In The News

A Pocket-Sized Famine Fighter

Esha Bhandari September 14, 2005
Last year, reports of an impending famine in Niger did little to rouse action within the global giving community. Though thousands have died from the predicted food shortage, many thousands have been saved, thanks to the work of one woman's company. Until recently, Fatchima Cissé ran a small nutritional food company in her native Niger, selling to relief agencies at no profit. With help from...

The Legacy of Lee Kyung Hae

John Feffer August 29, 2005
The organic farms that line the Han River in South Korea may be the country's agricultural future – and sadly, they tell the story of its troubled past and present. More broadly, the Korean agricultural crisis is a story of small farmers forced to negotiate among the shifting currents of globalization. The industrialization of South Korea's agriculture, the Green Revolution, rendered...

The Creative Evolution of World Trade

Susan Esserman August 23, 2005
Often subject to accusations of inadequate transparency and insufficient accountability, the World Trade Organization took a big step toward more open practices. A dispute panel on hormone-fed beef in the EU has decided to open hearings to the public – allowing closed-circuit television cameras to record the proceedings. Many delegates oppose the move, contending that some level of secrecy is...

Africa Needs Fair Trade, Not Charity

Mary Robinson August 23, 2005
Since the July G-8 summit and Live 8 concerts, the topic of African development has received unusual public attention. While the conversations have focused primarily on aid and debt relief, according to Mary Robinson, one topic has received inadequate treatment in international policy circles: free trade. Recalling her travels to cotton producer Mali and sugar producer Mozambique, Robinson...

Death in the Sun

Dan Glaister August 9, 2005
California is well recognized for its wealth of agriculture, but the large number of illegal immigrants who drive the industry are rarely seen or acknowledged. Often forced to work under alarming conditions and minimal wages, an estimated 11 million undocumented aliens work in agriculture across the United States. Although in the past, state authorities have paid little attention to heat-...

The Descent of Man

Dennis Lim August 3, 2005
Darwin's Nightmare, Hubert Sauper's new documentary released in the United States this week, chronicles an evolutionary and globalization-related predicament. Decades ago, the Nile perch was introduced to the waters of Lake Victoria in Tanzania, with the aim of replenishing over-fished waters. In the years since, the six-foot fish have proved a lucrative export for Tanzania, but a...

China Bug – Is It Ebola-like Bird Flu?

Andy Ho July 28, 2005
China’s official Xinhua news agency recently ascribed the deaths and illnesses of 68 people in Sichuan province to a common swine bug called streptococcus suis. A close examination, however, raises speculation that provincial authorities may be prevaricating. Not only is this infection rare in human beings, but the bacterium can be readily treated and seldom leads to mortality. China’s...