Section: The Conversation (USA)
How the arms trade is used to secure access to oil
shutterstock.comUK arms exports to Saudi Arabia increased by 175% in the first nine months of 2017 according to an investigation by the Campaign Against Arms Trade. Similarly, France and the US are major exporters of arms to the oil-rich Gulf state – in 2017 alone, they were worth around US$2.6 billion. Selling weapons is a lucrative business. As...
How Atlantic Canadian businesses are trying to attract immigrants
The Atlantic Ballet Theatre will soon premier Alien, a new piece that explores the immigrant experience. Of the ballet’s 21 full-time employees, 12 are immigrants who come from nine different countries. Stephen MacGillivray/Public Policy ForumSusan Wilson made history this year when Canadian conglomerate J.D. Irving Ltd. made her its first...
Why April 27 in 1994 marked a point of no return for South Africa
Freedom day marks the first time all South Africans cast their vote for a democratic government ShutterstockEvery year most states celebrate something special. Their independence day, monarch’s birthday (Thailand, Japan, Oman or the Netherlands), patron saint day (Ireland), beginning of a revolution (Iran, France or Egypt) or their...
Why cities are becoming reluctant to host the World Cup and other big events
Riot police drill outside Saint Petersburg’s new soccer stadium ahead of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. AP Photo/Dmitri LovetskyGetting ready to welcome millions of visitors – as Russia is now doing in Moscow, Sochi and other cities in advance of the 2018 World Cup soccer tournament – takes years of planning and lots of construction....
I run ‘facial recognition’ on buildings to unlock architectural secrets
Is this a face or a building? David W, CC BYAbout a decade ago, a modest update to Apple’s iPhoto software showed me a new way to study architectural history. The February 2009 update added facial recognition, allowing users to tag friends and loved ones in their photos. After a few faces were tagged, the software would begin to offer...
Are identity politics emancipatory or regressive?
If UKIP were pigeons, Clacton-on-Sea #Banksy. Duncan Hull/Flickr, CC BY-NDIdentity politics are a pervasive feature of the modern world. From caste-based politics in India to the rise of xenophobic Christian nationalism in Italy and Hungary, people are mobilising to defend perceived ethnic and religious group identities. The strength of identity...
By fighting wars with private armed forces, Russia risks conflict between major powers
kirill_makarov via ShutterstockRussian and Syrian troops carried out a ground assault on a military base in Deir ez-Zor, Syria on February 7. However the base was occupied by US soldiers, and the attackers were beaten back by a US air strike. Around 100 Russians were ultimately killed. And yet, diplomatically speaking, almost nothing happened: no...
With smart cities, your every step will be recorded
pxhereModern cities are brimming with objects that receive, collect and transmit data. This includes mobile phones but also objects actually embedded into our cities, such as traffic lights and air pollution stations. Even something as simple as a garbage bin can now be connected to the internet, meaning that it forms part of what is called the...
The public has a vital role to play in preventing future cyber attacks
Numerous cyber attacks in recent years have targeted common household devices, such as routers. ShutterstockUp to 400 Australian organisations may have been snared in a massive hacking incident detailed today. The attack, allegedly engineered by the Russian government, targeted millions of government and private sector machines globally via...
Four years after the Euromaidan revolution in Ukraine: key gains and losses
In Kyiv in February 2014, riot police line up opposite crosses marking the deaths of protesters. More than 10,000 people have been killed since the Euromaidan protests began in late 2013. Christiaan Triebert/Flickr, CC BY-NCThis article is part of the Revolutions and Counter Revolutions series, curated by Democracy Futures as a joint global...
