Funding Crunch Puts Years of Progress at Risk in Fight Against Tuberculosis

Governments and donors must ensure funding is sustained to fight tuberculosis (TB), organizations working to stop the disease have said, as they warn the recent US pullback on foreign aid is already having a devastating effect on their operations. NGOs and other groups that play a critical role in national efforts to stop what is the world’s deadliest infectious disease say the US administration’s recent decisions to first freeze and then cancel huge swathes of foreign aid funding have put countless lives at risk around the world.

World Day for Glaciers
Glaciers Are in Threat, May Not Survive the 21st Century

Many glaciers in the world will not survive the 21^st century, according to reports published by the United Nations. Five of the past six years have experienced the most rapid glacier retreat on record; 2022-24 was the largest three-year loss of glacier mass.

Food Security and Water, a Priority for Border Towns in Central America

The hope of Salvadoran Cristian Castillo to harvest tomatoes in a municipality of the Central American Dry Corridor hung by a thread when his well, which he used to irrigate his crops, dried up. However, his enthusiasm returned when a regional project taught him how to harvest rainwater for when the rains begin in May.

International Day of Forests
‘Now is the time for decisive, collaborative action’

The Forest Declaration Assessment Partners have called for urgent reforms to the international financial system to halt deforestation and protect biodiversity. It has also pitched for redirecting the public subsidies to mitigate the direct and indirect environmental risks from both public and private finance.

Epilepsy Patients in Africa Fight Stigma and Neglect

When Angela Asemota’s son began having seizures at six years old in 1996, people gossiped that he was possessed by evil spirits, leading her to seek healing from native healers and religious clerics. He underwent several traditional rituals and drank various concoctions, but the seizures persisted. It was not until his fourth year in secondary school in 2004 that she took him to a hospital, where he was diagnosed with epilepsy and began taking medication.

Pioneering Sustainable Energy Solutions in Africa

The 12th Sankalp Africa Summit, held on Feb 26-27 in Nairobi, brought together a pivotal cohort of start-up innovators, investors, entrepreneurs and policymakers to accelerate the innovation needed to enhance Africa’s energy transition.

Papua New Guinea: Years of Environmental Clean Up Ahead Following New Report on Abandoned Bougainville Mine

Local communities are finally witnessing progress in their mission for justice, 36 years after the Panguna copper mine in Papua New Guinea’s Autonomous Region of Bougainville became the centre of landowner grievances about environmental damage.

WTO: Standing Tall as the Winds Howl

Winds are also changing in trade policy. As they get rougher and more unpredictable, the much-criticised multilateral trade regime of the World Trade Organization (WTO) has so far proved surprisingly resilient. Paradoxically, Donald Trump’s tariff policy could actually strengthen the WTO.

Activists Fear Kenya Forests Threatened Due to Government Development

After the controversial lifting of a six-year moratorium or temporary ban on logging activities in public and community forests by the Kenyan government in July 2023, trucks ferrying tree logs are frequently seen on major highways in total disregard of environmental concerns.

United Nations’ New Efficiency Initiative is Aiming for Structural Changes to Operations

The United Nations chief announced on Wednesday (March 12) a new initiative that aims to assess areas of efficiency and improvement for the international organization to expand its efforts and recognize the need “for even greater urgency and ambition.”

Gaza Counts Costs of Catastrophic Impacts of Israeli Bombardment on Healthcare

With enough steel and concrete, the hospitals that have been smashed to bits in Gaza can be rebuilt. But a construction plan paired with an army of bulldozers will not be enough to reconstruct the entirety of Gaza's health care system, which, after many months of war, has been decimated by the Israeli military forces.

Nuclear Testing in Kazakhstan Documentary Showcases Urgent Need for Nuclear Abolition

The documentary I Want to Live On: The Untold Stories of the Polygon exposes the lifelong impacts of nuclear testing in Kazakhstan’s Semey region. As a third-generation survivor born in Semey, international relations legal expert based in New York, Togzhan Yessenbayeva said she was aware of the “profound impact” that nuclear testing has had on her community and environment. She remarked that the tests in Semipalatinsk have left a “legacy of challenges” that people must deal with to this day.

Western Climate Hypocrisy Exposed by NATO Energy Policy

NATO geopolitical strategy has now joined the ‘coalition’ of Western geoeconomic forces accelerating planetary heating, now led again by re-elected US President Donald Trump.

Society’s Self-Sabotage: How Discrimination Cripples Nations

One look at the headlines recently and anyone would know that cuts to foreign aid are jeopardizing hard-won progress on a range of issues. AIDS is one of them.

International Women’s Day, 2025
Rule Breakers: The Compelling True Story of Afghan Girls Who Risked All to Learn

Like the Afghan robotics team, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises in the United Nations, is breaking the 'rules' and continuing to educate young women in that country despite an edict from the Taliban denying girls a secondary school education.

Developing a Thriving e-vehicles Value Chain in Africa

African countries should join hands to make the most of their own resources and build a formidable electric vehicle ecosystem that could help fast-track realisation of SDGs.

International Women’s Day, 2025
UN: Women’s Rights Face ‘Unprecedented’ Pushbacks

Girls and women worldwide are facing growing threats to their security and rights, from threats to their education access to severe poverty and multiple forms of violence. In 2024, nearly one in four governments worldwide reported a backlash to women’s rights, as a new report from UN Women reveals.

International Women’s Day, 2025
The Quest for a Female UN Secretary-General: Assessing the Probability

The United Nations has chosen “For ALL Women and Girls: Rights. Equality. Empowerment.” as the theme for International Women’s Day on March 8, 2025. This theme emphasizes the importance of equal rights, power, and opportunities for all women and girls, urging action to create a feminist future where no one is left behind.

International Women’s Day, 2025
In Zanzibar, Women Turn the Tide with Sponge Farming

In the early morning, as the tide pulls away, Zulfa Abdallah ties her scarf tightly around her head. She adjusts her goggles, places a snorkel across her forehead, and wades into the chest-deep waters off Jambiani village in Zanzibar. The Indian Ocean is her livelihood now, its waves offering a lifeline to women like her who confront challenges of poverty and climate change.

International Women’s Day, 2025
It’s time for a Feminist Woman Secretary General at the UN

In 2025, the United Nations will celebrate 80 years of shaping global policies, fostering peace, and driving international development. Yet, in those eight decades, not a single woman has held the position of Secretary-General.

Anti-LGBTQI Legislation in Europe Curbs Speech Freedom, Democracy—Report

LGBTQI communities across Europe and Central Asia are being ‘weaponized’ by governments as part of a wider attack on fundamental human rights and freedoms, rights activists have warned.