Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Humanity: Nobel Laureates Call for Global Safeguards

"I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that.” By bringing the supercomputer HAL 9000 to life in his 1968 film 2001: A Space Odyssey, American director Stanley Kubrick created one of the most powerful symbols of the fear of artificial intelligence (AI) escaping human control.

From the General Assembly to Harlem: Mandela’s Call to Action Endures

Sixty-seven minutes. That is how long volunteers spent serving lunch to people experiencing food insecurity at Refettorio Harlem in New York City last week – one for every year Nelson Mandela gave to public service.

Palestine Must Not Disappear

We have just concluded a visit to the West Bank, Israel, Jordan and Lebanon. From all that we have witnessed and heard, our inescapable conclusion is that the government of Prime Minister Netanyahu, and in particular Ministers Smotrich and Ben-Gvir, aim to make Palestine disappear physically, economically, culturally and politically. Yet other governments either are choosing not to see this or lack the will to take meaningful concerted action.

The Oil Market Absorbed the War Shock, but Buffers Are Running Low

The largest disruption to the global oil market in decades should have sent prices soaring. But after spiking at the start of the war in the Middle East, crude prices soon settled in a range of $90 to $100 per barrel, much lower than many had feared. Why didn’t prices climb higher? The answer is that a combination of factors helped cushion the initial blow. But much of that room has now been used up.

Landmark Ruling Could Redefine Divorced Women’s Property Rights in Pakistan

A landmark Islamabad High Court ruling that recognised marriage as an economic partnership and awarded a divorced woman an equal share of assets acquired during marriage has triggered a legal and religious backlash, with Pakistan's law ministry challenging the judgment before the Federal Shariat Court, a constitutional court empowered to determine whether laws and judicial rulings conform to the Qur’an and Sunnah.

Europe’s Funding Question Puts Tanzania’s Fragile Democracy on Trial

Every evening just before sunset, Salima Kitwana hobbles into her backyard holding a photograph.

Why Pastoral Production Requires Regional Coordination, Harmonised Policy

At the 64th sessions of the Subsidiary Bodies (SB64) under the UNFCCC in Bonn, Germany, the Local Communities and Indigenous Peoples Platform (LCIPP) underscored the importance of ethically and equitably incorporating indigenous values and knowledge and local knowledge systems such as pastoralism into climate policies and actions ahead of the 31st Conference of Parties on climate change (COP31).

Invasive Prickly Pear Turned into Food, Clean Energy Source

An international academic partnership is helping turn one of Laikipia County’s most destructive and invasive plants, the prickly pear cactus (Opuntia stricta), into a source of food security and clean energy while also helping end perennial resource conflict in the region.

Feeding Africa: Women Farmers Key to Ending Hunger

As FAO coordinates the implementation of the International Year of the Woman Farmer 2026, gender team leader Tacko Ndiaye discusses why investing in Africa’s women farmers is essential for food security, economic growth and creating more resilient agrifood systems

Roma Need Special Consideration After Ukraine War is Over

Governments, donors, NGOs, development banks and businesses recently gathered in Gdansk, Poland, to discuss reconstruction in Ukraine even as Russia’s full-scale invasion continues.

Inside GEF’s Blended Finance Push: Turning Public Money Into Private Capital Leverage

For most of the Eighth Global Environmental Facility (GEF) Assembly last month, the atmosphere inside Samarkand’s sprawling Congress Centre echoed a growing confidence of global environmental policymakers.

Towards a Human rights-Centred, Transformative Agenda Beyond 2030

The 2030 agenda cum SDGs are due to be completed in 2030, with negotiations towards a follow-up agenda to begin formally at the UN General Assembly in autumn 2027. Many direct or indirect discussions have, however, already begun, e.g. pluri-laterally at BRICS and G20 meetings and the EU; as well as at the UN in connection with the Summit of the Future, the Doha World Summit for Social Development, the Beyond GDP report; or in fora such as the Hamburg Sustainability Conference. Think tanks and academics, too, are brainstorming on how best to re-ignite a genuine commitment to the SDGs and at the same time reflect on the future.

CARICOM Leaders Gather in Saint Lucia as Caribbean Confronts Mounting Global, Regional Challenges

Caribbean leaders are meeting in Saint Lucia for their annual summit, confronting a convergence of global and regional challenges ranging from rising living costs and climate change to crime, food security and geopolitical tensions.

Africa’s Fourth Industrial Decade: From Political Mandate to Industrial Transformation

Amid shifting geopolitical, economic, and technological landscapes, it reflects growing international recognition that Africa’s sustainable industrial transformation is vital - not only for the continent’s future, but also for global prosperity.

Dry Monsoon in South Asia: Looming Fears of Agricultural Loss, Extreme Heat, and Disaster

Monsoon season in South Asia, including Nepal, is a period of frequent rainfall, extreme heat, and a busy time of the year for farmers. Most farmers in Nepal depend on monsoon rain to plant paddey, the main source of food.

U.S. Aid Withdrawal for HIV ‘Devastating’

A U.S. decision to cut off funding for HIV projects in South Africa has been condemned amid warnings it could be “catastrophic” for efforts to control the disease in the country.

US Slams Israel for Undermining Peace Negotiations with Iran –but Rift is Dismissed as a Passing Show

The on-again, off-again US-Iran peace negotiations, which have been disparaged by Israeli leaders, have resulted in a rare rift between the US and Israel, a Middle East ally which has had America’s unwavering “iron clad” support since its creation in 1948.

Xenophobia Won’t Bring Wealth – Only Misery – To South Africans Too

Usually, the fiesta to celebrate St Antony at the church with the same name in Crown Mines, Johannesburg, is a lively affair. The church is usually packed with congregants from the Portuguese community, including recent migrants from Mozambique and Angola.

War, Heatwaves and Energy Shocks Fuel Push for Clean Energy

The 30 COP gatherings may not have done what three months of US-Israeli war against Iran did: expose the world's vulnerability to fossil fuels.

From Nets to Numbers: How Kenya’s Small-Scale Fishers Use Data to Save Their Ocean

As the afternoon sun casts a golden glow over Mukwiro village on Wasini Island on Kenya’s Indian Ocean South Coast, Mwanasiti Mwalola, 26 and Mzungu Mohammed Dhossa, 45, stand at the community fish landing site, carefully receiving baskets of freshly caught fish from returning fishers. A weighing scale hangs before them, with a pen and notebook in their hands; the two have one duty: to collect data on the stock being delivered by artisanal fishers.

From Rotten Tomatoes to AI: Ugandan Commonwealth Youth Award Winner Takes Aim at Hunger Across Africa

Before anyone called her an innovator, before artificial intelligence entered the conversation, before solar-powered cold rooms, before the language of sustainable development, Shifra Ainomugisha knew food loss in its painful form.