Editor's Note:  Jonathan Lewis is a freelance photojournalist based in Istanbul.


Georgia Trades a Stick for a Carrot in Overtures to Abkhazia, South Ossetia (Jul 29)
Georgia has come knocking on separatist doors with a basket full of promised grants, investments and social welfare perks, but de facto Abkhaz and South Ossetian officials, wary of Georgians bearing gifts and mindful of Moscow and their own declarations of independence, show no sign of interest in the offering.
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Extracting Change in Afghanistan’s Development Quagmire (Jul 29)
The girls’ high school under construction in Jabal Seraj could have turned out like any other development project in the area: crumbling and dangerous. Afghanistan is littered with poor-quality buildings sponsored by foreign donors. The projects are often sub-contracted -- several times -- to a final implementer who maximizes profits using cheap labor and sub-standard materials.
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Living in Bishkek’s Brutal Underground (Jul 29)
Beneath the glamour and excess, the fast cars and “VIP” clubs, Bishkek’s feeble image of new money quickly evaporates. For an increasing number in Kyrgyzstan’s capital, the economic crisis means homelessness. Some seek refuge underground in the dark and dangerous corridors of the city’s central hot water and power system, living amongst decaying animals, used needles and human filth. read more


Turkmkenistan Weekly Roundup (Jul 29)
Turkmen Vice Premier and Foreign Minister Rashid Meredov reported on his participation in the meetings of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in Almaty and the international conference on Afghanistan in Kabul at a cabinet meeting this week, the State News Agency of Turkmenistan reported. read more


Surviving Underground Amid Poverty, Drugs and Fear (Jul 28)