· March, 2009

Stories about Latin America from March, 2009

Puerto Rico: Murder Rate

“We. Don't. Give. A. Damn. Because it isn't really ‘Us’ getting killed, it's ‘them.’ We don't see the obvious. There is no ‘them’ on an island. There's only Us”: Puerto...

31 March 2009

Guatemala: Chico Zapote Fruit

The chico zapote, or also known as the sapodilla, is an exotic tropical fruit found in Guatemala and Rudy Girón of Antigua Guatemala Daily Photo publishes a close-up photograph that...

31 March 2009

Bolivia: The Grape Harvest Fair

Juan Angel Tapia of El Miroscopio [es] visits La Vendimia in the Calamuchita region of Tarija, Bolivia. This fair celebrates the important grape harvest used in the wine industry famous...

30 March 2009

Ecuador: Heading to the Polls Yet Again

In less than a month, approximately 10.5 million Ecuadorians will head to the polls yet again. After approval of the new Constitution last September, elections to select the president, members of the legislature and other local authorities are scheduled for April 26. The current president, Rafael Correa, has announced his intention to run, where he is favored to win.

30 March 2009

Water: One Take International Video Contest

“Is access to clean, safe water for drinking a basic human right? Why? or Why not?”. That is the question One Take is asking for you to answer in your own language, recording it on a video no more than 2 minutes long, uploading it on their site and on DotSub and having it subtitled in at least 1 other language. Just this month, world leaders met in Istambul, Turkey at the World Water Forum to have this discussion, and although they aren't sure what the result will be, it is our chance to show what we believe about this issue, and make our voices heard.

30 March 2009

Brazil: Beyond cyberspace – when blogs move offline

Books are becoming e-books and blogs and websites have appeared as books and other types of media. In this state of flux, it looks like the paper book has the power to beat virtual writing rather than the other way round. In Brazil, there is more than just a fashion of launching e-books to attract readers and writers but also an opposite stream in which blogs have reached the offline shelves as well as the movie screens.

29 March 2009

Global Recession Survey: Survival Tips and Business Opportunities

Everybody is trying hard to cope with the global economic crisis. Bloggers are offering survival tips to their readers. Businesses around the world are adjusting. Some are even profiting from the crisis. In this post, I will feature individuals and companies exerting their very best to overcome the recession.

27 March 2009

Mexico: Unsolved Feminicide Along the Border

Violence along the United States - Mexico border has reached staggering levels. The killings in border cities like Ciudad Juárez has already totaled 400 in the first two months of 2009. More than 370 women have been murdered in the cities of Juárez and Chihuahua “without the authorities taking proper measures to investigate and address the problem.” This crisis, often called feminicide, has been a cause for organizations and blogs to take to the internet to help raise awareness to the plight of the victims and their families.

26 March 2009

Cuba: Antúnez Update

Diaspora blogger Uncommon Sense says that the Cuban authorities have “taken its fight with…dissident Jorge Luis García Pérez (Antúnez) to a new, more frightening level.”

26 March 2009

Mexico: A Lack of Water in Mexico City

Mexico City is running out of water. Daniel Hernandez of Intersections writes about what the local government is doing to address the situation, but officials say “drastic steps” may need...

26 March 2009

About our Latin America coverage

Melissa Vida
Melissa Vida is the Latin America and Spanish-language editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.

Fernanda Canofre
Fernanda Canofre is the Brazil editor. Email her story ideas or volunteer to write.