Vital Nshimirimana discusses the issue of protection of human rights defenders in Burundi. He argues that human rights defenders are subject to assassinations, kidnappings, death threats and intimidations. He assesses the relationship between human rights defenders and public authorities and regrets that activists are often viewed as enemies of the

The upcoming presidential elections in Mexico may provide an opportunity to break from the failed policies of the ongoing "war on drugs" and pursue an alternative, rights-based, and public health-centered drug policy. After discussing the social costs and self-defeating rhetoric of the "war on drugs", this paper offers some hope

Animals, plants, and the wider natural world are often reduced to mere "environment", a backdrop for human affairs over which we assume absolute superiority and dominion. In this thought provoking essay, Febna Reheem Caven argues that our physiology, psychology, identity, cultural expressions, and ultimately, our existence depend on the active

Across the Horn of Africa, between 10 and 12 million people are now affected by the worst drought in more than 60 years. As respective nations come together and the international community gets summoned to help, Patrick Mugo Mugo investigates: What is being done? Why have the leaders in the

Surya Nath Prasad explores the esoteric in this opinion piece on the spiritual relationship of oneness between humankind and the universe, connecting the essence of "global man" to the realization of peace on Earth.

This is excerpt from the speech delivered by Dr. Prasad at the International Academic Peace Conference on the eve of UN International Peace Day at Hotel Lotte, Seoul organized by Institute of International Peace Studies, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Dr. Shahbaz Israr Khan examines the ways in which gender-neutral approaches to budgeting are highly discriminatory against woman, especially in neoliberal economies and the globalized world context. He concludes that in a highly patriarchal environment, gender neutral budgets, without assessing their implications for women, men, boys and girls, can have

Huma Rights scholar Peter Reat Gatkuoth discusses the continued gender inequality in South Sudan, as well as Africa at large, despite the traditional veneration of women as mothers and caregivers, and the existence of legal documents (including national constitutions) which proclaim the equal rights of women. The author argues that

Biofuels have been presented as a solution to many social and economic problems, and have attracted equally strong criticism. In Colombia, palm oil production has been suggested as an alternative to coca, however, as Olivia Gilmore explains, the scheme may cause as many problems as it solves.

The faltering economies and tighter budgets of Europe and America, the traditional providers of development financing, have left organizations and communities wondering where the continued funding of their development projects will come from. In this special report, veteran fundraiser and development guru Jürgen Carls reviews the remaining instruments and possibilities