Recent events have shown Iran’s rising clout in the Middle East. Despite its economic losses stemming from reduced oil prices and increased international sanctions, Iran has been posturing itself for an increased regional role for quite some time. The controversial and firebrand President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has been outspoken in his challenges to the West, his […]
The BBC Special Report page entitled “The Cost of Food” features a collection of resources on the current global food crisis. The page includes the latest news, analysis, video reports, and image galleries on food security issues. Also contained within the Special Report page are links to a food prices Facts and Figures page, providing […]
This week, the Council on Foreign Relations released an interesting backgrounder on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. The report discusses ASEAN’s relevance in the region’s politics and security. “Now experts say the group may pursue a bigger role in the region to help its members cope with the global financial crisis. As the downturn […]
“When the lives and the rights of children are at stake, there must be no silent witnesses.”– Carol Bellamy, Executive Director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) 1995-2004 We can no longer stand by in silence and turn a blind eye to the plight of children around the world who suffer needlessly from abuse, […]
http://www.ft.com/world The Financial Times of London’s (now commonly known as ‘FT’) World Page website is an adequate, though not among the best, compendiums of world headlines. It provides a decidely Anglo-American perspective on world affairs. While you’re there, however, also take a look at the ‘World Markets Data’ and the ‘Global Economy’ page — which […]
Escape from India’s slums, or any slums for that matter, may sound as simple as winning the lottery. Often we find ourselves thinking, “If only I had money…”, thinking that it will solve all our problems, but the reality is far from the dream. In all aspects of international development, money is merely a quick […]
This documentary shows the lives of three young Colombians living in a hillside suburb of Medellin called La Sierra. This film follows Edison, Cielo and Jesus. Edison is a lothario who leads a paramilitary gang who has six children from six different women. Cielo is a teenaged widow whose boyfriend is a jailed paramilitary member […]
Now is the time for all good men — and women — to come to the aid of public diplomacy. I have in mind citizen travel to countries that, until recently, were off-limits to Americans, like Iran, Libya or Syria. Or Cuba, the only country that Americans need a “license” from their own government to […]
According to a new report by the Fairtrade Foundation, farmers in the developing world have come under intense strain amid skyrocketing prices for food, fuel and fertiliser. The report, which includes interviews with farmers’ groups in Uganda, Malawi, Nicaragua, India, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean, claims that houshold budgets for many farmers in these areas […]
You’ve been hearing me whoop and holler here about the activities of the new Administration and the new Congress. (Fear not: You’ll continue to have more of this from me.) But there’s going to be some other visible and important action on The Hill next week – on Monday, March 2, in fact. Capitol Climate […]
Five weeks since taking office, President Barack Obama’s policies towards rising powers remain somewhat unclear. The new face of the United States can be seen in Obama’s campaign promises, his rhetoric and initial actions, the makeup of his foreign policy and national security teams, his Cabinet members’ confirmation hearings, Vice President Biden’s speech in Munich […]
The only surviving attacker from the Mumbai attack last November was charged in Indian court today. Ajmal Kasab faces more than 11,000 pages of criminal charges. 35 other Pakistani nationals were charged with conspiring to support the attacks; according to the Hindustan Times, they include two officers in the Pakistani army and three top-level leaders […]
President Obama, in his first address before a Joint Session of the U.S. Congress outlined the vision and policy priorities for his Administration. Prominently outlined as part of that vision for a 21st century America was a finely calibrated connection between the economic prosperity of the nation, and maintaining the U.S. position as the dominant […]
The Great Decisions 2009 article on the “Global Food Crisis” identifies U.S. agricultural subsidies as an example of a divisive issue between developed countries and developing countries, particularly as they try to negotiate a fair, free trade system. The U.S. government provides subsidies, or payments, to farmers or agribusinesses (often large-scale, corporate farms) for their […]
Ravaged by war, displaced, and thrown into “refugee camps” in Northern Uganda, women and girls are having to struggle for basic rights. Eighty percent of women in Uganda engage in agriculture and yet only 8 percent own land. Land disputes have threatened the resettlement of thousands of former IDPs. Many IDPs are leaving the camps […]