Awsane, Sanag, Somalia.

About Me

I'm a creative writer, journalist, photographer, human rights consultant, and a rock and punk rock musician...

The great theme has always been finding and sharing true stories about how people overcome extreme adversity, sometimes by crossing the desert, sometimes through laughter, and often through music

My photo portfolio, Earth, is currently here on Flickr...

I'm Founding Editor of HELO Magazine, pronounced "heal-o", the slang term for helicopters, an online site by, for, and about global crisis responders. We aim to cover war, peace, and humanitarian emergency stories in a deeper, local, and more creative way...

Director of the brand new SpokesMedia Film & Arts Festival based in Brooklyn, New York...

Blogger on war and peace for Change.org...

Music will be linked here soon...

And believe it or not I do take on new projects when possible. If you need a writer, photographer, or researcher on global affairs, please let me know...

If I can't do it myself, I can suggest a strong candidate. Serious inquiries only to Djgerstle@yahoo.com.

Peace,

- Daniel

Published Highlights 

Find more writing, interviews, and photos by clicking on one of the categories above. Also, check out my new blog series on War and Peace at Change.org which began Oct 2009.

Afghanistan Can't Afford a Future Without Women at the Table," New America Media, Feb 4, 2010.

Afghan Summit Highlights Risky Paradoxes of War," New America Media, Feb 1, 2010.

Music for the Road," HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Dec-Feb 2010. 

Karabakh: Feasting and Storytelling Across the Caucasus," HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Dec-Feb 2010. 

How Isolation Affects National Identity (Editor's Note)," HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Dec-Feb 2010.

Iraq & its Neighbors: Conjuring Peace in the Tigris Valley," HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Oct-Nov 2009. 

West African Voodoo Funk and other Audio-Epiphanies," HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Oct-Nov 2009.

Crisis Zone Soundtrack,” HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Aug-Sep 2009.

Cutting Through the Fog of War in Khartoum,” HELO: The Crisis Story Magazine, Aug-Sep 2009.  

A Visit to the Ossetian Divide: Life in North Ossetia,” Guardian Weekly, London, August 2008.

Enhancing the Food Security and Livelihoods Sector for Sudan: Focus on Darfur, South Sudan, and Southern Kordofan,” Social Impact / UN OCHA, Khartoum, July 2008.

Frontline Families in Russia’s North Caucasus, A Photo Exhibition and Essay,” University of Texas CREEES, Austin, April-May 2008.

Russia and the North Caucasus: Winning over the Peaceful Muslim Majority," The Guardian Weekly, London, January 2008. 

Somalia’s Sheikhs, Warlords, and Peacemakers—Competing Visions of How Islamic Government Works,” Islamica Magazine, Los Angeles, 2008. Print only.

Chechnyans Caught in the Crossfire," The Guardian Weekly online, London, December 2007. 

Survival in Somalia: Aid workers under attack [Part 2]," The Guardian Weekly online, London, October 2007. 

Survival in Somalia: Aid workers under attack [Part 1]," The Guardian Weekly online, London, October 2007.

Azerbaijan: Landmines: Fields of Peril," Transitions Online, Prague, October 2007. 

Under the Acacia Tree—Solving Legal Dilemmas for Children in Somalia, a child justice tool book and report on the 2007 Justice for Children National Survey for Somalia, UNDP-Rule of Law and Security Programme, UNICEF-Child Protection Unit, Nairobi / Garowe / Hargeisa, Somalia, September, Internal 2007.

South Ossetia’s Vladikavkaz Connection, " Eurasianet, Open Society [also translated to Italian on repost on Osservatorio sui Balcani, New York, January 2007. 

Chechnya’s Survivor Generation: A Photo Essay,” Chechnya Advocacy Network Online, December 2006.

Taming the African Horn’s Khat Trade,” [+4 photos] School of International and Public Affairs News Magazine, Volume XX, No.1, Columbia, New York, December 2006.

Bridging the Panj: Forging a Peacebuilding Livelihoods Strategy on the Afghan-Tajik Border,” Journal of Peacebuilding and Development, Volume 2 Number 3, American Univ, Washington DC, Spring 2006.

Stranded: Somali Nomads Seek Food in a BarrenLand,” School of International and Public Affairs News Magazine, Volume XIX, No.1, Columbia, New York, December 2005. 

The True Cost of AIDS,” Journal of International Affairs, Book Review of Markus Hacker’s The Macroeconomics of HIV/AIDS (WB 2005), New York, Spring.

Irreconcilable Mood Hovers over Nagorno-Karabakh Conflict Zone,” Eurasianet, [Also translated to Russian] Open Society Institute, NY, April 2005.

Moral Math and the Bombing of Iraq,” Communique News, Columbia, New York, March 2005.

Bosnia: Motivations of a Killer,” Communique News, Columbia, New York, February 2005.

Frontline Families in the Azerbaijan-Armenian Conflict, A Photo Exhibition and Essay by Daniel J Gerstle,” [+17 photos] Harriman Institute, Columbia, New York, February-March 2005.

Fighting Hunger and Heroin on the Afghan-Tajik Border,” Eurasianet, Open Society, New York, November 2004.

Nagorno-Karabakh’s Deep Divide,” Eurasianet, Open Society Institute, New York. July 2004.

Global Humanitarian Studies Index, Humanitarian Affairs Program, Website text, database, co-design, Columbia, New York, Spring 2004. 

The Pamir Paradox: Hunger and Water Insecurity at the Source of Central Asia’s Rivers,” Journal of International Affairs, New York, Spring 2004.

A Bosnian War Quick Reference, International Rescue Committee, US Refugee Resettlement Office, Split, Croatia 1999.