On July 7, the European Parliament voted 644 to 25 to ban the sale of illegally logged timber and timber products from the EU market from 2012 onwards when the rule takes effect. The passage of this ban is a tremendous achievement, the culmination of more than a decade of environmental activism and lobbying on [...]

For those (still) interested in climate change issues, two things are happening next week that are worth to ponder: First, Global Warming is turning 35! As announced on the blog of the RealClimate website, the term “global warming” was used for the first time in an article by Wally Broecker in the journal Science on [...]

While much of Latin America is focused on celebrating 200 years of independence from Spain and Portugal, numerous security challenges are begging for answers – and soon. This week the ISN examines the opportunities and obstacles Latin America must face if it is to succeed in its third century of Republican history. This ISN Special [...]

Barack Obama’s 2008 election campaign may still be the benchmark for the use of social media tools in politics, but some surprising new actors are embracing Twitter in particular in an effort to reach out to voters and citizens in a more personal and immediate way. While leaders of ‘old Europe’ still seem quite reluctant [...]

The West can afford to ignore Somalia, Africa cannot. On the evening of July 11th, three bombs went off in Uganda’s capital, Kampala, leaving at least 75 dead and many more injured. There was no need for investigations or inquiries; the perpetrators quickly and proudly claimed responsibility. Carrying out its first attack outside Somalia’s borders, [...]