In The News

Mother Jones: S Africa Leadership, Climate Crisis

Nathalie Baptiste February 1, 2018
The metropolitan area of Cape Town has about 4 million people, and officials warn that the city’s water supply, dependent on rainfall, could go dry in April. Droughts, poor planning, population growth, urban migration and high consumption rates contribute to water supply challenges in Cape Town. Restrictions of 50 liters per day have been imposed for residents, but compliance has been uneven....

BBC News: Kenya's Raila Odinga “Inaugurates” Himself as President

Dickens Olewe January 31, 2018
Kenyan’s government is in turmoil with two men claiming to be president. Elections were held in August 2017, and courts found irregularities and ordered a repeat election in October. Raila Odinga, an opposition leader, boycotted that October election that led to President Uhuru Kenyatta being sworn in for a second term in November 2017. Official results suggest that Kenyatta won 98 percent of the...

Adventure Journal: American GIs Revealing Sensitive Military Locations on Strava

Steve Casimiro January 30, 2018
Strava is a social media site that aims to connect and motivate athletes around the globe: “Strava works with your mobile home or favorite GPS device to track your activities and share your efforts with friends.” An Australian student studying Middle East security, Nathan Ruser, studied Strava’s map and soon “discovered pockets of activity in Iraq and Syria. Unlike in the U.S., where the terrain...

Global Finance: Global Regulators Finalize Basel III Rules

Efraim Chalamish January 30, 2018
The Basel Committee on Banking Supervision has finalized Basel III rules on voluntary global bank capital standards. “The original rules raised questions about the ability of global banks to use internal models to assess various risks and the need to level the playing field in global banking,” explains Efraim Chalamish for Global Finance. The rules aim to decrease bank leverage and increase...

The Economist: Bitter Rivalry Between Arab States Is Spilling Into Africa

January 30, 2018
The increasingly hostile division between the Saudi-Egyptian-Emirati bloc and the neighboring Gulf state of Qatar has begun spilling over into the Horn of Africa. The Economist observes, “the regional imbroglio pits two camps of Muslims” that also coincides with level of support for the Muslim Brotherhood. Turkey and Iran , unlike the three other nations, do not oppose the Muslim Brotherhood....

Quartz: At Davos, Search on How to Save Globalization

Jason Karaian January 26, 2018
Most global leaders attending the World Economic Forum that meets annually are beneficiaries and strong supporters of globalization. Many also agree that globalization and distribution of benefits could be better managed. The general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation suggests that globalization has failed working people with low pay and insecurity. The CEO of ICICI Bank in...

The Conversation: Is a Unified Korea Possible?

Ji-Young Lee January 26, 2018
North and South Korea, divided since 1945, are making a small, symbolic gesture by marching together under one flag for the opening ceremony of the Olympics. “Unfortunately, history suggests such efforts to reunite the peninsula as a single country often don’t go far,” notes Ji-Young Lee, professor of international affairs for the Conversation. She outlines the history of unification talks. “What...