My University of the World

Adventures of an International Film & Media Maker

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by Neill McKee

Type: Stories
Subject: Genre > Documentary
Keywords: Neill McKee, documentary
Publishing date: 2023
Publisher: Independant
Language: English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Paperback • 522 pages
6 x 9 inches (15 x 23 cm)

ISBN

978-1-7329457-8-4

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Book Presentation:
Gold Medal Winner, National Indie Excellence Awards (2024) for Autobiography
New Mexico - Arizona Book Awards (2024) Winner for Autobiography & Memoir
Distinguished Favorite, Independent Press Award (2024) for Career
Finalist, Book Excellence Awards (2024) for Autobiography

Neill McKee takes us on an entertaining journey through the developing world from 1970 to 2012. His memoir is filled with compelling dialog, humorous and poignant incidents, thoughts on world development, vivid descriptions of people and places he visited and worked in, and over 200 images (ebook and hardcover in color), all of which bring readers into his "University of the World." The story starts when he becomes a "one-man film crew," documenting the lives of Canadian CUSO volunteers working in Asia and Africa as teachers, medical doctors, nurses, engineers, agriculturalists, foresters, technicians, and a biologist. He learns the craft of filmmaking and meets and marries Elizabeth "on the hoof." The story is enlivened throughout by their challenges and adventures together, and Elizabeth's growing artistic talent and creations. Beginning in 1975, the young couple settles in Ottawa and starts a family, while Neill roams the world for Canada's International Development Research Centre. His award-winning films depict the agency's philosophy and search for solutions to problems in agriculture, forestry, fisheries, aquaculture, rural development, education, health, water and sanitation, and more. Then in 1990, McKee joins UNICEF in Bangladesh, and later in Africa, where he initiates long-lasting multimedia programs for child health, with a focus on empowering girls. In 2001, he moves to Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, USA, and then to Moscow, Russia, where he oversees similar initiatives. That experience leads him to a memorable last post in Washington, D.C. as director of a large global communication project. Throughout the short chapters and in a brief epilogue, McKee reflects on the long-term impact of the projects he documented and of his media creations. This is a book for anyone interested in world affairs and development, film and multimedia production, the use of media for behavior and social change, exotic travel, and interesting career choices.

About the Author:
Neill McKee is a creative nonfiction writer based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. My University of the World: Adventures of an International Film & Media Maker is a stand-alone sequel to his first travel memoir, Finding Myself in Borneo: Sojourns in Sabah, which has won three awards. McKee holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Calgary and a Master of Science in Communication from Florida State University. He worked internationally for 45 years, becoming an expert in the field of communication for behavior and social change. He directed and produced a number of award-winning documentary films/videos, popular multimedia initiatives, and has written numerous articles and three books in the field of development communication. During his international career, McKee was employed by Canadian University Service Overseas (now CUSO International); the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Canada; UNICEF in Asia and Africa; Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland; the Academy for Educational Development and FHI 360, Washington, D.C. He worked and lived in Malaysia, Bangladesh, Kenya, Uganda, and Russia for a total of 18 years and traveled to over 80 countries on short-term assignments. In 2015, he settled in New Mexico, where he uses his varied experiences, memories, and imagination in creative writing.

Press Reviews:
A wonderful memoir full of adventure, insight, humor, and feeling. Readers are treated to a balanced mix of technical challenges, "on the road" adventures, a love story, behavioral sciences, and proof that development-related communication makes a difference. -Gary Saffitz, former Deputy Director/Faculty, Johns Hopkins University's CCP, and marketing executive

This book humanizes the lives and work of development workers and the environments they work in. With humor and sensitivity, McKee also allows us into his own life and family for some of the most endearing parts of his story.-Mehr Khan Williams, former U.N. Assistant Secretary General and Deputy High Commissioner for Human Rights

This is a memoir that will appeal to the first generation who lived the opportunities offered by the creation of the international volunteer movement: Peace Corps, CUSO, VSO, UNV. McKee's curriculum vita is also a history in miniature of an era in international development, a firsthand report of the past waning, a future waxing. -Christopher Smart, former CUSO volunteer

The lucky reader travels shotgun with McKee during his adventures in numerous countries: harrowing flights, back-breaking overland trips, frigid lodging, humorous cultural misunderstandings, and local foods consumed to be respectful. Interwoven in the narrative are engaging details of his multi-continent courtship with Elizabeth, who would become his life partner in this odyssey. -Jane Bertrand, Professor, Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine

McKee's chapters covering his time with Canada's International Development Research Centre provide a powerful reminder of why and how this agency, in the 1970s and 1980s, became a global leader in pioneering new approaches to the field of international development. For me, the most exciting output and outcomes from McKee's design skills are represented by the animated cartoon stories of Meena and Sara and their impact on young people across Asia and Africa. -Don Simpson, Ph.D., Chief Explorer of the Renaissance Expedition

I physically feel as though I've now been to Southern Africa, Uganda, India, Sri Lanka, and more! McKee's powerful writing pulled me into the environment and relationships he forged throughout his career as an international film and media producer.

-Crystal J. Casavant Otto, Avid Reader and Book Blogger

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