In The News

Beijing Olympics: Emergency Anti-Smog Plan Announced for “Greyjing”

Jonathan Watts July 28, 2008
A choking haze smothers the host city for the Olympics and China is taking drastic new steps to eliminate the smog before the games begin. The city has already removed more than a million cars from its streets and closed hundreds of factories, reports Jonathan Watts from Beijing. Sporting organizers express concern about the pollution’s effect on the health and capabilities of athletes...

China’s Rumble With Globalization – Part II

Jonathan Fenby July 24, 2008
Despite a turbulent history, China has enjoyed two decades of growth and self-confidence, boosted by diplomatic and business engagement with the rest of the globe. But China has only entered “the first generation of China's globalization,” described by Jonathan Fenby in this second article of a two-part series. Now entering its “second generation of globalization,” the world’s most populous...

More Pressure on Global Fish Stocks as Scientists Warn of Underreporting of Catches

Tim Radford July 17, 2008
Scientists have long known that global fish stocks were in trouble. Countries overfish and deplete stocks without thought to long-term consequences and population collapses. Researchers from the Sea Around Us, an international research group based at the University of British Columbia, visited 20 locations, talked to locals and estimated the amount of fish that were caught. They reached the...

Chinese Seek a Day in Court

Geoffrey A. Fowler July 11, 2008
The practice of law in China has been somewhat problematic, especially when legal goals interfered with politics. Until recently, the police listened to conversations between lawyers and clients, and lawyers could be jailed for pursuing cases with political ramifications. But with the help of television, the internet and handbooks, average citizens in China are learning about their potential...

Obama, McCain Campaigns Go Global

Linda Feldmann July 8, 2008
Foreign countries may not vote in US presidential elections, but they do offer presidential candidates the opportunity to impress voters with their command of foreign policy and their stature on the world stage. At a time when some US voters are concerned about their country’s poor standing in the world, the candidates may win more votes in the US by building bridges overseas. – YaleGlobal

The Luckiest Girl

Nicholas D. Kristof July 7, 2008
Beatrice was destined to become another statistic in Africa, a woman without education or much chance of social mobility. But then a goat donated by schoolchildren in Connecticut changed her destiny. Heifer International is a program that encourages church groups and schools to raise funds and donate livestock to the poor in developing nations. A goat reached Beatrice’s village in Uganda, her...

Tiny Voices Defy Child Marriage in Yemen

Robert F. Worth July 2, 2008
Poverty, combined with families producing more children than they can afford, can end childhood for girls as young as eight years of age. “Pulled out of school and forced to have children before their bodies are ready, many rural Yemeni women end up illiterate and with serious health problems,” writes Robert F. Worth for the New York Times. “Their babies are often stunted, too.” Some Islamic...