North Korea opens for Western tourists
On Thursday, North Korea let Western tourists visit for the first time since 2020. Reporter Jamie Fullerton looks at the ethical issues around taking a vacation in the autocratic nation
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Gay imam murdered over the weekend in South Africa
Muhsin Hendricks, known as one of the world’s only out gay imams and the only one in Africa, was shot dead over the weekend in what looks like a targeted hit. Hendricks was both loved and reviled for his work promoting tolerance in South Africa and around the world
The Guatemalan health workers funded by Abba's 'Chiquitita'
Fifty years ago, the pop superstars ABBA donated all proceeds from the song “Chiquitita” to UNICEF. The song is still making money, and that money is now being spent in Guatemala where it’s funding medical workers in rural areas
Bridges save Costa Rican sloths from road deaths - The World from PRX
There are millions of sloths in Costa Rica. But with high levels of deforestation over the past few decades and increasing contact with humans, the population is taking a hit.
A Costa Rican dance against colonialism becomes a paradoxical tourist attraction
Every year, in the Costa Rican village of Boruca, men dress in garish masks and costumes to reenact their ancestors’ battle against colonizers 500 years ago.
Bullfighting in Costa Rica is more like bull 'dodging'
Unlike the Spanish form, Costa Rican bullfighting does not aim to kill the bull, but only to dodge it. Jamie Fullerton takes us to this Costa Rican Christmas tradition.
In Costa Rica, there's a new voice of Nicaraguan resistance
In 2018, singer-guitarist Olguita Acuña left Nicaragua, following death threats. Acuña made it to Costa Rica and, like many others forced to flee Nicaragua, applied for refugee status. Now, she’s carrying on her activism
Sheds playing greater role for men in the UK
Sheds are important to British culture, or at least to many men of a certain age in the country. But now, sheds are playing a far greater role in the UK, bringing older men together.
Cornish hatchery helps lobster sustainability levels
In Cornwall, in the UK, a 25-year-old hatchery seems to have proven itself a success.
In Poland, a group helping Ukrainian refugees has begun building drones
An NGO established in Warsaw, Poland, to help refugees from the war in Ukraine provides up to 500 people a day with food and clothing. It’s recently added another bit of aid to its portfolio: supplying frontline Ukrainian troops with kamikaze drones.
"It's a weird... performance": Famed Japanese drummer big outside of Japan
Ryosuke Kiyasu is a respected heavy metal and jazz drummer in Japan who takes on a different style in his solo drum shows, playing a snare drum with his teeth, kicking the drum around the room and often destroying furniture.
In rural Austria, someone wants you to hear the sound of a glacier crying
The Dachstein glacier in Austria is nearly 9,000 feet high. But scientists say that it’s likely to melt completely by the end of this century. An artist from Cleveland, Ohio, was commissioned to create a work of art that would give the glacier a voice.
Albania's No. 1 urban explorer is a Russian woman accused of being a spy
Lana Sator is a young Russian urban explorer who routinely traveled to different countries in search of abandoned military sites. But she ran into trouble when police grabbed her in Albania and accused her of being a spy. Since they took her documents and won’t let her leave the country, she’s been supporting herself by giving unofficial tours to tourists.
Bulgarian bagpipe festival creates a cacophony of sound
Bagpipes blaring across a lush green rural landscape are typically associated with the Scottish Highlands. But it’s in rural Bulgaria that bagpipe enthusiasts gather for the annual bagpipe festival in the village of Gela. Bagpipes date back thousands of years in Bulgaria, particularly in the country’s Rhodope Mountains.