In The News

How to Deal With a Falling Population

August 9, 2007
Between 1900 and 2000, the world’s population quadrupled, today standing at 6.5 billion people. But in some parts of the world – including the US, Europe, Japan, China – the fertility rate is lower then the replacement rate, causing experts to worry about a declining population. Institutions in developed nations, designed for growth, will be affected: For example, worker-retiree rations will be...

Moroccan-Born Mayor Dispenses Tough Love to Immigrants

Erich Wiedemann August 6, 2007
Ahmed Marcouch immigrated to the Netherlands when he was 10 years old. With help from teachers, he caught up in school and assimilated into Dutch culture. As mayor of a Slotervaart – a rough neighborhood in Amsterdam with high crime, unemployment and dropout rates – he takes a hard-line stance and urges fellow immigrants to integrate in a country known for its tolerance. The former police...

Khomeini's Children

August 3, 2007
The governments of the US and Iran may dismiss each other as great evils, but the youth in Iran may see merit in some American ways. A literate, urbanized youth population, comprising the majority of the post-revolution generation, remains religious and traditional, but is unwilling to forgive Iranian leaders for economic failures. Unemployment, addiction and prostitution are widespread. Although...

Education the Best Counter for Radicalism

Muhammad Wildan July 30, 2007
Radical Islam is on the rise in Southeast Asia. Muhammad Wildan, a fellow with the Asian Research Institute, argues that the radicalism is a result of local peculiarities rather than incorrect interpretations of Islam. Because globalization has marginalized religion throughout the world, Islam and other religions have lost social authority. Many Muslims embrace salafism, which prohibits modern...

In Africa, Mortgages Boost an Emerging Middle Class

Michael M. Phillips July 26, 2007
A growing middle class in Africa requires housing, but political and economic instability often contribute to shortages. The wealthy can pay cash for homes, but financing home purchases is difficult in a country where only 16 percent of the population holds salaried jobs. In Zambia, the Lilayi project tackles the problem with a suburban development, funded by public and private investors, that...

Interrupting a History of Tolerance – Part III

Fahad Nazer July 26, 2007
Any religion with global stature, such as Islam, must accept diversity in terms of culture, beliefs and practices. Tolerance for evolving beliefs demonstrates confidence. This YaleGlobal series explores how external forces encouraged intolerance, such as anti-Semitism, in the Middle East throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. However, Saudi Arabia, as the guardian of holy Islamic sites, had its...

Interrupting a History of Tolerance – Part II

Riaz Hassan July 24, 2007
The roots of anti-Semitism in the Middle East are based not in Islamic traditions, but in practical opposition to external intervention, argues Riaz Hassan, professor of sociology in Australia. The first two articles of this three-part series analyze historical events that allowed anti-Semitism to permeate the Middle East. In the early 20th century, Palestinians fiercely resisted Jewish settlers...