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This is just too good – and painful – to pass up: The Daily Show With Jon Stewart Mon – Thurs 11p / 10c An Energy-Independent Future www.thedailyshow.com Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Alors, it was a wonderful Fête de la Musique here in Paris last night, thanks to the rollicking sounds of the brass band ensemble known as the Monty Pistons, pictured below.  Fun for the kids and the whole family!   Covers of Dandy Livingston’s ska classic “Message to You Rudy” and Dr. Dre beats spiced […]

Following last year’s massacre of more than 50 journalists in an ambush in the Philippines, the situation in the country for media professionals still remains grim. In the past week alone, three journalists have been gunned down and killed. During the U.S. State Department’s weekly press briefing on June 21, spokesman Philip Crowley commented on […]

More addiction treatment is needed for Afghan women, children Aid workers are struggling to help Afghan women and children overcome drug addiction, adapting Western-style treatment programs to reflect local realities. An estimated 1.5 million Afghans suffer from addiction, but most of the country’s 40 treatment facilities are geared toward men. HRW presses Iraqi Kurds to […]

This documentary focuses on a lesser known yet equally important part of the apartheid history of South Africa: the music it engendered. Director Lee Hirsch chronicles the time of apartheid from its inception in 1948 to its demise in the 1990s. He does so in part by showing footage of riots and demonstrations but also […]

State and local government are frantically scrambling to meet huge budget deficits and revenue shortfalls as the anemic corporate sector (except, of course, Wall Street and Big Oil) and as constrained businesses hold back on capital expenditures, employment decisions stagnate causing high unemployment and shaky consumer spending and confidence, which mean less income tax and smaller sales tax revenue for government treasuries.

Last week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced the winners of the annual World Food Prize.  For the first time in its history, the Prize, given each year by The World Food Prize Foundation, will be awarded to the heads of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that fight hunger.  The winners are David Beckmann, president of Bread […]

In 2010, 16 countries in Africa celebrate their independence, each achieved to its own unique soundtrack.  With this (and a renewed global and American interest in Afro-pop) in mind, a number of compilations and online gems are sure to be found throughout the year.  We’ll dedicated a post along the way to each of Africa’s […]

“Until you have a son of your own… you will never know the joy, the love beyond feeling that resonates in the heart of a father as he looks upon his son. You will never know the sense of honor that makes a man want to be more than he is and to pass something […]

Angelina Jolie, UNHCR  goodwill ambassador, pled in her address for World Refugee Day “Please remember the millions of people around the world forced from their homes whose only hope of return is to not be forgotten.”     “Never forget” has become an almost ironic slogan in the humanitarian world, as crises enter and leave public […]

I had an interesting visit the other day, along with some other local climate change folks, at the British Consulate-General in New York.  Over lunch, members of the Climate & Energy team talked with us about developments in the UK, some of the politics here in the US, and clean tech initiatives.  I want to […]

There are 12 million refugees, as of 2005, and an additional 21 million Internally displaced persons scattered across the globe today, approximately 44% of which are children.  Tomorrow, Sunday, June 20th, 2010 is World Refugee Day, a day set to honor the plight and resilient struggle of refugees around the world. World Refugee Day was […]

I spent the last three days in New York City attending the Social Impact Exchange’s inaugural conference on scaling.  The theme was “Taking social innovation to scale” and boasted an impressive line-up of speakers and participants, including Robert Steel, Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, Judith Rodin, Nancy Roob, and David Gergen.  Over the next few days, I’ll be […]

The U.S. soccer team was lucky to tie its first game in the World Cup against a reputedly stronger team, but some Americans appeared unclear as to whom exactly they were playing.

The following video features a panel discussion examining recent global public opinion poll data and considers the question: What does Obama’s global popularity bring the U.S.? The panel was hosted by the Christian Science Monitor and brought together Pew Research Center president Andrew Kohut, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, and former U.S. Senator John […]