By Djenab Conde The question “Where are you from?” is ubiquitous in modern society, and it is becoming harder and harder for me to answer in a nice, clean way. My mother is from Beijing, China. My father was born in Kankan, the second-largest city in...
This article is part of a News-Decoder series of “decoders” that explain crucial background to big issues. For more decoders, click here. By Pauline Bock Islets, reefs and shoals in a vast stretch of sea almost twice the size of the Mediterranean may...
This article is part of a News-Decoder series of “decoders” that explain crucial background to big issues. For more decoders, click here. By Pauline Bock They share a common history and culture. They speak the same language. But they have been divided for...
The world’s population will double this century, with most growth in Africa. But many nations are ageing quickly and face a new population challenge. Tourists in China, 2011. (AP Photo) This article is part of a News-Decoder series of “decoders” that...
Two days before Myanmar’s general election, here are scenes from the streets of Yangon. By Irena Grizelj Two days before Myanmar’s general election, here are scenes from the streets of Yangon and some Burmese talking about the changes the country has...
By Jane Macartney President Xi Jinping is arguably the most powerful Chinese leader since Chairman Mao and certainly the first to foster a similar personality cult. He must have relished burnishing his image last week by riding through London with the Queen in a...
At school I studied child labor in its worst forms. In Myanmar, I see it’s not easy to separate right from wrong. But foreign investors must take heed. (Photo by Irena Grizelj) It’s different in real life. At graduate school I had studied child labor in its...
Irena Grizelj recently discovered Myanmar and was impressed not so much by how quickly it is modernizing but by an ancient tradition that thrives even as the Southeast Asian nation opens up to the rest of the world. Irena sent us a series of photographs of Burmese...
Recently we published an article on the Rugby World Cup, and a hungry reader asked for more information. We listen to our readers — here’s chapter and verse on one of the world’s major sporting events. For more “decoders” explaining big...
This article is part of a News-Decoder series of “decoders” that explain crucial background to big issues. For more decoders, click here. By Pauline Bock Waves of migrants and refugees are threatening one of Europe’s bedrock achievements — the...