Stories from 15 January 2014
Panama Canal Expansion Faces a New Challenge
The company responsible for the expansion of the Panama Canal has threatened to halt work demanding payment in billions for overruns. The Panama Canal Authority refuses to pay.
Russia's Foreign Ministry Opines on “Queers”
While the translation is labelled as "unofficial," Russia watchers were somewhat taken aback that a homophobic slur could end up on a government website.
Haiti, Four Years After
Four years after this tragedy, what have we done to change the living conditions of the people who are still living under makeshifts tents? What we have done to effectively rebuild a better country? Wadner Pierre reflects on the 2010 earthquake in Haiti and considers the best way forward.
Intonaspacio: a New Digital Musical Instrument Made in Portugal
Mailis Rodrigues, a young talented Portuguese women has invented a new musical instrument and now needs help to show it to the world in an annual event to find the world’s best new ideas in musical instrument design: Hi, I was selected as one of the 20 semi-finalists of the...
Jamaica: Measuring the Effect of Shaggy's Charity Concert
Jamaicans got a good show with this year's edition of Shaggy and Friends, but Cucumber Juice wants measurability: This applies to any organization, but especially to charities and public organizations. It’s called transparency.
New Global Voices Podcast in Portuguese
The prolific team of Global Voices in Portuguese have launched a new monthly podcast, Vozes Globais, with alternative news gleaned from the internet in all Portuguese speaking countries. Portuguese journalist Vanessa Rodrigues (@lunacronica) is heading up the podcast in partnership with community radio station RadioManobras.pt. The goal is to partner...
4 Arrested after White Powder Attack on Guatemalan Vice President
The VP was leaving the annual state of the union address. Reactions to the incident show citizens' skepticism regarding the government and their results in their two years in power.
Video: Music Parody about Food in China
“Rice, Rice baby” is a recent parody about the food culture in China from the expats’ point of view. The video is about how expats in China love the food but also are a little nervous of its effects. The lyrics says: “Love it or leave it, you better...
Understanding Human Rights in Portuguese-Speaking Countries
[All links lead to Portuguese language pages, except where otherwise stated] The Portuguese language version of the educational manual for human rights “Understanding Human Rights” is available online. The website provides the complete manual in pdf format or divided into chapters, as well as training material, bibliographical references and institutional information specifically aimed at...
China's Viral Sex Education Videos
A small team has released a collection of one-minute childhood sex education videos on China's youku, China's YouTube. The videos, involving topics such as “Why Are Boys Different from Girls” and “Where Do Babies Come From?”, have become the second most popular search on Baidu and have drawn over one...
China's Train Ticket Website Sparks Fury Again
As millions go online to buy train tickets home for Chinese New Year, which falls on Jan 30 this year, users are shocked again at how inconvenient and inefficient the site is. Many have been complaining about the site since its debut in 2010, but it hasn't been improved. Many have...
