by Moira Birss
- Colombia -

The sparse media coverage of Colombia tends only to give vague descriptions of a violent country with a thriving drug trade. But I’ve come to understand in my 15 months living and working here as a human rights observer and accompanier, that, like many armed conflicts in the world, the war continues because it serves the interests of the rich and powerful, from the Uribe administration to multinational corporations.

Despite its claims to the contrary, the Colombian government’s policies do little to end the violence. Spanning over nearly five decades and multiple administrations, the internal conflict has resulted in countless deaths and over 4 million internally displaced Colombians.

by Aditi Bhaduri
- India -

A mini revolution is underway in India. On July 2nd the Delhi High Court read down a 149-year-old archaic law that criminalized same sex relations. It is a tiny victory for a battle that has long been fought in courtrooms, bedrooms and counseling halls across India.

by Brittany Shoot
- Denmark -

Migrant communities in Denmark are a subject fraught with debate. As South Asian women increasingly immigrate to Scandinavia, stricter laws have been enacted to discourage the practice of convenience marriages. Rumors about abuse in these communities are common. Yet in a remote western region of Denmark, nearly 600 Thai women currently live with their Danish husbands. The documentary films Love on Delivery and Ticket to Paradise follow a new couple through their wedding day and explore the possibilities for a young woman still living in Thailand. Avoiding the pitfalls of a judgmental outsider point of view, Danish filmmaker Janus Metz provides a sensitive portrayal of Thai women living in rural Denmark.

by Janelle Weiner
- USA -

In the Galapagos germs hitchhike with eager travelers, threatening the survival of native species. Camera flashes, voices, and human touch have cracked ancient Egyptian pyramid walls. The very breath of people viewing the Lascaux cave paintings in France has been blamed for causing humidity to rise and fungus to spread.

Fragile ecosystems and ancient archaeological wonders are the most obvious and unintended victims of tourism. But with the United Nations World Travel Organization expecting the number of international travelers to reach 1.6 billion by 2020, urban tourist destinations around the globe are also under threat.

by Stine Eckert
- USA -

When the Malaysian government expelled Bangladeshi migrant workers from the country in 1998 because it needed jobs for its own people, 32-year old Sheikh Rumana was one of them – after having worked under deplorable conditions in a garment factory for seven years. While female migrant workers are most vulnerable to exploitation, for Bangladeshi men, working abroad is a path to riches and a way out of the low wages offered at home.

by Jessica Mosby
- USA -

The title of Colin Beavan’s book, No Impact Man – not to be confused with the documentary or blog – has a mildly self-deprecating tone that sums things up nicely, No Impact Man: The Adventures of a Guilty Liberal Who Attempts to Save the Planet, and the Discoveries He Makes About Himself and Our Way of Life in the Process.

by Patricia DeGennaro
- USA -

After being embroiled in years of war in Iraq and Afghanistan, most Americans have now heard of Islam’s holiest month, Ramadan, which began on August 22nd this year. (Note: Ramadan is based on the position of the moon and may differ depending on time zone, so some mark the first day as the 21st. The holiday ends on September 19/20 on Eid Al-Fitr, or the Festive of Fast-Breaking). During this month, Muslims around the world observe a month of prayer and fasting. Like the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur or the Christian Easter, Ramadan stresses empathy and compassion and encourages reflection of the self, an understanding of how one has behaved in the past and how one can atone and become a better person for the future.

by Handan T. Satiroglu
- Europe/USA -

Spaniards enjoy one of the world’s longest lives: A girl born today can expect a lifespan of 84 years, a boy 78 years. In 2000 the World Health Organization used a variety of indicators to rank the world’s healthiest countries; Spain topped the rankings at 7th place, well ahead of the United States at 37. Aside from year-round sunshine, fresh-pressed olive oil, a veritable rainbow of fresh produce, and tight-knit family structures, the healthcare system also plays a crucial role in the country’s stellar health record.

by Jessica Mosby
- USA -

Highland Park, Michigan would seem an unlikely candidate for water access problems – the city is located on the Great Lakes, the largest group of freshwater lakes in the world. The Great Lakes are so vast that when standing on their shores you cannot see the other side. With freshwater so ubiquitous, why did Highland Park’s mostly low-income and elderly residents have to fight to keep the water flowing from their taps? The new 53-minute documentary film, The Water Front, skillfully documents Highland Park’s long and heated fight over water access and cost.

by Mahi Ramakrishnan
- Malaysia -

Eight years ago I followed the Muslim religious authorities, dubbed the morality police, on a raid in Malaysia's federal capital, Kuala Lumpur for an article I was writing on the religious body and its function. We walked silently around Titiwangsa Park until the officers spotted a Malay couple sitting together. They quickly crouched behind a tree, watched the couple canoodle and then jumped on them, literally.

by Mandy Van Deven
- India -

Taking the lives of 75,000 women each year, cervical cancer is the leading cause of death for women in India. This number accounts for a third of all cancers that affect women in India and a fifth of the total cervical cancer related deaths worldwide. With 132,000 new reported cases in India annually, this disease is having catastrophic effects on the developing world.

by Brittany Shoot
- Denmark -

For the past two years, the buzz has grown increasingly louder about emerging Danish documentary filmmaker Janus Metz. In his complementary, almost sequential films, Love on Delivery (From Thailand to Thy) and Ticket to Paradise (From Thy to Thailand), Metz and anthropological collaborator Sine Plambech adeptly examine relationships between Danish-Thai couples. Both films were shown on Danish public television with a record number of viewers and have since experienced wider distribution with screenings at the International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam and South by Southwest.

by Suad Hamada
- Bahrain -

Hell is what most Arabs think of when the word “transsexual” comes into any conversation since many mistake it with homosexuality, which is a sin in Islam. Most transsexuals prefer to remain anonymous since in some Arab countries they could face jail sentences for dressing or acting like the opposite sex. Many, especially men who feel trapped in the body of a woman, keep their problems hidden to avoid being punished or killed by their families. It is far easier for a woman to have a sex change to become a man than visa-versa. A man who becomes a woman is seen to have dishonored the family.