News and updates

The current conflict between Russia and Ukraine is now entering its third year, and it’s been a humanitarian disaster. According to UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency, it’s displaced nearly 7 million Ukrainians globally. And on the other side, an estimated 900-thousand Russians have also fled their country for various reasons. Among them are economic migrants, conscientious objectors and political refugees, but also a smaller subset of hundreds of exiled journalists, who’ve had to leave in order to continue to report freely without having to worry about their personal safety.

In 2019 I visited Puerto Rico, where my high school friend Rob now lives. Rob introduced me to the tradition of parrandas, which are sort of like the Puerto Rican version of Christmas caroling, and I got to experience a parranda with a unique twist.

What exactly is Canadian cuisine? Is that actually even a thing? To the average person — and even the average Canadian — that question is a bit of a mystery, cause there isn’t really a strong national culinary identity the way there is in Italy or Mexico, for example.

In 1971, a group of squatters took over an abandoned military base just across the harbor from downtown Copenhagen. They created a politically autonomous anarchist zone — in other words, a commune — with its own flag, marching band, and consensus-driven governance process. They decided to call their community Freetown Christiania.

When the last total solar eclipse crossed the United States back in August of 2017, I didn’t think it was a huge deal, so I went ahead with my existing plans for that day, which involved being aboard a cross-country flight at the time of the event. I later regretted my decision and vowed I would do whatever it takes to see a total solar eclipse in the future.

In 2013, Thor Pedersen was 34 years old, living in Copenhagen, and doing quite well within his chosen career of shipping and logistics. He had a comfortable life, had just purchased an apartment, and had recently started dating a woman he really liked. Looking back, he says there wasn’t much in the cards that would suggest he would completely change course and set off on an adventure into the world, but that’s in fact precisely what was about to happen.

It was mid-2004. I was early in my career as a public radio reporter and applying for literally every job opening I saw. I wasn’t having much luck until I heard back one day from a small station in Norman, Oklahoma.

Jamie Yuenger was born and spent most of her life here in the United States, including over a decade in New York City. Then a few years ago, she fell in love with a Dutch guy named Piet and decided to join him in the Netherlands. She didn’t understand the language or the culture, but really, she figured… how difficult could it be?

In the days that followed 9/11, the cleanup process began, along with the search for answers. And then came the response. President Bush and other political leaders quickly vowed revenge against the perpetrators of the attack. But not everyone found his words comforting. Around this time, a small but vocal group of people got together to speak out for peace.

COVID-19 has closed borders and made traveling difficult if not impossible for many of us. But radio signals don’t needs passports or plane tickets. They circle the earth, bouncing off the atmosphere, so even if you’re confined to your home, it’s possible – with a good antenna – to listen to voices from the other side of the planet.