall head over heels in love with one another and begin a whirlwind romantic affair that culminates in her joyfully accepting his heartfelt marriage proposal.

Just as quickly as they brought Tom and Lyubov together, though, circumstances soon begin to drive them apart. For reasons unknown to Tom, Lyubov suddenly starts to put distance in-between them, and she eventually cuts off contact with him completely. Not one to give up on true love so easily, Tom relentlessly pursues Lyubov, determined to discover precisely why she longs to withdraw from him – and what he ultimately learns about her shakes not only the foundation of their burgeoning relationship, but his own personal belief system as well. In the wake of the devastating, life-altering news, Tom is forced to decide if his love for Lyubov is truly strong enough to endure even the most daunting of challenges.

Goodbye, Kiev is a touching memoir penned straight from the heart of someone entirely familiar with the thrilling highs and abysmal lows of love. Thomas Almond’s semi-autobiographical account of the simultaneously rewarding and arduous trials of relationship-building will resonate with readers of all ages even remotely familiar with such universal matters of the heart. We are taught from a young age that we must fight for the things that we truly desire, but few among us are able to sustain the requisite resolve to endure the various challenges that threaten to impede us along the way. Through the example of Tom’s life, Almond provides the reader with a sterling example of the benefits of such tenacity, and he also skillfully displays that – even if the result that we receive is different than what we desired – we are still ultimately richer for having embraced the experience.

Reviewed by Linda Waterson

Apex Reviews (Durham, NC USA) February 21, 2009

Book Details:

Publisher: PublishAmerica (October 27, 2008)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1606109944

ISBN-13: 978-1606109946

187 Pages

Print Price: $19.95

Purchase Link:

http://www.publishamerica.net/product25452.html

Amazon Price: $24.95

http://www.amazon.com/Goodbye-Kiev-Thomas-C-Almond/dp/1606109944/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260223312&sr=1-1

Author’s Website:

http://thomascalmond.webs.com/

Hardcover Price: $19.95 On Author’s Website

Softcover Price: $15.95 On Author’s Website

Author’s Webpage On Books In Sync:

http://www.booksinsync.com/authordirectory/almondthomasc.html

Author’s Email:

forest55trees@yahoo.com

Submitted by Theodocia McLean

Owner of Books In Sync

Website: http://www.booksinsync.com

Goodbye, Kiev by Thomas C. Almond

I’ve got some comments, concerning a news article about a Russian couple accused of abusing their kids in Oregon. Read the news article here, then read my comments.

http://www.katu.com/news/78571797.html

MY COMMENTS ON THIS STORY MIGHT MAKE ME UNPOPULAR IN THE SLAVIC CIRCLES, BUT IM JUST DISGUSTED: I know that most conservative Russian churches are praying for this family. I guess I’ll be bold to say that this story is dispicable and embarrassing to our community.

Here are two reasons.

1. The Sunday school teacher said that he/she would not report child abuse. Are you kidding me? Do you have a heart? Dismiss this sunday school teacher ASAP. There are at times when real neglect, and illeagal abuse of kids happens, even in the Russian community, and Sunday School teachers need to be able to notice and deal with that. Its the LAW.

2. The main reason why the kids in this story were severely dissiplined was becuase the girls cut their hair. Are you kidding me?  All I got to say to that is: religion stinks. It takes away relationship. Do you think your kids will want to follow your ways after they turn 18, if that is the way you approach and teach them? They’ll be out of the house, and will not want to have anything to do with you, nor with your religion.

I think the conservatives are dropping the ball here. They actually go out now, and protest for this couple. (Here is a news article about that: http://www.katu.com/news/local/53517827.html)

How about you go out and protest against abuse, neglect, rape, molestation? I wonder, I just wonder what side Jesus would be on. And if the story of the prostitute is any indication, I’m not sure the conservative church is getting this one right.

Personally, I do believe in discipline. And the judge himself said that spanking is allowed by the law, but not such spanking that leaves marks and hurts the kids in such way that they cannot go to school for 8 days. It is abuse when the kids are forced to stand on their knees for 6 hours, to the point that one of them almost loses consciousness.

One more note about the court case – I watched the videos from the court (can be watched here: http://www.statesmanjournal.com/) and learned that the parents decided to defend themselves, without an attourney. Actually, they said, “God will defend us, therefore we don’t need an attourney.” Just based on what I saw – I believe if these parents got an attourney, they would have shown maybe a much better side of their family, and their sentence would not have been as severe (7 years, 3 months). No one asked the kids to share the good side of the family. During questioning, the defense really had no question, therefore the jury was fully convinced and believed everything that the prosecutor said. And knowing that they live in liberal Oregon, I would not be surprised if the prosecutor did bring stuff up that wasn’t true. These parents made two big mistakes – and now will pay for 7 years. 1 – they inappropriately treated their kids, and 2 – they did not defend themselves properly.

DAY 7 – MONDAY JULY 28TH

On Monday morning Kupalo left the Victoria Cross apartments for some more sightseeing in Kilkenny and Wicklow on route to Dublin, where they would spend another night before flying home to Canada. A number of the older non-performing group members were staying in Ireland for an addition couple of days before heading home as well. Jugnu Bhangra left the Cork International Airport Hotel on Monday afternoon, to fly home to London from Cork Airport.

DAY 4 – FRIDAY JULY 24TH

A television news crew had made contact with us and wanted to do a feature on Damhsa Fest ’09 for national television.  Before visiting Charles Fort in Kinsale on Friday morning, Kupalo, Jugnu Bhangra and Owenabue Valley Traditional Group performed on the grass outside the fort to many on looking tourists, who were delighted with the unexpected show.  The interview by Barry Mescal was broadcast on RTÉ 1 Nuacht and TG4 Nuacht on Friday evening and again on Sunday night on TG4.

After glorious sunshine for the TV interview, the planned guided tour of the fort was cancelled due to a very heavy downpour.  This heavy rain returned with thunder and lightning in the afternoon just as the outdoor, free public performance on the gig rig was about to begin in Kinsale Town centre.  Again, many of the tourists remained in doorways, local hostelries and shops. One family of four remained on their front row bench under their large umbrella and actually kept dry through it all. The performance commenced after the mobile stage was dried off. A large passing crowd enjoyed the show even during the light and heavy showers.

After a meal in the White House restaurant, the groups travelled to the Parkway Hotel Dunmanway. Again the special stage and lighting was brought in and erected to add to the atmosphere of the performance after a short parade through the town. While the concert performance was excellent and the audience really appreciated it, the numbers were not as high as had been expected. All of the performers were given a meal after their show.

PRE-FESTIVAL EVENTS –

The Damhsa Festival had been in discussions with Susan & Travis Finch of a Canadian/Ukrainian dance group, Kupalo, since 2007. This group originally intended to come to Ireland for 3 weeks and asked if we had any contacts with other festivals where they could get the opportunity to perform either before or after Damhsa Fest 09. We made contact with the organisers of the Munster Fleadh Ceol and arranged for Kupalo to take part in the Fleadh’s festive activities on Saturday 19^th July.

Kupalo flew in to Dublin Airport on the Thursday before the festival. The 40 strong group of 29 dancers and 11 helpers & parents did some sightseeing in Dublin. On Saturday July 18th, the Munster Fleadh Ceoil in Roscrea, Co. Tipperary hosted Kupalo. They performed on the gig rig on the Saturday night of the weekend festival, where they gave an entertaining  90 minute display of Ukrainian dancing to a large crowd.

On Sunday July 19th, the Kupalo group visited Cashel, attended the Bru Bru Comhaltas concert and. were invited to perform for the crowd after the show. From here they made their way to Killarney, Co. Kerry, where the group stayed on Sunday and Monday night and travelled the Ring of Kerry during the day on the Monday.

Is this baby crying in German or French?  A new study says we may be able to tell. The study was originally discussed on my sister pod, The World’s science podcast. It   concludes that we begin language acquisition in the womb. At that stage, we are, well, a captive audience to mama’s words; researchers say we pick up a bit of her accent and intonation. Then after birth, we cry in ways that imitate that accent and intonation.

Then it’s off to Ukraine, where the Ukrainian language (see alphabet above) is enjoying a government-sponsored revival. This comes at the expense of Russian – with the notable and ever-delightful exception of swear words: people still curse almost exclusively in Russian. Why? you tell me, please…In any case, the government’s support of Ukrainians, especially in schools and colleges has turned this into an election issue. The two front runners in next January’s presidential vote are the pro-Western Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, who generally favors the promotion of Ukrainian, and the more Kremlin-oriented Viktor Yanukovych, who believes Russian should be protected.  Which leaves our Kiev-based reporter, Brigid McCarthy, somewhat conflicted as to which language to study.

Finally, a conversation with the two French guys behind cover band Nouvelle Vague. Their new album re-imagines punk and new wave classics by The Sex Pistols, Plastic Bertrand and others. The singers tend to be non-native English speakers, female and young — young enough in some cases not to have heard the originals, or know about the ethos and vibe of punk. I like a lot of their reinterpretions because they’re so wildly different from the originals, yet add something that was seemingly overlooked by the original artists. It’s as if the musical code — the language — is flipped to reveal something previously hidden.  So, the vicious anger of the Sex Pistols’ version of God Save the Queen becomes a sweet, hymnal folk song. The Police’s poppy So Lonely becomes a desperate, haunting dirge. There’s a great linguistic flip too:  for the one song with lyrics in French, Plastic Betrand’s Ça Plane Pour Moi, the singer is an English woman who enunciates the French words with a marked English accent.

At the end of our interview, I offered the Nouvelle Vague guys my two cents on the punk classics they might next tackle:  anything from Elvis Costello’s My Aim is True album, Richard Hell’s Blank Generation,  Iggy Pop’s Dog Food, and top of the list:  a very early single from Adam and the Ant called Young Parisians. They should sing that one in French.

Listen in iTunes or here.

OK, I just need to include an image of the Pistols.

Translation & Interpreting services

http://www.vertaalbureau-scandic.nl/english/

Sometimes we are at a loss about what to cook. Or sometimes we just have too much of one thing lying around. This case was true for Sean this past Monday. She had been trying to sneak potatoes into every meal since she acquired a sack of them 3 weeks ago. Last week we had Hainanese chicken and her suggestion to use potato as a side was quickly rejected. Many of them started to sprout, but she was able to save several of them for dinner this Monday.

Sticking to our international theme, we had Ukrainian borscht. Topped off with a dollop of sour cream, this soup is rich in color and in flavor. Borscht tastes very similar to a vegetable soup with cabbage, tomatoes and potatoes. The broth is made red by the addition of beets. You will find different versions, some vegetarian and some with bacon, throughout Eastern Europe. Our borscht included turkey sausage. She served us steaming bowls of soup with a side of roasted potatoes. It was a perfect meal for a chilly night.

Dinner at Sean’s place

11/09/2009

Ukrainian Borscht

This is a detail from an old Ukrainian Catholic church which is found in countryside in east-central Saskatchewan.  The church was built during a Ukrainian immigration period in order to meet the needs of those who settled as homesteaders in the region.  More modern churches in urban centres have  drawn the children and grandchildren and great grandchildren.  Fewer families live in the rural settings.  Yet, the church still stands and for now, a few make it their spiritual home.

When I was a youth, I had believed that I would become a priest.  I was a serious young person that seemed to have an old soul, a soul that hungered for spirituality, hungered for something more than the day-to-day life that a child experienced.  By the time I was an adolescent, I had come to the conclusion that the church didn’t have enough answers for the questions that I had, and for the questions I sensed were waiting to be asked.  And so, I gave up on the idea of becoming a priest.  I knew that I would not be a good priest – I just didn’t believe enough – there were too many doubts.

It wasn’t long before my quest for answers, the quest for missing questions, lead me to search in libraries.  There, I met Neitzsche and a number of others who had also gone in search of questions and answers outside of the church.  And in listening to these others, I came to realise that the place I needed to go for my needed sense of spiritual connection was within my “self.”  I couldn’t dump the responsibility on any clergy of any faith, nor on the tenets of any faith.  The responsibility lay within.

Come to Kiev to find love and experience the beautiful city.  Meet  as many ladies as you want on private and romantic dates.  It is a wonderful opportunity to find love with a Ukrainian girl. We will help you with everything and give you peace of mind in Kiev. For more information please visit http://www.ukrainiangirls.info

The story of the 18-year-old Ukrainian mother sold to work in a brothel in Turkey after she answered an ad to work abroad was just the start of it for Ron Hampton.

Hampton, a University of Nebraska-Lincoln marketing professor, has heard countless stories of callous exploitation in his research of human trafficking. But his concern is that many others haven’t.

He believes he and other researchers are able to help raise awareness and fight the fast-growing global criminal industry that’s operating even in Nebraska. But first, he says, they must understand it.

Researchers from across the country, along with government representatives and others working to end human trafficking, are set to gather this week in Lincoln. UNL will host a three-day conference, titled “What We Know and What We Need to Know,” beginning Thursday.

Keynote speaker Kevin Bales, president of Free the Slaves, a Washington, D.C.-based organization focused on ending slavery worldwide, will offer a free lecture Thursday night.

The conference came together through the efforts of UNL’s anti-trafficking team, a group that includes Hampton and faculty members from diverse backgrounds. They’ve been meeting for more than a year to share research and their ideas to curb the problem.

Organizers say the conference is part of a bigger plan to make UNL a hub for human trafficking research.

“It might as well start here as anywhere else. The problem is worldwide,” said marketing professor Dwayne Ball.

Worldwide, an estimated 27 million people may be enslaved, according to the United Nations and other experts. The U.S. State Department estimates that includes as many as 200,000 in the United States.

“There are people in forced labor everywhere and in this country. It’s very invisible,” said Leslie Wolfe, president of the Center for Women Policy Studies. Wolfe is among the conference’s scheduled speakers.

The crime in the United States isn’t limited to border states or big cities, she said. Any place with a highway or an airport is vulnerable.

Nebraska isn’t immune, Hampton and Ball say.

Take the recent case of the 12-year-old Central American girl sold to a Mexican slave trader after her family left her in her uncle’s care, Hampton said. She landed in central Nebraska unable to speak English or trust anyone after she’d been raped and beaten in spirit along the way, he said.

In 2008, an Iowa court prosecuted its first human trafficking case — that of a man who recruited and harbored two Nebraska girls for commercial sexual activity, including prostitution and performing at strip clubs. Prosecutors said the girls, ages 15 and 16, were runaways.

Illicit sex trafficking accounts for part of the problem, but the majority of cases are believed to be men forced into labor — many in factories, the construction industry and in agricultural settings, Hampton said. Many are working off debt to masters who provided them entry into the United States.

U.N. officials and other experts have estimated human trafficking is a $32 billion industry.

Ultimately, it’s a marketing-system problem, Hampton said.

“We’re talking about buying and selling labor — human beings,” said Hampton, who was drawn to the issue four years ago at the encouragement of a student familiar with problems in Ukraine.

In the case of the Ukrainian mother working a sex slave in Istanbul, Hampton said she would see as many as 20 clients and earned her master about $2,000 a night, but had nothing to show for it.

“People have got to see the impact it has on human life,” he said.

That’s Wolfe’s focus, too.

“For me the important thing is to understand it in the context of human rights, which is a very big issue in the rest of the world and hopefully soon will be in the U.S.,” she said.

source: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gptQ7n5vw5Zrw2n0oiG9FVqaXOgwD9BIRUM00