India and China Oil Palms Dangerously

When there is feasting in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, there could just be a connection between the celebrations and the fires on Indonesia’s Sumatra Island that trigger frequent transboundary smog.

Lahore Going Back To Its Old Ways

Zahid Husain, 25, is a salesman in the Pakistan city Lahore. He sits idly on the pavement of a clothes shop and plays a game on his cell phone, oblivious to the changes in the city all around him.

Hurricane Sandy Raised Risk Awareness in Eastern Cuba

Nine months after Hurricane Sandy, the worst disaster to hit this city in eastern Cuban in decades, local residents say they are now better prepared for catastrophes.

Medicinal Cannabis in an Era of Change

The controversial topic of medical cannabis has been put under a microscope after the internationally known neurosurgeon Dr. Sanjay Gupta came out in support of its use this week.

Egypt Military ‘Split’ Over Morsi

Divisions are opening up within the Egyptian military over the controversial takeover from the ousted government of Muslim Brotherhood leader Mohammed Morsi, a senior party leader says.

Music as Social Inclusion Shines in Salzburg

A sea of white-gloved hands swaying gracefully to the rhythm of tropical music shows the audience in the hallowed Mozarteum concert hall in this Austrian city how Venezuela is combining musical education and social inclusion.

UNFPA to Focus on Women’s Rights at Montevideo Conference

When the U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) participates in a regional review conference in the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo next week, it will take stock of the successes and failures of a wide range of gender-related issues, including reproductive health, sexual violence, women's rights, maternal mortality, and the spread of HIV/AIDS – all of them relating to Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).

Corruption Scandal Fuels Calls for Strict Party Funding Rules

The corruption scandal enveloping the governing conservative People's Party in Spain and its leader, Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, calls into question the funding model for political parties and points towards the need for strict controls, experts say.

Govt, Energy Industry Accused of Suppressing Fracking Dangers

New signs have emerged in recent days which indicate that extreme measures are being taken in order to suppress evidence of the pernicious effects of the energy extraction method known as hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking".

Environmentalists Alarmed at Tourism Plans for Small Islands

The Venezuelan government’s plans to develop tourism infrastructure on virtually uninhabited highly biodiverse small islands in the southern Caribbean have triggered warnings from environmentalists.

OP-ED: The Making of the Middle East’s Newest Strongman

Before an ultimatum to attack an anti-coup sit-in earlier this week, Egypt's new strongman and coup leader Gen. Abdel Fatah Al-Sissi received one of his warmest endorsements ever - something that might have been torn right out of the steamy pages of the "Arabian Nights".

New York Wants Your Potato Peels

Ask a random New Yorker what their city is famous for and “composting” is about as likely to make the list as “cheap housing” and “warm winters”. But if it is up to Mayor Michael Bloomberg, this will soon change.

Interpol ‘Misused’ by Human Rights Abusers

The world's largest international policing organisation Interpol is being used by governments to track down political opponents and human rights campaigners, an IPS investigation reveals.

Alberta’s Oil Sands Bring Jobs, Services and Despair

“First the bugs began to disappear,” says Eriel Deranger, spokesperson for Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation.

Therapeutic Abortion Faces Political Resistance in Chile

Nearly a quarter century after Chile’s return to democracy, there is still a lack of political will to legalise therapeutic abortion, analysts say, even though Congress is debating several draft laws on the question.

Cuba, a Country with a Broken Heart

For Cubans, baseball is not a sport, much less a game: it is almost a religion, and taken very seriously.

Military Boot Pushes Down on Democracy

Egypt’s military chief, General Abdel Fatah El-Sissi, who in July announced on state television that the army had ousted Egypt’s first democratically elected president, has tried to wrap a veneer of democracy around actions that most others have condemned as a coup.

Balkans Feed the Syria Battle

This holy month of Ramadan comes with a difference for some families in the Balkans. It is the first without their young sons, husbands or brothers who died far away from home fighting in Syria.

Grassroots Groups Wary of Haiti’s “Attractive” Mining Law

As the government works on preparing “an attractive law that will entice investors”, Haitian popular organisations are mobilising and forming networks to resist mining in their country.

OP-ED: Bahrain Declares War on the Opposition

The special session of the Bahraini National Assembly held on Sunday Jul. 28 was a spectacle of venom, a display of vulgarity, and an unabashed nod to increased dictatorship.

Fight Against Drought Is Grounds for Political Divorce in Brazil

The decisions taken by the Brazilian government in the fight against drought in the country’s semiarid Northeast are an example of the disconnect between politicians and the citizens, which triggered an unexpected wave of protests in June.