The World: Latest Stories

Afghan activist Mahbouba Seraj ran the last remaining safe house and shelter for abused women in Kabul until it was forced to shutter last December. Seraj is still living in the Afghan capital and doing her best to voice the aspirations of Afghan girls and women. But she's wondering if it's time to leave. She spoke with The World's Host Carolyn Beeler about the erasure of women from public life.

Birdwatching is a rapidly growing and lucrative part of the tourism sector worldwide, but women make up a very small minority of professional guides. Uganda Women Birders, a bird guide club, is revolutionizing the industry by encouraging and supporting women who want to get into the business. Anita Elash reports from the town of Entebbe, Uganda.This story originally aired on Jan. 18, 2024.

The late Puerto Rican band leader, Ray Barretto, must have imagined an elephant marching through New York City when he composed the song, "O Elefante." The song dates back to 1971 and brings you right into a swingin' jungle.This story originally aired on July 4, 2023.

Giant tortoises have been reintroduced on Floreana Island in the Galapagos. The tortoises were thought to be extinct on the island since the 1800s, but 20 years ago, scientists discovered descendants on another island. Thanks to that discovery, conservationists were able to breed and reintroduce the tortoises. The World's Host Marco Werman spoke with James Gibbs from Galapagos Conservancy about the project.This story originally aired on Feb. 23, 2026.

There are a lot of songs about birds: bluebirds, blackbirds, free birds. Host Carolyn Beeler introduces us to a song about a peacock. In this tune, it's a beautiful bird with an immortal soul that's carved out of wood. "El Pavo Real" is by Chancha Via Circuito featuring the Meridian Brothers.

Barcelona has a major pigeon problem, like a lot of cities. But the heart of the problem, say government officials, are the super-feeders: some 350 local residents who don't just toss a few breadcrumbs from a quaint park bench, but distribute bags of food that attract massive flocks of birds. From Barcelona, Gerry Hadden looks at what city officials are doing to curb the problem.This story originally aired on July 10, 2024.

Humans and monkeys once peacefully coexisted in Lopburi, a mid-sized city in Thailand, but no more. Its downtown is overrun with more than 2,000 long-tailed macaques, snatching food and belongings from passersby. Wildlife authorities say the monkeys expanded their turf during lockdowns during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the alpha males now acting like gang leaders. The World's Patrick Winn reported on the difficulty officials had dealing with the monkeys. Since the story aired, the city has rounded up and sterilized thousands of the monkeys.This story originally aired on April 12, 2024.

At least 68 Palestinians and 13 Israelis have been killed in the West Bank this year. And there is a real fear that violence could spiral further out of control between Palestinian villagers and Jewish settlers. The Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law, and by most global bodies, including the UN. Stephanie Fried reports from the northern Israeli settlement of Havat Gilad.

In Japan, a new refrigerator designed to cool humans is making its debut, while scientists in the UK say they've invented a biodegradable balloon. Host Carolyn Beeler has the details.

People crowded in from across Europe to catch the solar eclipse in Spain. The World's Gerry Hadden took some friends to a remote spot to view the spectacle. He reports from Spanish city of El Perello.

Author Tim Queeney has written a book, "Rope: How a Bundle of Twisted Fibers Became the Backbone of Civilization," that delves into the ways rope has been used - for good and ill - throughout human history. As he tells Host Carolyn Beeler, this global story is both magnificent and very dark.This story originally aired on Oct. 1, 2025.

Last year, an independent book shop just outside the Danish capital, Copenhagen, received five big boxes of books. There was just one problem: The books were supposed to head to Nairobi, Kenya. Isabella Mousavizadeh Smith, the owner of the store Books and Company told The World's Host Carolyn Beeler that she decided to keep them, and offer a unique window into the kinds of books people a continent away are reading.This story originally aired on July 18, 2025.

A cafe manager in Tokyo, Japan, has developed a particular method to help writers struggling with procrastination to complete their work - whether it's a business plan, a novel or a radio script. Thisanka Siripala paid a visit, her own script in hand, and brought us this report on how it works.This story originally aired on July 6, 2022.

After decades of refusing to allow a movie version of his most famous novel, the two sons of Gabriel Garcia Marquez eventually sold the rights to Netflix. "One Hundred Years of Solitude" is a Colombian magical realism television series based on the 1967 novel of the same name. Sarah Birnbaum reports.This story originally aired on Dec. 11, 2024.

National Book Award Winner Ha Jin published a new coming of age novel set against the backdrop of the Tiananmen Square massacre. He joined host Carolyn Beeler in the studio to discuss "Looking for Tankman," which mirrors his own experience coming to the US as a student in 1985 and deciding to stay.This story originally aired on Oct. 28, 2025.

National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek is walking from Ethiopia to Chile on the Out of Eden Walk. But as he tells The World, "People are my destination." The story of the walk unfolds through conversations he has with the people he meets along the way. He speaks to Host Carolyn Beeler about the everyday chitchats that have become essential to his travels.This story originally aired on Aug. 22, 2025.

A coder in Sweden thought it would be funny to see what ChatGPT says when it is stoned - whether on weed, coke or ketamine. So, he created a chatbot plug-in that people are actually paying to use. The World's Gerry Hadden reports.This story originally aired on Jan. 9, 2026.

Humans aren't the only animal species on the planet with complex vocal communications. New research shows that chimpanzees communicate with 390 "words" and it could have big implications for the understanding of the evolution of human languages. Host Marco Werman spoke to a co-author of the research, Catherine Crockford. She's research director at CNRS Institute of Cognitive Sciences in Lyon, France, and co-director of the Tai Chimpanzee Project, Ivory Coast, where the research took place.This story originally aired on April 4, 2024.

Cali, Colombia, was hit hard by this week's earthquake. A mix of local and regional rescue teams are on the ground, and every hour brings a new celebration or disappointment, as neighbors gather around the sites devastated by the 7.4-magnitude quake. Host Marco Werman speaks with reporter Manuel Rueda, who's on the ground in Cali.

Some Americans, like Pardis Mahdavi, feel caught between two worlds. Her parents immigrated to the US from Iran, and she's never really felt completely at home in either country. So now, she's adopted a hyphenated identity. Patrick Cox of the "Subtitle" podcast reports.This story originally aired on Dec. 23, 2021.

The Trump administration has stripped Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, from hundreds of thousands of beneficiaries from 13 countries. Sejal Zota, the co-founder of the legal support group Just Futures Law, talks with The World's Host Marco Werman about the origins of the TPS program and the idea that the US should not send people back to countries where they cannot return safely.

Hundreds of years ago, Chinese women created a secret language to share their struggles and dreams with each other. The language is almost extinct, with only a handful of women still able to read and write it today. A new documentary shows how the language is being preserved in China today.This story originally aired on June 10, 2022.

Brasiliano is a combination of Portuguese, African and Indigenous languages. Many advocates says it's a truer reflection of the complex history and people of Brazil and that Brasiliano should replace Brazilian Portuguese as the official language. Musician Lucas Santtana agrees and even calls his new album "Brasiliano." Santtana recently spoke to Host Marco Werman.This story originally aired on March 11, 2026.

In April 2025, the European Space Agency (ESA) launched a small bioreactor carrying genetically engineered yeast into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. It's part of a larger plan to develop in-space food production systems to serve the International Space Station and future missions to the moon and Mars. Host Marco Werman speaks with Aqeel Shamsul, CEO of Frontier Space, a UK biotech company that is developing the platform for biotech and biopharma in space.This story originally aired on April 22, 2025.

Styles may vary when it comes to barbecuing, but the basic idea is cooking meat, over fire. It's also a culinary tradition with a global history, infused with global flavor. A new cookbook called "Barbecue: Smoked and Grilled Recipes from Across the Globe," explores these traditions. It was compiled by Chef Hugh Mangum with contributions from May Chow, a chef in Hong Kong. Both chefs speak to Host Marco Werman.This story originally aired on July 3, 2025.

In his youth, Kosuke Chujo was obsessed with Nikes, Levi's and the Philadelphia Sound, and he's turned his passion for all things Philly into a lifelong business: He runs a Philly-style cheesesteak shop in Tokyo, and makes occasional pilgrimages to Philadelphia to taste-test steaks there. Carolyn Beeler sat down with Chujo at his shop in 2024 to ask him about his obsession with Philly cheesesteaks, and how he and his wife have figured out how to make them authentic in a country where you can't buy hoagie rolls or cheese wiz.This story originally aired on Nov. 21, 2024.

Long queues, missed flights and frustrated passengers - Europe's new biometric border system has been causing chaos at some airports this summer. The new border checks require non-EU travelers to have their fingerprints and faces scanned when entering the Schengen zone. During the peak summer period, some EU airports have opted to abandon the new measures altogether as The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry reports.

Regions of western Colombia were struck yesterday by a 7.4-magnitude earthquake that killed at least 179 people and has left thousands more missing. Host Marco Werman has more of the details.

It's puffer fish season in the seas around Southeast Asia. In the more-tropical part of the region - Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines - fishing boats are catching these spiny sea creatures. Most will throw pufferfish back, but some will bring them to market, serving niche groups of customers who love eating them - even though experts warn that you might not want to do that. The World's Patrick Winn reports.This story originally aired on June 2, 2023.

Erratic weather patterns in the Central American Dry Corridor are leaving millions of people in food insecurity. Local farmers in a rural community in Honduras are learning how to deal with climate change. Tibisay Zea reports.This story originally aired on June 27, 2022.

Deposed Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and his younger brother were sentenced to death in absentia by a Damascus court today, nearly two years after victorious rebels forced them to seek exile in Russia. The University of Oklahoma's Joshua Landis tells The World's Host Marco Werman that it's unlikely the Kremlin would surrender the Assads.

In the Indian city of Hyderabad, an inventor named Kanyaboyin Sudhakar Yadav makes vehicles in the shape of everyday objects. At Sudha Cars Museum, you can see burger cars, a basketball car, even a huge toilet car. These quirky creations have earned Yadav fans across the world, but Yadav isn't just having fun; he's also trying to promote public health. Jamie Fullerton went to Hyderabad for a test drive.This story originally aired on April 1, 2026.

Over the past 30 years, Mexico City has gone from being the most polluted city in the world to coming in 999th on that list. Taming traffic and supporting a robust bicycling culture has contributed to that turnaround. John Burnett reports from Mexico City.This story originally aired on June 12, 2024.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bluntly rejected a US-backed 15-point peace plan for Gaza this weekend. The Israeli leader's hostile words represented a rare public break with US President Donald Trump. But Jerusalem-based journalist Noga Tarnopolsky tells The World's Host Marco Werman that Netanyahu's public defiance of Trump's roadmap may be an election ploy that masks quiet acceptance of White House plans for Gaza.

Racers gathered in London to embark on a race across Europe using trains and buses, from checkpoint to checkpoint along the way. In a seemingly improbable turn of events, the race, which lasted dozens of hours, had a tight finish, separated by only a minute. The World's Host Marco Werman talks to Eleanor Parker and Bram Houtenbos, the two who vied for the win, about how the race went down.This story originally aired on Aug. 24, 2023.

In the past few years, the US has wrestled with what to do about statues that still glorified heroes of the Confederacy. Many have been taken down. In Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, there's a statue that was taken down more than a hundred years ago. But Prague recently voted to put it back. From Deutsche Welle, DW, Inside Europe's Rob Cameron tells the tale of the monument to Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky, a military commander in the 19th century.

La Paz, Bolivia, depends on its public transportation. There are 10 lines. More than 26 stations. But this is no metro. It's the longest cable car system in the world and it's also the highest. The system opened in 2014. Michael Fox took a ride and reported on how cable cars have transformed public transportation in Bolivia's capital.This story originally aired on March 10, 2025.

China now produces nearly three-quarters of the world's electric cars, and no city embodies that dominance more than Shenzhen, home to industry giant BYD. The city of 20 million people is a global hub of clean transportation and high-tech innovation. As The World's Jeremy Siegel reports, Shenzhen's transformation has roots in Apple's decision produce the iPhone there 20 years ago.This story originally aired on Dec. 4, 2025.

With more than 4,000 cases reported in Democratic Republic of Congo, the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say responders need to shift focus to door-to-door disease tracking. The World's Host Marco Werman learned more from Dr. Mesfin Teklu Tessema, head of the health unit at the International Rescue Committee. He also spoke with Trish Newport, emergency program manager for Doctors Without Borders. She's based in the city of Bunia, on the frontlines of the fight to contain Ebola.

Just over a week since about 72,000 migrants crossed into the Spanish enclave of Ceuta, roughly 2,000 minors remain. Under European law, they cannot be deported unless family can be found to take them back. That can take months. In the meantime, the Spanish government is trying to protect the minors from common criminals and human traffickers. It's calling on the rest of Spain to take over stewardship of the children, but it's meeting a lot of resistance. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

This week marked a chord change in one of the world's longest concerts. The 639-year performance of John Cage's Organ2/ASLSP (As SLow aS Possible) in a disused church in Halberstadt, Germany, has been going for 25 years. This is the first change since 2024, and the first under new leadership as the project's stewards plan for the next six centuries. Reporter Gabe Bullard has the story, from Halberstadt.A piece about this and other long-term art projects will appear in an upcoming issue of the The European Review of Books.

The Indian national government this week declared heat waves an official natural disaster. The designation frees up funding that can be used to boost the existing Heat Action Plans that are triggered in local communities ahead of expected rising temperatures. But these plans are reactive, and are not designed for the long-term threat that heat poses in the country. The World's Host Marco Werman speaks with climate adaptation researcher Aditya Pillai about what the government's role is in heat adaptation, and the gap between short- and long-term solutions.

Georgia's capital city, Tbilisi, sits at the ancient crossroads of Asia and Europe, of Islam and Christianity. National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek was there in 2015 as part of his global walking project, the Out of Eden Walk, and tells Host Marco Werman about his experience of the city.This story originally aired on May 3, 2024.

In an attempt to cut down on outside noise and rowdiness, the Westminster City Council, which is responsible for licensing pubs and restaurants in London's West End, has put forward a proposal to cut back on what it calls "vertical drinking," essentially standing with a glass. As The World's Host Marco Werman explains, this has caused an enormous blowback, including potshots from the prime minister and from London's mayor.

Ugandan singer-songwriter Jon Muq was in Kampala, when he first heard the charity single "We Are the World" from his cousin's CD collection. This song opened Muq's world to pop music and inspired him to learn English and start writing his own songs. Muq released his debut album, "Flying Away," back in May 2024, and he'll be back on the road later this month.This story originally aired on Sept. 20, 2024.

From a court case in the US to a family home in New Zealand, a cross-border investigation by Bellingcat and The Press, a daily newspaper in New Zealand, tracks down the alleged owner of a "revenge porn" website. The World's Host Marco Werman spoke to Bellingcat investigator Kolina Koltai, based in Seattle, and Michael Wright, a reporter with The Press, based in Christchurch, New Zealand.CONTENT WARNING: This interview concerns non-consensual sexual content and child sexual abuse material.

Members of the world's coast guards, navies, search and rescue teams, anyone who regularly operates boats at extreme speeds, are highly exposed to chronic brain trauma - even if they've never hit their head on the job. An ongoing NATO study is trying to figure out exactly how its happening, and what can be done to solve it. The World's Host Marco Werman speaks with Dr. Johan Ullman, who leads the study, about what he's seen so far.

Cold beet soup is a culinary staple in Latvia and Lithuania, and across Eastern Europe. Each year, Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, hosts a "Pink Soup Festival" celebrating the dish. But the city's tourism agency also started a public beef with Latvia, claiming that the Lithuanian version of the soup is better. From Latvia's capital, Riga, Daniel Ofman reports.This story originally aired on June 4, 2024.

Summers in India, have always been hot. But this summer has been extreme, even by local standards. And it's pushing people to their limits. In Chennai, on the southeastern coast of India, residents are using cast-off potato chip bags to manage the heat - and to goose the local economy. Namrata Kolachalam reports from Chennai.

Climate change is walloping Europe this summer. The continent is warming twice as quickly as the global average. We've reported on the extreme heat, drought and fires that have followed in places like Spain and France. One country that ranks relatively low on most measures of climate risk is Germany. But it's also dealing with a climate crisis of its own - a quiet one that starts underground. Valerie Hamilton has our story from Munich.