At COP 27, the annual U.N. conference on climate change, one of the big questions that's been raised is how some of the wealthier nations should be paying for the effects of climate change in less developed countries. The U.S. is one of those wealthier nations, and the Biden administration supports creating a fund to help developing countries deal with climate change. But year after year, the money isn't there. We speak with national climate adviser to President Biden, Ali Zaidi, to understand t...
Nov 18, 2022•11 min
During the past 50 years, more than 1,550 death sentences have been carried out across the U.S. Many of the hundreds of people involved in carrying out those executions say their health has suffered because of their work. NPR's Chiara Eisner and the investigations team spoke with all kinds of current and former workers about their experiences. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr....
Nov 17, 2022•14 min
Former President Trump is launching his 2024 campaign with a cloud of legal issues hanging over his head. They include the federal investigation into the January 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, another into the top secret documents he kept at Mar-a-Lago and a criminal tax fraud trial in New York. University of Michigan Law Professor Barbara McQuade, a former U.S. Attorney, explains how his status as a candidate might weigh on those investigations. And NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik...
Nov 16, 2022•12 min
Even a former first lady who's lived an extraordinary life has ordinary and relatable fears. NPR All Things Considered host Juana Summers sat down with Michelle Obama, who talked about how she navigates the world, even when it feels like things are at their "lowest point," and about her new book, "The Light We Carry: Overcoming in Uncertain Times." In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis...
Nov 15, 2022•11 min
Climate change is a present tense disaster in some parts of the world. In Senegal, rising seas are destroying neighborhoods and once-fertile farm fields. That's pushing young Senegalese like Mamadou Niang to make the treacherous journey to Europe. He's attempted it three times: twice he was deported, the third time, he narrowly escaped drowning. But he says he's still determined to make it there. We visit Senegal to see how climate migration is reshaping life there. And we meet a rapper named Ma...
Nov 14, 2022•14 min
A surge in anti-Semitic and racist tweets, an incoherent rollout of a paid verification service, and thousands of layoffs. Then a scramble to rehire some employees. This is only a couple of weeks into Elon Musk's ownership of Twitter. It's impossible to deny that Musk is a highly successful businessman who made some high-visibility missteps on the way to Tesla and SpaceX. But unlike those two companies, Twitter is not about goods and services. For millions of users, it's about community. And man...
Nov 12, 2022•15 min
Takeoff, from the Atlanta trio known as Migos, was shot and killed at the beginning of November outside a bowling alley in Houston. The issue of violence, specifically gun violence, is often associated with rap culture. But those who follow the industry closely, and know its history, say the culture isn't the culprit. We speak to A.D. Carson, a professor of hip-hop at the University of Virginia, about how death and violence have impacted the rap and hip-hop industry, and how the music is just a ...
Nov 11, 2022•14 min
As Russian forces have retreated in Ukraine, people in newly liberated towns and villages have been trying to pick up the pieces. But it's a process that can be long and painful. NPR's Kat Lonsdorf met a woman named Ludmilla, six months ago in the liberated town of Borodianka. Somehow, Ludmilla happened to know Kat's childhood neighbors in Wisconsin. She had stayed with them years ago. That random encounter stayed with Kat, so she checked back in with Ludmilla to see how she is doing. In partici...
Nov 10, 2022•11 min
The "red wave" of Republican gains that some predicted didn't come to pass during the midterm elections. As of Wednesday afternoon, control of both houses of Congress was still up for grabs. But it appears likely that the country is headed for a divided government. And if history is any guide, that could mean a lot of stalemates. Two political veterans explain what to expect: Ron Bonjean, a strategist with a long career of working for Republicans in both chambers of Congress, and Jim Messina, fo...
Nov 09, 2022•12 min
Haiti is a country in crisis. Armed gangs have overtaken the capital of Port-au-Prince. Electricity and clean drinking water are in very short supply and there's been an outbreak of cholera. Half the population is facing acute hunger. Haiti's government has asked for international assistance. But many Haitians don't want that. NPR's Eyder Peralta spoke to Haitians who are actively resisting the idea of international intervention. NPR's Michele Kelemen reports on the debate at the United Nations ...
Nov 08, 2022•15 min
National issues are increasingly crowding out more local concerns in elections across the country. With that in mind, we hear from five NPR correspondents covering some of the issues that may shape the course of the midterms. Scott Horsley unpacks inflation. Sarah McCammon explains how this year's Supreme Court decision striking down a constitutional right to abortion is shaping voter decisions. Joel Rose puts immigration numbers in context. Martin Kaste explains why Republicans are making crime...
Nov 07, 2022•14 min
Over the last four decades, affirmative action has helped transform diversity on college campuses in the United States. But soon, affirmative action in higher education may come to an end. This week, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments challenging affirmative action policies at Harvard and the University of North Carolina. Many Court observers believe that the current 6-3 conservative supermajority will rule that higher education can no longer consider race as a factor in admitting students. ...
Nov 05, 2022•12 min
The extremes of climate change are wreaking havoc on the Mississippi. Over the past two months, this critical waterway has seen below average rainfall. In some places, water levels haven't been this low for more than 30 years. NPR's Debbie Elliot explains how that is helping the salty waters of the Gulf of Mexico push upriver, threatening municipal and commercial water supplies. Then Juanpablo Ramirez-Franco and Eva Tesfaye, of The Mississippi River Basin Ag and Water Desk, show us how life on t...
Nov 04, 2022•14 min
The attack on House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's husband and other recent incidents have security experts worried about the potential for political violence around the midterm elections. NPR's Miles Parks and Odette Yousef explain what law enforcement and elections officials are preparing for. In participating regions, you'll also hear a local news segment to help you make sense of what's going on in your community. Email us at considerthis@npr.org . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our colle...
Nov 03, 2022•11 min
Billions will be watching when the men's soccer World Cup begins in Qatar this month. But the country's human rights record will also be in the global spotlight during the tournament. A 2021 investigation by The Guardian revealed that more than 6,500 migrant laborers died during the construction of World Cup facilities and infrastructure. There are also questions about how LGBTQ soccer fans and players may be treated in Qatar, where homosexuality is illegal. We hear from one man who is speaking ...
Nov 02, 2022•15 min
More than eight months after the start of Russia's war in Ukraine, new challenges are emerging. NPR's Franco Ordoñez reports that Ukrainian soldiers are preparing for what could be their toughest battle yet: the fight for the southern city of Kherson. Meanwhile, supply chain issues are complicating the flow of Western military aid to Ukraine. We hear about that from NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman and NPR global economics correspondent Stacey Vanek Smith. In participating regions, you'll a...
Nov 01, 2022•13 min
Elections are tight in many parts of the US these days. They certainly are in the battleground state of Wisconsin, where the last two presidential elections were decided by very thin margins. This year's midterms could be just as tight in the state. For Democrats, who are hoping to pick up a US Senate seat in Wisconsin, a key factor will be turnout among young voters. NPR's Juana Summers talked to three Wisconsin voters under the age of 30 to find out what issues are driving them to the polls th...
Oct 31, 2022•15 min
On Friday, federal authorities issued an internal bulletin that warned of the potential for violence from domestic extremists during the midterm election season. The same day, a federal Judge in Phoenix refused to stop a group from patrolling outdoor ballot boxes. Members of the group have been showing up heavily armed, often masked and wearing tactical vests. Critics say this is intimidating voters. The judge said that barring the group would violate their constitutional rights. From election d...
Oct 29, 2022•15 min
On Sunday, Brazilians will go to the polls to choose between two very different presidential candidates. One is the far-right incumbent, Jair Bolsonaro, who has been called Latin America's Trump. The other is leftist former president and working class icon, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The outcome of the presidential runoff vote will of course shape the future of Brazil's democracy. But the vote's impact could also be felt far beyond the country's borders. We hear what the outcome could mean for t...
Oct 28, 2022•14 min
The G.I. Bill of 1944 provided free education, unemployment pay and home loans for millions of veterans returning from fighting in World War II. These benefits helped to expand the American middle class after the war. But many returning Black veterans were excluded because of segregation. And that exclusion helped widen the wealth gap between white and Black Americans. A bill in Congress would repair some of that harm by paying reparations to the families of nearly one million Black veterans who...
Oct 27, 2022•14 min
As of Wednesday afternoon, more than 12 million people have cast ballots in the 2022 midterms, according to the United States Elections Project . Hidden in that number are hints about the effect disinformation might be having on voting by mail, whether new voting restrictions are depressing turnout and how motivated Americans are to cast ballots this year. NPR's Miles Parks breaks down the national early voting picture, and Sam Gringlas with WABE in Atlanta, talks about the role early voting has...
Oct 26, 2022•10 min
A year ago, William Shatner, the actor who played Captain Kirk in the original Star Trek series, boarded a Blue Origin rocket ship. At the age of 90, he became the oldest person to fly into space. We hear from Shatner about "Boldly Go," the book he has since written about how that experience changed his outlook. And we also hear from Frank White, the author and philosopher who coined the term "Overview Effect" to describe experiences like Shatner's. In participating regions, you'll also hear a l...
Oct 25, 2022•10 min
The war in Ukraine is stressing global energy and food markets. China's COVID-19 lockdowns continue to affect supply chains. Economies large and small are facing persistent inflation. All of it adds up to a bleak global economic picture. We talk to three NPR reporters on three different continents —Chief Economics Correspondent Scott Horsley in Washington, Rob Schmitz in Berlin and Lauren Frayer in Mumbai—about how economic crises half a world away can bear down on daily life. This episode also ...
Oct 24, 2022•13 min
This week, politics in the UK looked a little — crazy. Outraged members of Parliament yelled their demands for Prime Minister Liz Truss to resign, a head of iceberg lettuce managed to outlast her, and former Prime Minister Boris Johnson -who was just ousted a few months ago over the " partygate " scandal- is back in play as a possible replacement for Truss. It feels like political theater, but the consequences are very real as people in the U.K. continue to struggle through an economic crisis. A...
Oct 22, 2022•14 min
The House committee investigating the January 6 Capitol riot has subpoenaed former President Donald Trump for testimony under oath and records. We speak with Nick Akerman, a former federal prosecutor who was involved in the Watergate case, about what's at stake for both Congress and the former president. Plus, NPR's Carrie Johnson reports that Trump's former advisor Steve Bannon has now been sentenced to four months in prison for defying his own subpoena from the January 6 committee. In particip...
Oct 21, 2022•11 min
Election day is less than three weeks away, and Democrats are trying desperately to hold on to their slim majority in Congress by focusing on abortion rights. But Republicans are betting that the economy and inflation are the most pressing issues for voters. So how is the focus on abortion working out for the Democrats? We discuss that with NPR Political Correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben and NPR Senior Editor and Correspondent Domenico Montanaro. In participating regions, you'll also hear a loca...
Oct 20, 2022•12 min
This week, China's Communist Party Congress is expected to approve a historic third term in office for the country's leader, Xi Jinping. Xi has already been in power for a decade, a period marked by growing authoritarianism in China. Many experts believe he could emerge a more emboldened leader in his new term. Ailsa Chang speaks with Yun Sun, director of the China Program at the Stimson Center, about the global implications of a third term for Xi Jinping and how this signals a new era for China...
Oct 19, 2022•14 min
It's been more than a month since 22-year-old Mahsa Amini died after being detained by Iran's morality police – allegedly for breaking the rule requiring women to wear a hijab. Her death sparked protests that continue to this day. Women and girls have been at the forefront of the demonstrations, often removing and burning their hijabs in defiance of the authorities. We hear from some of the protesters themselves. And we talk to Iranian-American writer Reza Aslan, who tells us that what we are se...
Oct 18, 2022•14 min
The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) was designed to soften the financial impact of the pandemic for small businesses. It issued about $800 billion in potentially forgivable government loans to keep workers employed during COVID shutdowns. Now, the overwhelming majority of those loans have been forgiven with very little scrutiny. That means many loans have been forgiven to businesses that flourished during the pandemic or to fraudsters who took advantage of the lax system. Meanwhile, the majori...
Oct 17, 2022•14 min
In a party not known for ethnic diversity, 22 Black candidates are running for Republican House seats this year. And for the first time, we could see two Black Republican senators serving simultaneously. The historically diverse lineup also includes Latinos, Asians, and Native Americans on Republican tickets for the midterms. While some Republican see a shift toward Ronald Regan's vision of the party as an inclusive "Big Tent''. But others say that the party's problematic record on race continue...
Oct 15, 2022•15 min
