Human Interest

"In the garment industry, stories about workers who barely eke out an existence on 'starvation wages' are legion: Factory workers in New Delhi often describe living in makeshift hovels 'barely fit for animals.' A young woman from Myanmar might wrestle with the decision to feed her children or send them to school. In Bangladesh, sewing-machine operators frequently toil for 100 hours or more a week, only to run out of money before the end of the month. Workers have demanded higher pay in all those countries, of course, sometimes precipitating violence between protesters and police. Companies in general, however, have preferred to sidestep the issue altogether. In fact, no multinational brand or retailer currently claims to pay its garment workers a wage they can subsist on."

Skeptics say if you hand cash to the impoverished, they'll mismanage it. But it turns out, many poor people are great at saving — thanks to this ingenious system.

Residents of the Congress Heights section of Washington DC tell of the devastating impact the president’s plan to cut food stamps would have on their families

Why the chainification of the corner store is a bigger deal than losing book stores and record stores combined.

The term Bodega originally referred to a neighborhood grocery in a mostly Spanish-speaking part of town, it has come to be used (in my experience) to cover just about any independently owned small grocer in the city. The fear is that the corporate behemoth (7-Eleven) will destroy the neighborhood bodega, a New York institution of long standing. The quintessential bodega is a beloved part of the fabric of the city.  The outcry has been loudest in the East Village, a neighborhood that despite gentrification still prides itself on its countercultural attitude and grimy authenticity.

Unctad reports weakest year of GDP growth in 20 years for least developed nations, scuppering hopes that half would escape extreme poverty by 2020

A government-driven revitalisation project is turning public housing – including the waterfront Sirius building with its 90-year-old hold-out resident – into private developments. It is seen by some as ‘aggressive social cleansing’

"Television commercials and billboards now carry a message that strike at the heart of the Indian contradiction of being the world’s fastest-growing major economy and also where relieving oneself in the open is the norm in most villages. Research shows that one of the reasons for the stubborn social practice is the centuries-old caste system, in which cleaning human waste was a job reserved only for the lowest caste. Having a toilet at home is still considered unclean by many villagers. They regard it cleaner to go to the open farms, which can cause water-borne diseases, the second leading cause of death of Indian children younger than 5."

Study in Lancet shows a woman’s lifetime chance of dying from childbirth is one in 36 in sub-Saharan Africa, compared to one in 4,900 in richer countries

"It's something you can see on every block in most major cities. You probably see one every day and never give give it a second thought. But in Yangon, Myanmar in 2013, an ATM was a small miracle. For decades, Myanmar was cut off from the rest of the world. There were international sanctions, and no one from the U.S. or Europe did business there."

The World Health Organization has estimated that changes related to the weather phenomenon are putting 60 million people at increased risk of malnutrition and illnesses.

India’s population and emissions are rising fast, and its ability to tackle poverty without massive fossil fuel use will decide the fate of the planet

In Kind Direct charity warns of ‘hidden crisis’ facing thousands after it distributes £20.2m of hygiene products in one year

Once Latin America’s richest country, Venezuela can no longer feed its people, hobbled by the nationalization of farms as well as price and currency controls. The resulting hunger and malnutrition are an unfolding tragedy.

President Mugabe's economic mismanagement of Zimbabwe has brought the country poverty and malnutrition. After 36 years in charge, he's looking to extend hi

New data explores what poor people really do with cash handouts.

"Food insecurity has a high correlation with increased diabetes rates. In Chicago, the death rate from diabetes in a food desert is twice that of areas with access to grocery stores."

Provided corruption is kept in check and governance improves in the developing world, free trade can benefit everybody, even the world’s poorest people

In Madagascar, the booming charcoal business is contributing to deforestation and may exacerbate the effects of global warming.

Joseph Rowntree Foundation estimates that dealing with the effects of deprivation costs £1,200 for each person in Britain

"Slums lack:

"Despite global inequalities, most of the world is better off than you think - and better off than it has ever been before.  Watch Hans Rosling explain why."

Tags: media, models, gapminder, development, perspective.