Active Citizens

Somali Refugees Find an Unlikely Home … In Istanbul

By Hannah Tayson
Among the labyrinth of winding narrow streets just outside a major shopping centre in the Kumkapi neighbourhood of Istanbul is a rundown road, congested with shops and apartments stacked atop one another.

A Carrot Is a Carrot – or Is It?

By Justin Hyatt
Food security is often thought of as a question of diversifying supply and being able to move food through areas plagued by local scarcity, relying on the global economic system – including trade and transport – as the basis for operations.

Thousands of New Yorkers Protest Gaza Killings

By Kanya D'Almeida
Thousands of New Yorkers took to the streets in multiple protests this past week against the Israeli offensive in Gaza, which has left at least 1,049 Palestinians dead and over 6,000 injured since Jul. 8.

AIDS Conference Mourns the Dead, Debates Setbacks

By Diana Mendoza
The 20th International AIDS Conference concluded today as the first in its history that remembered not just the 39 million people worldwide who have died of AIDS but also those who lost their lives in the crashed MH17 flight carrying six of its delegates, one of whom was the past president of the International AIDS Society (IAS).

U.S., Regional Leaders Convene over Migration Crisis

By Julia Hotz
As the presidents of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala prepare to meet with President Barack Obama Friday, more than 40 organisations issued a petition urging U.S. lawmakers to meet their “moral and legal obligations” by providing emergency aid to Central American children and families.

Forest Rights Offer Major Opportunity to Counter Climate Change

By Carey L. Biron
The international community is failing to take advantage of a potent opportunity to counter climate change by strengthening local land tenure rights and laws worldwide, new data suggests.

Focus on Child Marriage, Genital Mutilation at All-Time High

By Julia Hotz
As Tuesday’s major summits here and in London focused global attention on adolescent girls, the United Nations offered new data warning that more than 130 million girls and women have experienced some form of female genital mutilation, while more than 700 million women alive today were forced into marriage as children.

Disasters Poised to Sweep Away Development Gains

By Stephen Leahy
Extreme poverty and hunger can be eliminated, but only through far greater efforts to reduce carbon emissions that are overheating the planet and producing punishing droughts, catastrophic floods and ever wilder weather, said climate activists involved in talks to set the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

U.S. Ranks Near Bottom Globally in Energy Efficiency

By Julia Hotz
A new ranking has lauded Germany for its energy efficiency, while condemning the United States for lagging near the bottom.

Do Not GM My Food!

By Julio Godoy
Attempts to genetically modify food staples, such as crops and cattle, to increase their nutritional value and overall performance have prompted world-wide criticism by environmental, nutritionists and agriculture experts, who say that protecting and fomenting biodiversity is a far better solution to hunger and malnutrition.

U.S. Accused of Forcing EU to Accept Tar Sands Oil

By Carey L. Biron
Newly publicised internal documents suggest that U.S. negotiators are working to permanently block a landmark regulatory proposal in the European Union aimed at addressing climate change, and instead to force European countries to import particularly dirty forms of oil.

What Selfies Have in Common with the SDGs

By Julia Hotz
"My cousin was a very successful and distinguished student. She said that she finished high school with excellent grades and enrolled in college, but a month later, her parents forced her to leave school and burned all her books and studying material. So, the girl set fire to herself."

Pakistani Rights Advocates Fight Losing Battle to End Child Marriages

By Irfan Ahmed
At first glance, there is nothing very unusual about Muhammad Asif Umrani. A resident of Rojhan city located in Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province, he is expectantly awaiting the birth of his first child, barely a year after his wedding day.

U.N.’s New Development Goals Must Also Be Measurable for Rich

By Thalif Deen
The United Nations is on the verge of releasing a new set of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) - perhaps 17 or more - to replace the eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) which will run out by the end of 2015.

If You Cut One, Plant Two

By Amy Fallon
Olga Mugisa, 11-years-old, takes to the microphone in front of her peers, the Ugandan flag proudly draped behind her and green plants framing the stage. She has an important message to share with her fellow students: “If you cut one, plant two.”
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