The World: Latest Stories

Shepherds in Spain are now training to start “fire flocks" that graze at the edge of forests to prevent wildfires from spreading to populated areas.

The Cuban government recently lifted a decadesold ban on professional boxing imposed by then-President Fidel Castro in 1962. This year, the Cuban boxing team “Los Domadores” made a triumphant professional debut on May 20 in Aguascalientes, Mexico.

Hundreds of years ago, women in China weren’t allowed an education and spent their days locked in rooms, embroidering and making crafts. They came up with a new language that men couldn't understand — Nüshu — and wrote it onto handmade fans to communicate with each other. A filmmaker is now trying to raise awareness to preserve it before it is lost.

Hundreds of years ago, it was common for Chinese women’s feet to be bound, making it almost impossible for them to walk freely by themselves. They also weren’t allowed an education, and they spent their days locked in their rooms, embroidering and making crafts. So, women came up with a new language that men couldn't understand — Nüshu — and wrote it onto handmade fans to communicate with each other. Now a filmmaker is trying to raise awareness to preserve it before it is lost.

The Polish government says it is establishing a national medical database, following a directive from the EU Commission, promising to ensure the protection of people's privacy. But in a country with a near-total abortion ban, rights activists are not so convinced.

History professor Charles Tshimanga-Kashama joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the historic visit and its implications for the future relations between the two countries.

History professor Charles Tshimanga-Kashama joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the historic visit and its implications for the future relations between the two countries.

Around 60 million adults in European cities are exposed to noise that's harmful to health.

Sex work is technically legal in India, but workers say they face stigma, harassment and violence — especially by the police. In recent years, sex worker collectives have formed to demand full decriminalization of sex work and recognition of their labor as worthy of protections and rights.

With the Celtics looking to bring home a banner under the guidance of the first-year head coach, the local Nigerian community is beaming at the success of one of their own.

Musicians with the Afghanistan National Institute of Music arrived in Portugal in December 2021 with high hopes of working again in their profession. But six months later, the future remains uncertain for them.

Last month, one railway network in Tokyo switched its entire network to electricity derived from renewable energy. It’s the first time a railway has become entirely net-carbon neutral.

Dinesh Joseph, who is a South African-born leadership and management trainer based in London, was recently on vacation and was one of the people forced to take the test before boarding his flight from the Canary Islands back to the UK. He described the experience to The World's host Marco Werman.

Some fear that Dom Phillips and Bruno Pereira may have been kidnapped, disappeared or killed by members of criminal groups in the area.

An all-female orchestra was launched earlier this year as part of an effort to decrease gender disparities on Colombia’s classical music scene. It highlights the contributions of women and offers a place for younger generations to develop their talent.

Dr. Atul Gawande, a renowned surgeon and global health leader at USAID, talks with The World’s host Marco Werman about plummeting resources in confronting the COVID-19 pandemic.

The African Development Bank Group has pledged $1.5 billion to tackle a massive fertilizer shortage across the continent, but smallholder farmers in Ghana worry that it may already be too late to avert a food crisis.

Deep in Ecuador's Amazon rainforest, two Indigenous activists who secured a legal victory against gold mining in their native lands have won the Goldman Environmental Prize.

About a dozen dust storms have blown across Iraq this year with increased frequency and intensity. Experts say that it's due to climate change, drought and desertification.

Despite the decriminalization of abortion in Northern Ireland several years ago after presiding over some of the harshest legislation in the world, access is far from straightforward. And campaigners on both sides of the issue are rallying after last month’s US Supreme Court leak that's suggested the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Scientist Berat Haznedaroğlu is the director of Türkiye’s first initiative to turn algae into fuel for airplanes — but scaling up is a challenge.

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, medical workers have been concerned about the possibility of Russia using chemical agents against civilians. That hasn’t happened yet (none on official record) but a Syrian American nongovernmental organization is helping Ukrainian medical workers prepare for the worst.

In Europe, wood pellets fire power plants and home furnaces in what’s become a multibillion-dollar-a-year industry. It’s expanded because the European Union labels pellets as renewable. But environmentalists say that the label is misguided.

As Shanghai begins to ease its two-month COVID-19 lockdown, writer and translator Xing Zhao says that the psychological impacts on residents are likely to linger for much longer.

Leaked government documents suggest a portion of the Achimota Forest Reserve could be rezoned for development, sparking a major outcry among residents and conservationists.

A series of recent drownings has brought to light the dangers of migrants trying to cross the Rio Grande as they attempt to flee to the United States.

Uyghurs in the diaspora are now going through the lists from leaked documents to try and identify their missing relatives. For many, it’s the first time they’ve been able to confirm what happened to them.

When the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that Title 42 would end May 23, it was the change that many immigrants at the US southern border had been hoping for. A recent court decision changed that.

​​​​​​​Around the world, few treatments exist for the countless numbers of people who develop long COVID-19. In the UK, where more than a million people are estimated to be in this situation, a group of medical specialists and professional opera singers have been examining whether an age-old performance practice can help address one of the most common, debilitating symptoms: breathlessness.

In Portland, Maine, high schools are infusing North African flavors into school lunches as the district experiments with being more inclusive of its diverse student body.

China's zero-COVID-19 policy has shattered many people's trust in the government, especially in Shanghai. The monthslong lockdown has left people exhausted and plotting to escape. But getting out of the city isn't easy.

The combination of a vast, geographically diverse space and such a young sport means that highlining has a lot of potential in Sonora, with room to grow. A group of highliners use the opportunity to practice their discipline that features balancing on lines strung dozens — even hundreds — of feet in the air.

There is concern that the Taliban may decide to ban female anchors altogether from the newsroom according to their interpretation of Islamic law.

A new exhibit at the Dallas Museum of Art brings together about 400 pieces, including some objects by the luxury jewelry maker Cartier. It also tells the story of how the Cartier brothers were inspired by Islamic art.

Darren Byler, who specializes in China's treatment of Uyghurs at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, discussed insights from the leaked data with The World's host Marco Werman.

Many students who rely on the national free lunch program risk going hungry after Ghana’s school caterers went on strike.

Seagrass is on the decline in the world’s oceans, but the Indigenous Comcáac people of northern Mexico have managed to protect 96% of the eelgrass that grows in their waters.

The Irish teen comedy ended its run on UK television this week. But it has special significance for women who grew up in Northern Ireland in the 1990s, a period of conflict between Catholics and Protestants often known as the “troubles.”

China’s elderly population — who are among the most vulnerable to COVID-19 — are not yet fully vaccinated.

The decision effectively reverses former President Donald Trump's move in January 2021 to withdraw hundreds of US troops operating in Somalia.

The Ukrainian Classical Ballet has been on a charity tour in Italy and Romania. Last weekend, the company was in Bucharest, Romania’s capital, for a performance of “Giselle.”

Under a strict COVID-19 lockdown in Shanghai, some crew members on cargo ships have been stranded. Crew member Madeleine Wolczko has been documenting the harrowing ordeal.

Recent fighting between the Iraqi army and a local militia in heavily populated civilian areas has led to the displacement of an estimated 10,000 people.

Extremism expert Amarnath Amarasingam told The World's host Marco Werman that the shooter was deeply influenced by the white supremacist who killed 51 Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019.

“I Will Marry When I Want,” the once-banned play, is finally getting its national debut after more than 30 years.

US President Joseph Biden pointed to a host of global challenges that make the ASEAN-US partnership “critical" at this time. But some experts who focus on Southeast Asia say the administration came up short at the summit.

Former President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is making a comeback with a campaign for democracy and unity against far-right incumbent Jair Bolsonaro.

Glenna decided join the International Legion for the Defense of Ukraine, along with 20,000 other volunteer fighters from around the world. She does not have formal medical training but received some combat training upon her arrival in Ukraine.

The Taliban in Afghanistan have announced new rules requiring women to cover their faces when in public. The decree also says that women should only leave home when necessary. This is the latest in a series of restrictions imposed on women since the group came to power last summer.

Six years after ICE revealed a university was a sting operation, the students caught in the middle say they still haven’t fully recovered.