Life Orientation resources for South African teachers

A 21-year-old student in India’s Madhya Pradesh, popularly known as ‘Bittu Tabahi’, has single-handedly cleaned up a trash-filled river. Despite ridicule, health risks and limited resources, his efforts have transformed the waterway and prompted government action.

Sportswear giant Adidas is facing criticism after a former Israeli soldier appeared in a local campaign promoting its single-shoe service for amputees. Shalev Biton lost his leg after being wounded during the 2021 Israel-Gaza conflict. The World Health Organization estimates that more than 5,000 traumatic limb amputations have taken place in Gaza since October 2023. Stephanie Westbrook, a sports boycotts campaigns coordinator for PACBI and a founding member of the BDS movement, told Al Jazeera the campaign is "an absolute affront to the Palestinians." She said: "Gaza now has the highest number of child amputees per capita anywhere in the world," and accused Israel of imposing a "medieval siege" that is preventing prosthetics from entering Gaza. Westbrook said the controversy is "dangerous" because, in her view, it normalises Israel's actions against Palestinians and allows what she describes as crimes to continue "with impunity."

The US is facing a series of recalls of fruit, vegetables and meat as an outbreak of food contaminations makes more people sick at a time when jobs focused on food safety have been cut. Michigan's largest lettuce producer, Revolution Farms, saw a decline in sales after the largest outbreak of cyclosporiasis linked to lettuce in Mexico hit the state, with more than 14,000 cases reported, nearly 400 hospitalisations and two deaths. Other foods recalled this summer include salmonella in jalapenos, eggs, mangoes and chicken, and E. coli in frozen berries and sprouts. 

The true scale of the human cost of the disaster in Nepal is still emerging, with children among the most vulnerable. Thousands of people need food, water, shelter and healthcare following the floods. But experts warn that children also need psychological support and safe spaces where they can regain a sense of normalcy after the trauma of the disaster.

Community health groups in Kisumu, Kenya, say US funding cuts have devastated HIV/AIDS support networks, forcing outreach programmes to scale back drastically. One group reported condom distribution falling from 30,000 to just 1,000 monthly, while home visits to vulnerable patients have stopped entirely. Kisumu's HIV prevalence remains four times Kenya's national average, a legacy of the epidemic's severe impact on lakeshore fishing communities since the 1980s.

A growing xenophobic movement in South Africa has pushed thousands of foreign nationals from their homes. Led by the group March and March, anti-immigrant protests have gained widespread support, with activists blaming migrants for crime and unemployment. As the group's latest deadline for undocumented immigrants approaches, we examine what is driving this anger, who is benefiting from it and what impact it has on migrant communities.

The immigration crackdown in America has dominated headlines since Donald Trump returned to office.

But amid a widespread backlash to the high-profile, militarised raids and the killing of two protesters - White House tactics have shifted towards a less visible, but no less divisive strategy. July saw the highest number of deportations in Trump's second term.

We travelled to the President's home county in Florida - where that strategy is tearing families apart. With police, highway patrols, even the fish and wildlife commission able to make immigration arrests - people told us they feel hunted.

Millions of teenagers are going back to school in France, with one major change: mobile phones are now banned in high school, in a bid by the government to improve pupils to focus on their study, as it is concerned that passing too much time on their phone is arresting their development. But for schools, a major issue is how the measure can effectively be implemented.

Some houses in one Johannesburg neighbourhood are in danger of collapse because of illegal mining. Known as Zama Zamas, around 34,000 illegal miners are thought to be working in South Africa, in the hope of finding gold and chromium. The mines they dig hollow out the ground, which causes buildings to collapse as well as frequent power outages.

Families devastated by floods in Nepal are searching through debris for belongings while others still wait for news of missing relatives.

John Galliano has cancelled an upcoming major exhibition celebrating his work as a fashion designer after it prompted criticism due to his previous conviction for making antisemitic remarks. In 2011, a French court found the designer guilty of antisemitic and racist rants at a Parisian bar. He was also fired by Dior as creative director that same year after a video surfaced of him declaring a love for Hitler.

While American parents tend to ensure their children are supervised at all times, European parents focus on teaching children independence. It's common in much of Europe to see children as young as 6 or 7 riding public transportation by themselves.

A damaged ambulance in Gaza has been converted by the Palestinian Red Crescent Society into the ‘Dream Bus’, a mobile vehicle providing children with a space to watch cartoons, take part in storytime, and enjoy other educational and recreational activities.

ICE agents arrested an average of one person every 54 seconds in July.

Why does anger seem to rule the world today? Pankaj Mishra traces our age of anger to the collision of Enlightenment promises of liberty and equality with empire, nationalism and capitalism. He asks what happens when those promises are broken – and when the Global South turns Western ideals back on the West itself.

The World Nomad Games have concluded in Kyrgyzstan, drawing more than 3,000 athletes from over 100 countries for six days of traditional sport and culture. Central to the event is Kok-Boru, a centuries-old equestrian game likened to rugby on horseback, in which riders vie to carry a goat carcass into their rival's goal. The Games also featured archery, falconry, wrestling and endurance racing, reflecting Kyrgyzstan's nomadic heritage and its enduring bond with horses.

Jamaica is taking a new step in its campaign for reparations over Britain’s role in slavery, this time, using the law.
A government delegation is in London seeking answers on whether the enslavement of Jamaicans was unlawful and whether Britain now has a duty to provide redress.

The White House has unveiled five arcade-style games to promote Trump's 'MAGA' agenda, sparking backlash over the misuse of taxpayer money and the dehumanising portrayal of migrants and deportees.

In Buenos Aires, Argentina, tango is being used as a therapeutic tool for people living with Parkinson’s disease.

The programme combines dance and movement exercises to help patients work on balance, walking and other motor skills, while also providing emotional and social support.

Journalist Rozina Ali’s new book, “Seasons of Fury,” traces the history of Islamophobia — from FBI surveillance in the 1960s to the surveillance programs that followed 9/11 — through the lives of four American families.

In this episode of “Settle In,” Amna Nawaz spoke with Ali about her new book, what she learned about decades of government surveillance and what she thinks about anti-Muslim rhetoric today.

A team of specialist doctors on a medical train bring life-saving health services to remote towns and villages across Kazakhstan.

Onboard, they provide free tests, consultations and emergency care.

101 East meets the doctors on board.

Did you know Nestlé tried to patent South Africa's national tea, rooibos?

That’s right – Indigenous Khoi and San people used rooibos for centuries before colonists “discovered” it. But recently, the Swiss multinational food giant literally … tried to claim rights over it.

AJ+'s Yara Elmjouie traveled to South Africa, the only place in the world where rooibos grows, to learn what happened next.

The Zabaleen area, where the waste from Egypt’s capital is sorted, is seeing demand for its recycled materials surge as the war on Iran disrupts imports. But rising costs and new competitors mean the traditional recyclers aren’t necessarily better off.