In The News

Climate Fluctuations and Crops: Science Daily

July 11, 2019
The agriculture industry must contend with volatile weather patterns. A study from Columbia University's International Research Institute for Climate and Society, the International Food Policy Research Institute and other partners has determined that crop failures in distant parts of the world may be related, with the El Niño-Southern Oscillation responsible for simultaneous crop failures in...

Turkey’s Crackdown on Academics: New York Times

Brennan Cusack July 10, 2019
Ayse Gul Altinay’s research focused on violence in Turkey and strategies for breaking the cycles. In May, the Turkish government sentenced the professor of anthropology and director of Sabanci University Gender and Women’s Studies Center of Excellence to 25 months in prison for signing a petition supporting peaceful resolution of Turkeys’ conflict with Kurds, reports the New York Times. “Of the...

British Ambassador Resigns: The Independent

Kim Sengupta and Rob Merrick July 10, 2019
British Ambassador to the US Kim Darroch resigned soon after release of his candid assessments describing the US president and his administration as inept and insecure. The UK is in the midst of a prime minister race after Theresa May failed to secure parliamentary agreement on Brexit plans. The candidates: Jeremy Hunt supported Darroch and Boris Johnson declined to do so: “it is understood [...

Anglo-American Relations: Columbia Journalism Review

John Allsop July 9, 2019
Newspapers printed leaked diplomatic correspondence describing the Trump administration as “dysfunctional” and “diplomatically clumsy and inept.” The initial news report, acknowledging the US president is “notoriously thin-skinned, exposes concerns about the reliability of the United States as an ally, and the Trump administration responded that that it will no longer work with Ambassador Kim...

Trade War a Boon for Bangladesh: Bloomberg

Arun Devnath July 9, 2019
As the United States targets China in a trade war, clothing firms are taking steps to diversify manufacturing locations to spread risk. Inquiries from manufacturers are on the rise in Bangladesh, and one company expects its US exports to more than double this fiscal year. “The South Asian nation, which is the world’s second-largest garment exporter, has seen the value of its overseas sales rise...

Center-Right Regains Power in Greece: BBC

Mark Lowen July 8, 2019
Kyriakos Mitsotakis and the New Democracy party won a snap election in Greece, defeating Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. The ruling government lost support amid high youth unemployment and a struggling economy along with failure to deliver on promises to end austerity. Early results in an election gave New Democracy nearly 40 percent of the vote and Syriza just over 30 percent; far-right Golden...

Global Pollution Observatory: Wired

Zak Jason July 8, 2019
Diseases caused by pollution kill more than AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined. Known pollutants reduce individual intelligence and contribute to $5 trillion annually in productivity losses and healthcare, explains Zak Jason for Wired. Few choose or want to live near sources of pollution that foul air, waterways and land for homes and food, but avoiding toxins can be difficult because more...