Some years ago, I was an election monitor in a West African nation just emerging from a devastating civil war. President Carter, then a hyper-active 82, was leading the team of international observers. He asked me to spend several days interviewing war lords about the peace process and the election campaign. I protested that I […]

Until recently, it was difficult to explain to people in high-income countries why superstition has such power in low-income societies. “Why do they still believe these things, despite all the evidence to the contrary?” some of our supporters would ask, both mystified and concerned. Now, the Covid-19 pandemic has revealed the divide within comparatively wealthy countries between people […]

Since the pandemic began, alcohol abuse in the US and UK has risen dramatically. Several recent surveys show one in five Americans are consuming an unhealthy amount of alcohol. The UK mirrors these findings, with an increased rate of alcohol-related deaths. Both countries are also acknowledging upticks in domestic violence. Now, imagine facing the equivalent […]