Apr 08 You probably benefited from slave labor today By P. J. Tobia There are 21 million people worldwide living as slaves. Some of their work ends up in your home and on your plate. Continue reading
Apr 07 Watch 6:19 How simple tools can shave hours off food preparation in the developing world By PBS News Hour Kitchen convenience means something different for millions of small farmers in poor countries. A nonprofit in St. Paul creates simple, efficient tools that could save people hours of labor on tasks like threshing grain and shelling peanuts. Special correspondent Fred… Continue watching
Mar 31 In Brazil’s favelas, being a statistic is actually a good thing By Larisa Epatko Thiago Oliveira grew up in a Rio de Janeiro slum, where fighting between gangs was fierce. He decided to leave gang life and got a job surveying the needs of his neighborhood. Continue reading
Mar 27 Photos: Algae-growing nuns in Central African Republic fight malnutrition with ingenuity By Sebastian Rich Nuns at the St. Joseph Health Centre in Bangui, Central African Republic, grow their own algae as a supplement for malnourished children who have been suffering the ravages of war. Continue reading
Mar 19 Armed with a map and other tools, Nigerians push for peaceful elections By Larisa Epatko Nigeria has a history of corrupt and violent elections. With another presidential election coming on March 28, one group working to head off the violence is the Search for Common Ground. Continue reading
Mar 04 Watch 6:45 Why homecoming can be particularly hard for female veterans By PBS News Hour In the return to civilian life, many women find that veteran services fall short of their needs. Unemployment rates for female veterans are higher than for other women, as well as for male veterans. Female veterans are at least twice… Continue watching
Feb 12 In world’s poorest slums, landfills and polluted rivers become a child’s playground By Ariel Min Children living among rubbish and human waste are especially susceptible to diarrheal diseases and pneumonia, the top killers of children under 5 worldwide. In this photo essay from Reuters, photographers capture “playgrounds” built among landfills and junkyards, and children swimming… Continue reading
Feb 10 Watch 6:51 Meet an advocate for the needs and dignity of the millions who live in India’s slums By PBS News Hour Slum Dwellers International, an advocacy organization started in India, has had success rallying large numbers of marginalized people to push for their rights and get basic amenities like toilets, electricity and permanent shelter. Special correspondent Fred de Sam Lazaro talks… Continue watching
Jan 27 In Vietnam, learning to embrace life with HIV By Larisa Epatko Lu Thi Thanh, a 28-year-old woman residing in northern Vietnam, speaks matter-of-factly about living with HIV. The words didn’t always come so easily, but things changed after she joined a support network called Sunflower. Continue reading
Jan 22 It’s back-to-school time in Liberia, where Ebola forced an unwanted break By Larisa Epatko Schools in Liberia are reopening next month now that the Ebola outbreak, which has killed thousands, appears to be under control. The students are more than ready to return, says a school nurse in the capital Monrovia. Continue reading