Monica’s Recent Stories
World Jun 27
Preserving the priceless manuscripts of TimbuktuA world of knowledge was nearly lost forever amid the al-Qaida occupation in Timbuktu five years ago. Many were burnt, but thousands of ancient manuscripts were smuggled away and saved, and now are being digitized. And yet time and money…
World Apr 16
For Mali’s Tuareg, music speaks of suffering and the SaharaThe music of Mali's Tuareg people is music of resistance. Master traders of the Sahara desert for millenia, they've never enjoyed significant political power, and their musical culture reflects that frustration and struggle. But times have been tough for these…
Science Feb 20
Morocco turns the Sahara desert into a solar energy oasisMorocco says it wants to be the Saudi Arabia of solar energy. Its flagship project is a first-of-its-kind, $9-billion energy plant called Noor, meaning "light" in Arabic, and the size of the city of Paris. Special correspondent Monica Villamizar reports…
Education Feb 06
Puerto Rico’s education system hangs in the balance amid Hurricane Maria exodusMore than 50,000 students are expected to leave Puerto Rico for the mainland to continue their education. With hundreds of schools expected to close, the mass exodus has major consequences for the education system, and some see the storm as…
World Jan 25
Here’s why restoring power in Puerto Rico is taking so longFour months after Hurricane Maria, about 450,000 of 1.5 million electricity customers in Puerto Rico still have no service. Blackouts regularly occur for hours at a time, even in San Juan. Special correspondent Monica Villamizar reports on the emergency efforts…
