As Brazil prepares to host the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, there are a number of pitfalls the government must avoid in order to have not only successful tournaments but also a prosperous country in the following years. Unfortunately, the Brazilian people see their politicians making the same mistakes […]
Ethical travel as a concept is now common discourse, with travelers increasingly asking now they can minimize the impact they have on local communities, as well as expressing growing interest in volunteerism and working with communities to enact change. Travelers hold a unique position of economic power over the whole tourism supply chain—transport, accommodation, hospitality […]
Across Tibet, monks, nuns, students, and others are protesting China’s continuing control of the region—many in a gruesome and tragic way. Ninety-five Tibetans have set themselves ablaze since March 16, 2011 – 33 of them in the last two months of 2012 alone. Nearly all have called for Tibetan freedom, the relaxation of religious and […]
As an ambassador for peace, internationally known Malian artist Oumou Sangaré will lead a stalwart line-up of African musicians in one of two caravans that make up the 2013 Festival au Désert in Exile. An international music event that draws thousands of people annually to Mali, the Festival au Désert (Festival in the Desert) was […]
As Brazil gears up to host the World Cup in 2014 and the Olympics in 2016, authorities are investing billions of dollars in overhauling infrastructure, building facilities and improving security in cities soon to see the spotlight. The race to “clean up” cities before the events threatens to push thousands of poor residents from their […]
An appeals court in Botswana has ruled that indigenous Bushmen can drill wells for water on their traditional land in the Kalahari Game Reserve. After a legal battle of more than a decade, it seems that the Bushmen can finally return to live on their ancestral lands – that is, if the government accepts the […]
It’s no secret that the rise of the cellular telephone has had a profound social impact, enabling people to stay connected and access information from almost anywhere, whether at home or on the road. Yet the potential of mobile phones to become tools for positive change is just beginning to be tapped, say global leaders […]
With conflicts over natural resources in Peru escalating, the passage of a new law permitting military intervention to address civil unrest has left Amnesty International concerned about potential human rights violations in the country. On September 11 the military was deployed under the new law in anticipation of protests over a proposed irrigation project in […]
Muhammad Ismail, 45, and his son Jaber, 18, are United States citizens being held against their will in Pakistan. Not by kidnappers or by a rogue gang of terrorists, but by the U.S. government, who allege that the Ismails may be al Qaeda sympathizers. The elder Ismail is the brother of Umer Hayat of Lodi, […]
