The World: Latest Stories

Lead contamination in drinking water can have serious impacts on growing brains, including cognitive issues in the short term and mental illnesses years after the exposure ends.

Russia has continued to build up its forces near Ukraine’s borders in the tens of thousands. The US and other Western powers are saying that an expanded war is imminent, while Russia says that it has no plans for war.

Far from simply entertaining troops, Dr. Hannah Ha learned, her mom had been a recording artist who worked with South Vietnam’s top composers in the scene’s 1960s heyday. She performed under the stage name Phương Tâm.

Many Indigenous communities who depend on the Ecuadorian Amazon’s Coca River are seeing the impact of the oil spill — even hundreds of miles away.

More than 2,000 Afghans are currently living at an upscale hotel in Albania, awaiting visa processing for the US and Canada. But behind the luxurious façade — guilt and uncertainty reign.

Ugandan poet Stella Nyanzi talks about her friend, the satirist Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, and his torture while recently under military detention. His crime? Calling Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's son "obese" in a series of tweets last December.

For years, human rights groups and families of the detainees have called for the repatriation of these prisoners, but this has become a highly political issue because home countries refuse to take them back.

The Philippines is one of several countries that have kept students out of the classroom the longest since the start of the pandemic. Lacking critical resources to sustain virtual learning, the situation leaves teachers, students and parents across Metro Manila exhausted and frustrated.

Listen to the latest updates and findings about the omicron variant of COVID-19 as The World's reporter Elana Gordon speaks with epidemiologist Bill Hanage of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

In Brazil, 1,258 Indigenous people have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.

In Brazil, 1,258 Indigenous people have died from COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic.

Amid a looming debt crisis in Ghana, the government has proposed a direct 1.75% tax on mobile money transactions and electronic bank transfers, sparking widespread debate.

The Saudi-led coalition carried out airstrikes in Yemen last Friday, hitting two separate targets: a detention center, where migrants are held, and a telecommunications tower, cutting off internet access for most of the country for four days. At least 60 people were killed in the attack, including three children.

Many Native American communities belong to a clan that identifies with an animal — such as the bear, deer, or loon — that is featured in their traditional stories.

The nonprofit investigative newsroom ProPublica recently created an interactive map that highlights the EPA’s failure to account for cumulative cancer risk for Americans who live near several industrial facilities.

The Pacific microstate of Tuvalu is in the unique position to capitalize on its much sought-after domain name — .tv — the worldwide abbreviation for “television.” In a new deal with GoDaddy, the small nation is poised to make an estimated $10 million a year from leasing its domain name to online streaming sites like Twitch.

We remember E.O. Wilson, one of the world’s leading naturalists who died on Dec. 26, 2021. “I like to call it, ‘one Earth, one experiment,'" he once said. "We’ve only got one shot at this. Let's be careful.”

In the city of Konya, adherents of a Sufi ritual meditation are torn between commercialism and tradition.

The family’s long journey from Kabul to New Bedford began on the morning of Aug. 15.

Tom Lovejoy, along with his colleague EO Wilson, shaped humanity’s understanding of biodiversity and the importance of keeping vital ecosystems intact.

COVID-19 vaccines have been available in Ghana since March 2021, but vaccine hesitancy in some areas has slowed down vaccination rates so far in the West African nation.

Nearly 60 million homes in the United States are within a mile of a wildfire zone, but most people are unaware of the risk. This risk was made clear in the suburbs of Boulder, Colorado, on Dec. 30, 2021, when the Marshall fire torched close to a thousand homes.

Provincial governments in Ontario and Quebec said that in order to keep beds open for COVID-19 patients, only emergency procedures should go ahead.

Three deaths have been confirmed by Tongan authorities. The eruption was so powerful that people as far as 2,000 miles away could hear it, and volcanic ash plume grew to 180 miles across the island in less than an hour.

The recent uptick in sinkholes is largely attributed to rapid groundwater loss as farmers tap deep underground wells to irrigate fields during a nearly three-yearlong drought.

The year 2021 was once again one of the hottest on record. And what may seem like a slight temperature increase has actually caused devastating effects across the globe, with natural disasters becoming stronger and deadlier.

Many front-line workers and organizations immediately condemned the new rules, calling them “not safe, not fair” and not a solution to the “chronic and accute problem of understaffing.”

The US has ended its war in Afghanistan, the bombs have stopped falling and the Taliban are back in power. But life hasn't improved for millions of Afghans under the new government.

At 24, Silvana Estrada has already established herself as one of Mexico’s most promising singer-songwriters. Her debut album, “Marchita,” or "Withered," tells the story of how she learned to take care of herself after her first big heartbreak — and find joy in everyday life.

Chris Krebs, former director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), was the top person responsible for improving cybersecurity across the US government. Now a cybersecurity consultant, Krebs joined The World’s host Marco Werman to discuss ongoing Russian cyber threats.

Moderna’s newfound success has put the small Massachusetts company in the hot seat over its handling of vaccine manufacturing and global access.

The Cumbre Vieja volcano’s eruption was officially declared over on Christmas Day after 10 days of no lava flows or seismic activity, and more than three months since it first erupted. Now, residents are trying to pick up the pieces and rebuild their lives.

In an effort to protect Indonesia’s thermal coal supply, the country imposed an export ban in early January. But after several countries in Asia that depend on the crucial commodity lamented the move, the country has indicated an imminent ease of the ban.

Writer Jennifer Junghans describes her close encounters with blue-footed boobies and blacktip sharks — and a wondrous face-to-face meeting with a curious pufferfish.

Since 1989, hundreds of thousands of Bulgarians have left the country, looking for better job prospects and wages. But in 2020, emigration decreased dramatically while the number of returnees soared. Leaders hope they’ll stay and help build Bulgaria’s future.

All-female and all-queer tango groups playing contemporary tango songs with a feminist lens are on the rise in Argentina.

As military bases temporarily hosting refugees reach capacity, states are being asked to help, according to resettlement agencies. Connecticut alone is expecting more than 500 refugees — a jump since the initial 300 estimated in September. And the number could see another increase. But as Connecticut prepares for the influx, affordable housing has become a challenge.

This month, parents, teachers and kids in India were poised to reenter their classrooms full time. Omicron has pumped the brakes on that.

The Daoist goddess Mazu is revered on both sides of the Taiwan Strait. China supports Mazu worship as a way to strengthen cross-strait, political and economic relations.

Despite Africa's low vaccination rates, the continent's early, robust response has helped mitigate the impact of COVID-19 on the continent so far, says Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. And he predicts many more vaccines will be available in 2022, with a strong emphasis on distribution.

Ambassador Daniel Foote — former US special envoy for Haiti — told The World's host Carol Hills that the US, though moving in the right direction now, hasn't been doing right by Haiti.

There have been hundreds and thousands variants of COVID-19. Emma Hodcroft, an epidemiologist at the University of Bern in Switzerland, explained to The World's host Carol Hills when a variant actually becomes a variant of concern.

Evangelical Christians will play a powerful role in keeping President Jair Bolsonaro in power. But support may be slipping as evangelical progressives begin to organize against Bolsonaro ahead of next year's elections.

Aquamation is a corpse decomposition process that uses water instead of fire to produce similar results — an urn of ashes. It’s seen as a “greener alternative” to carbon-emitting cremation.

In northeastern Brazil, weeks of rain have caused massive flooding. At least 24 people are dead and tens of thousands have lost their homes. But in some places, local residents are coming together to provide support for those in need.

Tackling the coronavirus pandemic is challenging even for the most sophisticated medical systems in the world. But in Syria, it’s been compounded by an ongoing civil war.

Tropical forests are a treasure trove of biodiversity and contain vast stores of carbon that, if released through deforestation, threaten the stability of Earth’s climate system.

Food blogger Joanne Lee Molinaro speaks with The World's host Marco Werman about her cooking, social media success and the personal stories behind the experience.

Vladimir Kara-Murza, a Russian opposition politician, joins The World’s host Marco Werman to discuss what’s at stake with the shutdown of Memorial International, which has documented Soviet-era crimes and other human rights abuses for 30 years.

Israel's largest hospital is testing a second COVID-19 booster on 150 health workers. The World's host Marco Werman discussed the study with Arnon Afek, deputy director-general and acting director of Sheba General Hospital.