The worldwide race to end a deadly epidemic
Scientists and medical experts in more than a dozen countries are racing to develop vaccines to stop the spread of an epidemic that has wreaked havoc in West Africa, killing more than 10,000 people. In Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, where the virus has devastated communities for more than a year, many wonder whether a vaccine or treatment will arrive in time. Read More Read More
World Cup tickets too pricey for many
If it wasn’t clear before how seriously South Africans are taking the World Cup, it is now. Amid scenes of chaos, confusion and long lineups, FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, made tickets available over the counter last week for the first time. It’s the last phase of ticket sales, in which 500,000 tickets were released. Read More Read More
Will this Island of Wealth close the door to Foreigners?
The spotless train from Lausanne to Geneva coasts past a glistening Lac Léman and snow-capped mountains in the distance. Anyone looking out at the wooden-beamed houses scattered across the hillside would be puzzled by the recurring debate over population density and immigration. Read More Read More
South Africa faces Challenges as World Cup Approaches
“Here, ladies and gentlemen, the dream is now reality.” With these words, FIFA president Sepp Blatter did his best Tuesday in Durban, South Africa, to set the tone for the 100-day countdown to the World Cup opener in June. But this is South Africa, where the drama is invariably unscripted. Read More Read More
Chile’s Dictatorship: Were Soldiers Victims, too?
In a modest hilltop home off of a long, winding road that leads out of Santiago into the Andean mountains, Anastasio Palma and Carlos Ortega recall life in the Armed Forces. But this isn’t your typical soldier reunion, filled with tales of camaraderie. Palma and Ortega were conscripted during the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship, and are part of a growing movement demanding... Read More
Vamos! Radical approach to learning Spanish in Mexico
It’s amazing how much the wandering monoglot can convey with grunts, smiles and gesticulations –but in Latin America, the only way out of the expat bubble is to actually speak Spanish. Who has time though, for months of classes only to prepare for a week’s vacation? Help, it turns out, is at hand. Lina Polonsky-Doyle (not pictured) was born and raised in Venezuela and lived... Read More
Could France’s empty buildings ease its homeless crisis?
In a brazen move to help homeless families endure the cold winter, activists have taken over empty Paris office buildings and moved dozens of people in. Property-owners are alarmed. But the government’s response has been surprising. Read More Read More
Former French Colony Marks Break with Brutal Past
Marking their 50th anniversary of independence, Algerians have been looking back at the triumphs and tragedies that finally led to their pyrrhic victory. In the uprising against French rule that began in 1954, some 150,000 Algerians and 18,000 French troops died. But one thing kept the Algerian nationalists going. Read More Read More
Baby Steps taken to reduce Child Mortality
Not far from the beaches and cafés of seaside Cape Town, is the township of Du Noon, where children play in rubbish-strewn streets near pools of stagnant water and lop-sided rows of outdoor toilets. “They play and eat without washing their hands, so it’s not healthy,” says local health care worker, Nontuthuzelo Debesse, who is paying home visits. “That’s why there’s... Read More
CHILD MORTALITY: A strategy that could help arrest its rise
Not far from the beaches and cafés of seaside Cape Town, is the township of Du Noon, where children play in rubbish-strewn streets near pools of stagnant water and lop-sided rows of outdoor toilets. “They play and eat without washing their hands, so it’s not healthy,” says local health care worker, Nontuthuzelo Debesse, who is paying home visits. “That’s why there’s... Read More
