Podcast appearances and mentions of Marco Werman

I've been listening to The World with Marco Werman for a global perspective on the news. The World dives deep into global security, climate, migration, and public health—not just the headlines, but the real human stories behind them. Hope you check it out to see why I've been listening!

I've been listening to The World with Marco Werman for a global perspective on the news. The World dives deep into global security, climate, migration, and public health—not just the headlines, but the real human stories behind them. Hope you check it out to see why I've been listening!

I've been listening to The World with Marco Werman for a global perspective on the news. The World dives deep into global security, climate, migration, and public health—not just the headlines, but the real human stories behind them. Hope you check it out to see why I've been listening!

California has one of the most ambitious and highly engineered water delivery systems on the planet, and it's being eyed for a new extension. The Delta Conveyance Project is Governor Gavin Newsom's proposal for a 45-mile underground tube that would tap fresh water from its source in the north and carry it beneath a vast wetland to users in the south. The Delta is the exchange point for half of California's water supply, and the tunnel is an extension of the State Water Project, which was built in the 1960s. It's a 700-mile maze of aqueducts and canals that sends Delta water from the Bay Area down to farms and cities in Central and Southern California. This is a local story about a global issue, the future of water. In a three-part series of field reports and podcasts, Bay City News reporter Ruth Dusseault looks at the tunnel's stakeholders, its engineering challenges, and explores the preindustrial Delta and its future restoration. Ruth is joined by Felicia Marcus, the Landreth Visiting Fellow in Stanford's Water in the West program and former chair of the California Water Resources Control Board. This is a production of Bay City News, presented in collaboration with Climate One and Northern California Public Media. For more on this story and other news in the Greater Bay Area, visit localnewsmatters.org. Special thanks to Dan Rosenheim, Kat Rowlands, Jonathan Westerling, Monica Campbell, Marco Werman, Katharine Meiszkowski, Kurt, Max, Quinn and Nick Wenner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This Memorial Day, host Marco Werman and show director April Peavey discover and re-discover The World's music favorites. That includes a discussion in 2012 with singer Ed Sheeran on his first US tour, a look at the music used to promote the famous Rumble in the Jungle boxing match in 1974 between Muhammad Ali and George Forman, a conversation with twin sisters from Cuba about their diverse vocal influences and the search for a master musician in Pakistan.Listen to today's Music Heard on Air.

It was in the ancient city of Petra, in 2013, when National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek said he came upon a crossroad filled with antiquity, fabulous monuments, palaces and grand avenues chiseled into a sandstone canyon far above the rift valley of Jordan. After walking for the better part of a year through the desolate deserts of the Horn of Africa and then into the almost equally desert and empty landscape of Saudi Arabia, Salopek said he was welcomed into  Jordan by a Bedouin musician named Qasim Ali. Qasim Ali sings the blues, Bedouin style, at Petra, the ancient heart of the Nabatean empire. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org. Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic Ali sang the blues while playing the Rababa, an ancient stringed instrument. Salopek described it as a dramatic setting.“It kind of became the backdrop music for stepping from nomadism into millennia of settlement, into this highly contested, many-chambered heart that we call the Levant,” he said.The World's Marco Werman talked more with Salopek about his journey through Jordan and into the Israeli-occupied West Bank, following in the footsteps of the first humans out of Africa. Marco Werman: Your walk through Jordan was a kind of transition from the world of Bedouin herders and nomadic life to a world of farms and villages where early people first put down roots. How did walking it on foot help you appreciate human history?Paul Salopek: Well, it was kind of almost a schizophrenic reality, Marco. There was kind of walking through every day at three miles an hour out of the empty desert, and suddenly tomato farms started to appear. Irrigation canals … the whole infrastructure of modern-day farming. But at the same time, my project is about deep, deep history and the people I'm following, when they walked through, none of that was there. But something happened when we first migrated out of Africa, through this part of the world. As one archeologist told me, we finally sat down. We stopped moving so much. We settled. We invented agriculture. We started piling rocks on top of each other. We smelted metal. And this era, called the Neolithic, is the one, essentially, that we're still inhabiting today. A city-based, urban, settled lifestyle. This was one of the corners of the world where it began. Ghawarna women dye wool using oxide-rich mud. Modaita, the yawning camel is unimpressed. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  You crossed a border in May of 2014, the Jordan River, and you walked into the West Bank through Israeli army checkpoints. Give us a sense of life in the Palestinian West Bank in 2014.Back at that time, it was a time of, relatively speaking, calm, right? I mean, there's always tension in this corner of the world, but there was no open warfare that I saw. But this, this was a foretaste, again, of this extraordinary maze of the Middle East, of the West Bank, which is partitioned, as you probably know, into three different administrative sectors: Israeli, Palestinian, and then mixed administrative control. There were checkpoints everywhere. There were barriers everywhere. For somebody coming from almost a year on foot, out of kind of relatively open horizons, it was dizzying. It was just a bit surreal. I was walking at the time with my Palestinian walking partner Bassam Almohor, and he said, “Paul, this is my life. I have to kind of change personality every time I cross one of these checkpoints.” And he was a walker, Marco. He was one of the founders of a walking club based in Ramallah. His philosophy was “My piece of Earth. This place I call home is so small that walking makes it big. This is how I keep my sanity.” Bullet on the road to Bethlehem. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  Wow. Well, we know that things had been tense and violent in the West Bank before 2014 when you were there. Your journey also took you into the ancient city of Jerusalem. You walk the same paths as the ancient Egyptians, Jews, Greeks, Romans, early Christians and Muslims. How much did that sense of history color your view of the modern state of Israel?It was inescapable. I mean, there are just so many layers. Again, I deal with historians and archeologists. These are the people that I talk to to advise me on what compass bearing to move on as I pass along these ancient pathways of dispersal out of Africa. Another archeologist based in Jerusalem said, “Paul, Jerusalem was a village, a settlement that was prehistoric.” You know, it started to kind of appear in the consciousness of that inhabited landscape around the Bronze Age. I measured history, recorded history, from the time of that settlement to today, there had been 700 or more wars. But everybody that I met in that highly conflicted, highly contested, very small corner of the world has their own ways of trying to keep life good. And he said, “Paul, I focused not on those 700 wars but on the spaces of peace in between.” In Bethlehem, the Church of the Nativity. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  So, as you follow the news from the Middle East today, what jogs your memories of walking the Holy Land on foot?This part of the world was new to me. I never covered it as a journalist, and I'd covered some pretty big episodes of mass violence among humans in Africa. I covered, for example, the Congo Civil War, which was one of the bloodiest and most devastating at the time in the early 2000s. The numbers there are staggering. In Central Africa, almost 5 million people died in that conflict. And so here I am, coming from out of Africa into the Middle East, where it's tiny, by African standards. And I was astonished at the amount of attention that was focused on it. It was like there was this global stadium built around this quadrant of the world, where the whole world was looking down on these conflicts among villages, among cities, among invisible lines. To be perfectly candid, I was kind of scratching my head. I said, “Why is this corner of the world getting so much attention when the rest of the world has far larger, gaping wounds, in terms of just bloodshed?” If you want to use a metric of human blood. But now, looking back from 13 years later, seeing what's happening now, I think that was a measure, sort of my naivete, of the fact that I was comparing human suffering to human suffering ... which is always a dangerous thing to do. And what we're seeing now is just how incredibly deep — it may be small, Marco — but how incredibly deep these fissures run. Yuval Ben-Ami at the Separation Barrier in East Jerusalem. Erected by the Israeli government to thwart terror attacks, it cleaves some Palestinian neighborhoods in half. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  It struck me when you said you'd been in Africa for that long. You actually started in the Out of Eden Walk. You've kind of followed, in a way, the Levantine Corridor that humans left many thousands of years ago into the Middle East. I wonder how, on foot, that changed how you see this tense modern world.When you walk for very long periods – and I'm talking months and years – across horizons ... you kind of enter a mental state where you look at the surface tensions of the world. You look at the cities, the conflicts, the way we've treated the planet, the way we've subjugated and, in many ways, destroyed nature. And I'm not saying that it makes you fatalistic, but there's a sense of equanimity that comes with it. A sense of, “God, this is all going to be scraped away.” Everything we say is going to be scraped away during the next glaciation. And all of our monuments, all of our heroes, all of our statues are going to be kind of in the moraines of these glaciers, 12,000 years from now. That doesn't make me feel fatalistic. It doesn't make me shrug. It gives me a sense of, sort of, I don't know, of … patience, if you will, with this troublesome species that we are — both so very good and very bad.Parts of this interview have been lightly edited for length and clarity.Writer and National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has embarked on a 24,000-mile storytelling trek across the world called the “Out of Eden Walk.” The National Geographic Society, committed to illuminating and protecting the wonder of our world, has funded Salopek and the project since 2013. Explore the project here. Follow the journey on X at @PaulSalopek, @outofedenwalk and also at @InsideNatGeo.

It was in the ancient city of Petra, in 2013, when National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek said he came upon a crossroad filled with antiquity, fabulous monuments, palaces and grand avenues chiseled into a sandstone canyon far above the rift valley of Jordan. After walking for the better part of a year through the desolate deserts of the Horn of Africa and then into the almost equally desert and empty landscape of Saudi Arabia, Salopek said he was welcomed into  Jordan by a Bedouin musician named Qasim Ali. Qasim Ali sings the blues, Bedouin style, at Petra, the ancient heart of the Nabatean empire. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org. Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic Ali sang the blues while playing the Rababa, an ancient stringed instrument. Salopek described it as a dramatic setting.“It kind of became the backdrop music for stepping from nomadism into millennia of settlement, into this highly contested, many-chambered heart that we call the Levant,” he said.The World's Marco Werman talked more with Salopek about his journey through Jordan and into the Israeli-occupied West Bank, following in the footsteps of the first humans out of Africa. Marco Werman: Your walk through Jordan was a kind of transition from the world of Bedouin herders and nomadic life to a world of farms and villages where early people first put down roots. How did walking it on foot help you appreciate human history?Paul Salopek: Well, it was kind of almost a schizophrenic reality, Marco. There was kind of walking through every day at three miles an hour out of the empty desert, and suddenly tomato farms started to appear. Irrigation canals … the whole infrastructure of modern-day farming. But at the same time, my project is about deep, deep history and the people I'm following, when they walked through, none of that was there. But something happened when we first migrated out of Africa, through this part of the world. As one archeologist told me, we finally sat down. We stopped moving so much. We settled. We invented agriculture. We started piling rocks on top of each other. We smelted metal. And this era, called the Neolithic, is the one, essentially, that we're still inhabiting today. A city-based, urban, settled lifestyle. This was one of the corners of the world where it began. Ghawarna women dye wool using oxide-rich mud. Modaita, the yawning camel is unimpressed. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  You crossed a border in May of 2014, the Jordan River, and you walked into the West Bank through Israeli army checkpoints. Give us a sense of life in the Palestinian West Bank in 2014.Back at that time, it was a time of, relatively speaking, calm, right? I mean, there's always tension in this corner of the world, but there was no open warfare that I saw. But this, this was a foretaste, again, of this extraordinary maze of the Middle East, of the West Bank, which is partitioned, as you probably know, into three different administrative sectors: Israeli, Palestinian, and then mixed administrative control. There were checkpoints everywhere. There were barriers everywhere. For somebody coming from almost a year on foot, out of kind of relatively open horizons, it was dizzying. It was just a bit surreal. I was walking at the time with my Palestinian walking partner Bassam Almohor, and he said, “Paul, this is my life. I have to kind of change personality every time I cross one of these checkpoints.” And he was a walker, Marco. He was one of the founders of a walking club based in Ramallah. His philosophy was “My piece of Earth. This place I call home is so small that walking makes it big. This is how I keep my sanity.” Bullet on the road to Bethlehem. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  Wow. Well, we know that things had been tense and violent in the West Bank before 2014 when you were there. Your journey also took you into the ancient city of Jerusalem. You walk the same paths as the ancient Egyptians, Jews, Greeks, Romans, early Christians and Muslims. How much did that sense of history color your view of the modern state of Israel?It was inescapable. I mean, there are just so many layers. Again, I deal with historians and archeologists. These are the people that I talk to to advise me on what compass bearing to move on as I pass along these ancient pathways of dispersal out of Africa. Another archeologist based in Jerusalem said, “Paul, Jerusalem was a village, a settlement that was prehistoric.” You know, it started to kind of appear in the consciousness of that inhabited landscape around the Bronze Age. I measured history, recorded history, from the time of that settlement to today, there had been 700 or more wars. But everybody that I met in that highly conflicted, highly contested, very small corner of the world has their own ways of trying to keep life good. And he said, “Paul, I focused not on those 700 wars but on the spaces of peace in between.” In Bethlehem, the Church of the Nativity. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  So, as you follow the news from the Middle East today, what jogs your memories of walking the Holy Land on foot?This part of the world was new to me. I never covered it as a journalist, and I'd covered some pretty big episodes of mass violence among humans in Africa. I covered, for example, the Congo Civil War, which was one of the bloodiest and most devastating at the time in the early 2000s. The numbers there are staggering. In Central Africa, almost 5 million people died in that conflict. And so here I am, coming from out of Africa into the Middle East, where it's tiny, by African standards. And I was astonished at the amount of attention that was focused on it. It was like there was this global stadium built around this quadrant of the world, where the whole world was looking down on these conflicts among villages, among cities, among invisible lines. To be perfectly candid, I was kind of scratching my head. I said, “Why is this corner of the world getting so much attention when the rest of the world has far larger, gaping wounds, in terms of just bloodshed?” If you want to use a metric of human blood. But now, looking back from 13 years later, seeing what's happening now, I think that was a measure, sort of my naivete, of the fact that I was comparing human suffering to human suffering ... which is always a dangerous thing to do. And what we're seeing now is just how incredibly deep — it may be small, Marco — but how incredibly deep these fissures run. Yuval Ben-Ami at the Separation Barrier in East Jerusalem. Erected by the Israeli government to thwart terror attacks, it cleaves some Palestinian neighborhoods in half. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Paul Salopek/National Geographic  It struck me when you said you'd been in Africa for that long. You actually started in the Out of Eden Walk. You've kind of followed, in a way, the Levantine Corridor that humans left many thousands of years ago into the Middle East. I wonder how, on foot, that changed how you see this tense modern world.When you walk for very long periods – and I'm talking months and years – across horizons ... you kind of enter a mental state where you look at the surface tensions of the world. You look at the cities, the conflicts, the way we've treated the planet, the way we've subjugated and, in many ways, destroyed nature. And I'm not saying that it makes you fatalistic, but there's a sense of equanimity that comes with it. A sense of, “God, this is all going to be scraped away.” Everything we say is going to be scraped away during the next glaciation. And all of our monuments, all of our heroes, all of our statues are going to be kind of in the moraines of these glaciers, 12,000 years from now. That doesn't make me feel fatalistic. It doesn't make me shrug. It gives me a sense of, sort of, I don't know, of … patience, if you will, with this troublesome species that we are — both so very good and very bad.Parts of this interview have been lightly edited for length and clarity.Writer and National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has embarked on a 24,000-mile storytelling trek across the world called the “Out of Eden Walk.” The National Geographic Society, committed to illuminating and protecting the wonder of our world, has funded Salopek and the project since 2013. Explore the project here. Follow the journey on X at @PaulSalopek, @outofedenwalk and also at @InsideNatGeo.

Paul Salopek has been walking across the world for the past 11 years. He's tracing the historic path of human migration from Africa through Asia and into the Americas.The journey is part of his "Out Of Eden Walk" project in collaboration with the National Geographic Society.To date, he's walked 16,000 miles and just recently was in China where he crossed seven provinces. He will return to China this spring — he plans to cover 24,000 miles altogether. The World's hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler talked with Salopek about his experiences in China and beyond. See some of the sights from his journey in the photo gallery below. To hear the full interview with Salopek, click on the audio player above. Madain Salih, Saudi Arabia, 2013. Paul Salopek wanders through the ancient Nabataean ruins of Madain Salih, carved into sandstone outcrops some 2,000 years ago. These structures were used as tombs for the wealthy during the Nabataean era. The kingdom stretched from its capital Petra in Jordan south to Madain Salih in the Hejaz region of present-day Saudi Arabia. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Afar, Ethiopia, 2013. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek and his Ethiopian guide, Ahmed Alema Hessan, leave the village of Bouri in the Afar region of northwestern Ethiopia. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Afar, Ethiopia, 2013. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek follows local guides into the Afar Desert on a 22,000-mile walk to retrace the human diaspora. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Anatolia, Turkey, 2014. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek leads his mule past a royal tomb near Nemrut in eastern Turkey. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic  Writer and National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has embarked on a 24,000-mile storytelling trek across the world called the “Out of Eden Walk.” The National Geographic Society, committed to illuminating and protecting the wonder of our world, has funded Salopek and the project since 2013. Explore the project here. Follow Salopek on X at @outofedenwalk and also at @InsideNatGeo.

The World's host Marco Werman previews two of the artists who are featured as part of the 24th annual edition of International Guitar Night touring North America.

Paul Salopek has been walking across the world for the past 11 years. He's tracing the historic path of human migration from Africa through Asia and into the Americas.The journey is part of his "Out Of Eden Walk" project in collaboration with the National Geographic Society.To date, he's walked 16,000 miles and just recently was in China where he crossed seven provinces. He will return to China this spring — he plans to cover 24,000 miles altogether. The World's hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler talked with Salopek about his experiences in China and beyond. See some of the sights from his journey in the photo gallery below. To hear the full interview with Salopek, click on the audio player above. Madain Salih, Saudi Arabia, 2013. Paul Salopek wanders through the ancient Nabataean ruins of Madain Salih, carved into sandstone outcrops some 2,000 years ago. These structures were used as tombs for the wealthy during the Nabataean era. The kingdom stretched from its capital Petra in Jordan south to Madain Salih in the Hejaz region of present-day Saudi Arabia. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Afar, Ethiopia, 2013. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek and his Ethiopian guide, Ahmed Alema Hessan, leave the village of Bouri in the Afar region of northwestern Ethiopia. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Afar, Ethiopia, 2013. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek follows local guides into the Afar Desert on a 22,000-mile walk to retrace the human diaspora. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic Anatolia, Turkey, 2014. National Geographic Fellow and writer Paul Salopek leads his mule past a royal tomb near Nemrut in eastern Turkey. Join the journey at outofedenwalk.org.  Credit: Photograph by John Stanmeyer, National Geographic  Writer and National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has embarked on a 24,000-mile storytelling trek across the world called the “Out of Eden Walk.” The National Geographic Society, committed to illuminating and protecting the wonder of our world, has funded Salopek and the project since 2013. Explore the project here. Follow Salopek on X at @outofedenwalk and also at @InsideNatGeo.

Iran's Revolutionary Guard launched ballistic missiles at what it called Israeli “spy headquarters” in Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region Monday night. Experts say it's another sign that the Israel-Hamas conflict is expanding. And, the Israel Defense Forces have told the families of two hostages held by Hamas that they are gravely concerned about them. That's after Hamas showed a video in which two hostages appeared to be dead. Israelis are getting impatient with the slow progress by their government in negotiating another prisoner exchange. Also, the market is huge for NIL deals allowing student athletes to monetize their names. But international student athletes have been left out of the lucrative deals due to visa laws. Plus, pig poop pollution in Spain.Today we launch a new format to our show! Carolyn Beeler will begin co-hosting The World along with longtime host Marco Werman at the helm and host Carol Hills — produced by Boston-based GBH and PRX.

Volcanic eruptions are not unusual in Iceland, but they rarely require residents to evacuate their homes. One resident from the village of Grindavik talks about what it's like to watch lava engulf her town and set homes ablaze. Also, like many cities in the US, Dakar, Senegal, has a street named after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Most residents there don't know the street name, but they do know about the man behind it. And, the art of hacking has become stealthier and smarter over the years. Chinese hackers are particularly capable of hiding their code used to infiltrate systems around the world. The "Click Here" podcast reports on how they're able to do this. Plus, Sunday marked 100 days of fighting in Gaza between Israel and Hamas since Oct. 7. The war continues unabated with little pressure on either side to end the fighting. We discuss the likelihood of a ceasefire and what the next period will bring in Gaza.Don't forget to join us tomorrow for a new format to our show! Carolyn Beeler will begin co-hosting The World along with longtime host Marco Werman at the helm and host Carol Hills — produced by Boston-based GBH and PRX.

The night skies flared orange on Thursday night in Yemen as the US and UK made airstrikes on Houthi targets in the country. US President Joe Biden said it was in response to Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the Red Sea. And, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrapped up a trip to three Baltic nations. Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia have all provided an outsized portion of their gross domestic product in money and weapons for Ukraine. Also, Sheikh Imam and Ahmed Negm wrote stinging rebukes of Egypt's autocrats in the 1960s and 1970s. Decades later, their music was sung to topple Egypt's autocratic leaders in 2011. Plus, an ancient city is discovered in the rainforests of Ecuador.We are excited to announce that The World's Carolyn Beeler will be co-hosting our daily show along with Marco Werman beginning Jan. 16.

Ecuador's president has declared his country is in “a state of war” with drug gangs and has given the military extraordinary powers to combat drug traffickers. The move comes after armed men invaded a TV station's live afternoon newscast and a powerful drug gang leader escaped from prison. And, Ellie Highwood crocheted a "global warming blanket" as a baby gift for climate scientist parents back in 2017. The design has made quite an impact on the climate change activism movement. Also, attacks between US and Iraqi militias backed by Iran have been escalating. Iraqi politicians are becoming more vocal in their demand to kick the US out of the country, but some quietly want the US to stay. Plus, the family size is shrinking. We are excited to announce that The World's Carolyn Beeler will be co-hosting our daily show along with Marco Werman beginning Jan. 16.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to the Israeli-occupied West Bank today, to meet with the leader of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas. He's trying to end the Israel-Hamas war and talk about a post-war Gaza. And, the low-lying Chattogram district in Bangladesh is prone to rising sea-levels, extreme flooding and cyclones. Advocates say authorities must do a better job of helping people with disabilities navigate climate emergencies. Also, Yemen's Houthi rebels launched their largest-yet drone and missile attack in the Red Sea on Tuesday. Retired US Admiral James Stavridis said the US should consider retaliation, including a land strike on Houthi infrastructure. Plus, Norway approves exploration for deep-sea mining.We are excited to announce that The World's Carolyn Beeler will be co-hosting our daily show along with Marco Werman beginning Jan. 16.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sent energy costs surging, European leaders scrambling for alternative suppliers of gas, and redirected flows of Russian oil toward Asia.Some European countries also burned more coal in response to the energy shock.But the most transformational long-term change will be in increased investments in renewable energy, according to International Energy Agency chief energy economist Tim Gould.Gould spoke with The World's host Marco Werman about the war's longlasting impacts to energy markets.Marco Werman: It's been more than a year and a half since many Western countries vowed to stop buying Russian oil and gas. Has Russia been able to find other buyers or are they just producing less oil and gas than they were before the war?Tim Gould: So oil is much more easy to move around the world. And so by and large, Russia has been more successful in finding new buyers for oil than it has for gas; 80% of Russia's crude exports now go to China and to India. But gas is different. Gas, you transport by pipeline. And if your buyer at the end of that pipeline is no longer taking that gas, it's much more difficult to find alternative markets. So the effects on gas markets have been larger and I think they will have a longer-lasting effect on Russian production.Overall, what kind of impact has a war had on the consumption of fossil fuels, across the board? I'm thinking of those European countries that started burning more coal once the war started.So global oil demand is reaching some record levels and global gas demand is back to where it was prior to the crisis. And coal consumption worldwide has been at a close-to-record highs in recent years and setting new highs. But I think that picture of continuity misses some important things that have changed in markets. Because what's happened as a result of these very high fuel prices that we've seen is that many countries have doubled down on clean energy technologies. So, something dramatic has started to shift in the energy system. And a lot of that has to do with the with the strains, with the bruises, with the difficult market conditions that we've had during the crisis.Your details on the rise in coal and other fossil fuels makes me wonder about greenhouse gas emissions from the energy sector last year as a result of the war. Did they tick up more than expected?They ticked up, but I don't think they ticked up more than expected. They did reach a new high, but if it wasn't for the increase in renewables, the increase in efficiency, that rise in energy related CO2 emissions would have been three times higher.So, you at the International Energy Agency, make projections about what the energy mix will look like in the future. What's your prognosis for the war's impact on the transition to renewable energy long-term? We see a peak in overall fossil fuel demand before the end of this decade, and it's I think it's quite an important moment in energy history. The aggregate picture is one where the fossil fuel demand starts to flatten out and then starts to decline.You kind of referred to this moment as a really important one in energy history. How big of a long-term impact do you think the war in Ukraine will have on the world's energy mix, Tim?We think at the International Energy Agency that when you look back in 2030, at the events of the last two years, this will be seen as an important turning point in the world's reaction to climate change. We are not reacting fast enough, but some important things have changed. Policies have become stronger, Deployment of important technologies has become stronger as well.Are you saying that without the war in Ukraine that the move to renewables would have been slower?I think it's undoubtedly true that if you look at the policy response in Europe, this has been an important spur for rapid deployment of a range of renewable technologies. Policies elsewhere have have reacted as well. And I think the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States is a good example. But there are examples in other countries too, of how high fossil fuel prices have spurred greater interest in cost-efficient, clean technologies as an answer to people's energy needs. We need a balanced range of technologies across a complex energy system. We need to ensure reliability, we need grids, we need all sorts of other infrastructure. And but I think action in many of those areas has received a boost as a result of what we've been through over the last two years.This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. 

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has sent energy costs surging, European leaders scrambling for alternative suppliers of gas, and redirected flows of Russian oil toward Asia.Some European countries also burned more coal in response to the energy shock.But the most transformational long-term change will be in increased investments in renewable energy, according to International Energy Agency chief energy economist Tim Gould.Gould spoke with The World's host Marco Werman about the war's longlasting impacts to energy markets.Marco Werman: It's been more than a year and a half since many Western countries vowed to stop buying Russian oil and gas. Has Russia been able to find other buyers or are they just producing less oil and gas than they were before the war?Tim Gould: So oil is much more easy to move around the world. And so by and large, Russia has been more successful in finding new buyers for oil than it has for gas; 80% of Russia's crude exports now go to China and to India. But gas is different. Gas, you transport by pipeline. And if your buyer at the end of that pipeline is no longer taking that gas, it's much more difficult to find alternative markets. So the effects on gas markets have been larger and I think they will have a longer-lasting effect on Russian production.Overall, what kind of impact has a war had on the consumption of fossil fuels, across the board? I'm thinking of those European countries that started burning more coal once the war started.So global oil demand is reaching some record levels and global gas demand is back to where it was prior to the crisis. And coal consumption worldwide has been at a close-to-record highs in recent years and setting new highs. But I think that picture of continuity misses some important things that have changed in markets. Because what's happened as a result of these very high fuel prices that we've seen is that many countries have doubled down on clean energy technologies. So, something dramatic has started to shift in the energy system. And a lot of that has to do with the with the strains, with the bruises, with the difficult market conditions that we've had during the crisis.Your details on the rise in coal and other fossil fuels makes me wonder about greenhouse gas emissions from the energy sector last year as a result of the war. Did they tick up more than expected?They ticked up, but I don't think they ticked up more than expected. They did reach a new high, but if it wasn't for the increase in renewables, the increase in efficiency, that rise in energy related CO2 emissions would have been three times higher.So, you at the International Energy Agency, make projections about what the energy mix will look like in the future. What's your prognosis for the war's impact on the transition to renewable energy long-term? We see a peak in overall fossil fuel demand before the end of this decade, and it's I think it's quite an important moment in energy history. The aggregate picture is one where the fossil fuel demand starts to flatten out and then starts to decline.You kind of referred to this moment as a really important one in energy history. How big of a long-term impact do you think the war in Ukraine will have on the world's energy mix, Tim?We think at the International Energy Agency that when you look back in 2030, at the events of the last two years, this will be seen as an important turning point in the world's reaction to climate change. We are not reacting fast enough, but some important things have changed. Policies have become stronger, Deployment of important technologies has become stronger as well.Are you saying that without the war in Ukraine that the move to renewables would have been slower?I think it's undoubtedly true that if you look at the policy response in Europe, this has been an important spur for rapid deployment of a range of renewable technologies. Policies elsewhere have have reacted as well. And I think the Inflation Reduction Act in the United States is a good example. But there are examples in other countries too, of how high fossil fuel prices have spurred greater interest in cost-efficient, clean technologies as an answer to people's energy needs. We need a balanced range of technologies across a complex energy system. We need to ensure reliability, we need grids, we need all sorts of other infrastructure. And but I think action in many of those areas has received a boost as a result of what we've been through over the last two years.This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity. 

Amie Ferris-Rotman, a global news editor for New Lines Magazine, wrote a personal essay about her experience being pregnant in Russia, where many citizens believe it is a woman's patriotic duty to give birth and become a mother. She talked about it with The World's Marco Werman.

As we wrap up “Planet Hip Hop,” our summer series celebrating 50 years of hip-hop music around the world, H. Samy Alim returns to talk with host Marco Werman about the next 50 years. Alim is an anthropology professor and the director of the Hip Hop Initiative at UCLA. 

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of hip-hop, The World's Marco Werman looks at women who are rocking the mic across the globe. He dives in with Msia Kibona Clark from the department of African Studies at Howard University and host of the "Hip Hop African" podcast.

The iconic East Los Angeles band Los Lobos is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Their blend of rock 'n' roll and traditional Mexican music has stayed consistent over generations. Members of the band, which formed when they were in high school, reflect with The World's host Marco Werman on their staying power.

As part of our summer series, "Planet Hip Hop," we take you to South Korea, where hip-hop found its footing in the 1990s. Haekyung Um has written extensively about Korean pop culture and also teaches global popular music and Asian music industries at the University of Liverpool. She joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about the evolution of hip-hop and rap in South Korea. 

Hip-hop has taken root in Egypt. Authorities are trying to suppress it. But the raw power of the music may be unstoppable. Yasmine el Rashidi, author of "Laughter in the Dark: Egypt to the Tune of Change," tells host Marco Werman how young Egyptians are pushing hip-hop to the limit.

Thousands of students attending US colleges and universities actually reside in Mexico. The World's Marco Werman speaks to teacher Joanna Esser and Tijuana student Carlos Tenorio from Southwestern College in Chula Vista, California, about what it's like to cross borders daily for education.

Author Jonny Steinberg's new book, "Winnie and Nelson: Portrait of a Marriage," explores the complex relationship between Nelson Mandela and Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, two of the world's best-known freedom fighters. Steinberg joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the fraught political partnership of these iconic revolutionaries.

With continued violations of women's rights in Afghanistan, US Special Envoy Rina Amiri tells The World's host Marco Werman that not normalizing the Taliban government is crucial to fighting hardline elements in the country, and for setting a precedent in other places.

Syria has become a pariah state under the government of President Bashar al-Assad. He's been accused of gassing his own civilians, and bombing hospitals and schools.But the catastrophic earthquake that hit northwestern Syria last week is opening some doors.Arab leaders who once shunned him are reaching out with aid, and assistance from the United Nations is trickling in. It took seven days for the UN to strike a deal with Syria to open two additional border crossings into the region. Linda Thomas-Greenfield, Permanent Representative of the United States to the United Nations, speaks during a Security Council meeting on the maintenance of peace and security of Ukraine, Monday, Feb. 6, 2023, at United Nations headquarters.  Credit: John Minchillo/AP US Ambassador to the UN Linda Thomas-Greenfield addressed the underlying reason for the delay in a conversation with The World's host Marco Werman."I wouldn't put the blame on the UN," Thomas-Greenfield said."The US made very clear on day one that we would provide assistance directly to the Syrian people through any means possible. Where the blame lies [is] with the Syrian government. They took seven days to reopen the border. NGOs, the UN, donors were all working desperately to get assistance to the people of Syria. It is the Syrian government, the Assad regime, that let the Syrian people down."Marco Werman: How nimble is the UN, though, when it comes to dealing with the Assad government and really pushing to deal directly with civilians who are in harm's way?Linda Thomas-Greenfield: They clearly are not as nimble as we would have wanted them to be. But I know that they were making every effort possible to get through to the government and to try to provide assistance to the Syrian people. And NGOs [nongovernmental organizations] were there, local NGOs, I spoke to, on probably day two. I started a series of conversations with NGOs on the ground. I spoke to the White Helmets, I spoke to several international NGOs, and they were working around the clock to get support directly into Syria. But it was hard. It was absolutely very, very hard. And I welcome the delayed Syrian decision to open the border, and we're monitoring that situation very closely. The UN briefed us yesterday that trucks are moving through the border. But I actually still think we need a resolution, because we can't rely on on Assad's whims. He may decide to close the border tomorrow. So, we need the confidence that the border can remain open through a UN resolution that allows for the UN to continue to work directly with the Syrian people.Ambassador, is there a scenario here where Bashar al-Assad can use this crisis to start to shed his pariah status? Because there are some analysts who say sanctions might be eased and the international community might begin supporting Syria's reconstruction. How concerned are you by that scenario?What Assad has done in Syria can never, ever be forgotten. And while we have, on day one, made sure that we issued licenses that would allow for humanitarian assistance to go in, for humanitarian agencies to continue to work in Syria, we're not removing Assad and the people who supported his terror off of sanctions — he cannot use this disaster to clean up his horrible reputation as it relates to the Syrian people.What will be done to keep that from happening?Well, first and foremost, we're not going to allow that to happen. And I don't think the Syrian people will allow it to happen. The Syrian people are not going to forget what Assad did. He killed his own people. He used chemical weapons against his own people. That said, we're going to do everything we can to support all Syrian people who've been affected by this horrific earthquake to ensure that they get the assistance that they need. Assad can't clean up his act with a natural disaster.This interview was lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Malala Yousafzai's new Oscar-nominated documentary, "Stranger at the Gate," features a former US marine suffering from PTSD who sets out to bomb a mosque in Indiana, but changes his life around after the community embraces him. Yousafzai joins The World's Marco Werman to discuss the film and her own experiences.

Measuring the dimensions of an asteroid hundreds of millions of miles in outer space is not an easy task — but there is a way.The asteroid needs to pass in front of a bright star. When that happens, you snap a picture and you can see its silhouette. When NASA wanted to do this for one particular asteroid, the angle for the photo was elusive. But they knew that the asteroid was passing directly above Senegal. So, they got in touch with astronomers there.Maram Kaire, a top Senegalese astronomer aspiring to build a space agency for his country, was one of them. His story, "Star Chasers of Senegal," is airing on NOVA, produced out of GBH in Boston.Kaire discussed the project, and his personal journey, with The World's host Marco Werman.Marco Werman: What was your reaction when NASA contacted you for help in coming up with the dimensions of this asteroid?Maram Kaire: It was just like a dream [come] true, because when I was young at 12, I start being interested in astronomy, particularly in space science in general. And, you know, when you are a young boy here in Africa, in West Africa, in Senegal, dreaming about stars, about planets and so on, one of the most important words you keep in your mind is "NASA." And it was incredible to receive this attention from Mr. Marc Buie [for the] stellar occultation for NASA. We can understand how important it is for the Lucy mission to get this kind of data. Just living in my dream and it's wonderful.So, the Lucy mission that you mentioned, it was all about capturing that occultation, which is when the asteroid passes in front of a bright star. When you worked with NASA, you and other astronomers in Senegal were taking pictures of that. What were the challenges?Well, the first challenge is to know precisely where to put your telescope, because we are chasing after the shadow cast by the asteroids. It's a very, very tight and short precise moment. You know, the asteroids will pass between the Earth and the star, and usually it's about 1 to 3 seconds. So, you have to be at the right place recording the data at the right moment. So, like Marc Buie used to say, if you don't get the data at the right moment, you don't get the data ever.It's really incredible. In the NOVA episode that airs tonight, Maram, you explain your own path to astronomy. [Clip from documentary: "I started to read books and getting out to observe the stars, constellations. I was 12, and I decided to start to build my own telescope. And this is how things began and never stopped."] Yeah, you never stopped. I've got to ask you, Maram, do you still have that telescope you built when you were 12? Yeah. You know, just listening to this part remind me that maybe all my life is just like a challenge. So, when I was 12, I started maybe watching the sky. My father thought, at this time, that buying a telescope is not a very good thing to do. So, it was very difficult for me. I kept on [looking at] some books with pictures of telescopes, dreaming about them. And one day, I decided just to build it by myself. So, it was one year searching, finding pieces for building this telescope. But in the end, it worked. And I had my own telescope doing things like this. If I can't have any kind of help to do it, I have to do it by myself. So, this is why we never stopped [trying] to create vocations for the young generation and telling them that it is possible to do things here in Africa by themselves.Yeah. What a great lesson. I mean, it's interesting, Senegal does not have a modern space program, not yet, anyway — I know that's one of your ambitions — but when you became interested in astronomy, you dug into your country's history. And I gathered that history with the stars went a lot deeper than you expected. What did you learn about Senegal's history with astronomy?We started talking about astronomy, but also discussing about the importance of science and astronomy for religious communities here in Senegal. You know, 95% of Senegalese people are Muslim and they used to watch the sky. You know, in Islam, we have five prayers in a day. So, you have to know precisely when to start praying. One day, I was asked to give a help, maybe to find the right position of the new crescent for beginning the holy month of Ramadan for fasting. The fact is that there is some very important person in the Muslim community here in Senegal who used to deal with astronomy in the past, like Sheikh Mbacke Bousso, who we talk about in the documentary, and Sheikh Hady Toure and so on. So, some people who used to practice astronomy just to find the right direction to Mecca, it is something very far in the history of Senegal that people used to watch the stars and the sun and the moon to have a sort of calendar.This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.Related: NASA's iconic image of Earth still inspires 50 years later. Fmr astronaut Mae Jemison reflects on it.

NASA is working with Senegalese astronomers to measure the dimensions of asteroids in outer space. Astronomer Maram Kaire speaks with The World's host Marco Werman about the work of "chasing after the shadow cast by the asteroids."

As the death toll continues to climb beyond 5,000 after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck large parts of southeastern Turkey and northern Syria on Monday — with tremors felt in neighboring countries — rescue efforts are underway to help those affected and retrieve people trapped under the rubble.Thousands of others have been injured. And scores of aftershocks have rattled the region, including a second 7.5-magnitude tremor.Rescue teams are facing frigid winter temperatures. Ankara has formally requested help from NATO. Meanwhile, the Syrian government is not in control of its quake-stricken areas because of its ongoing civil war. Global leaders have offered condolences and assistance to both countries.On The World

A new BBC documentary looking at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's role in the 2002 Gujarat riots has sparked controversy in India. The government is trying to ban it while students and activists are finding ways to watch it in defiance. Rana Ayyub, author of the book "Gujarat Files: Anatomy of a Cover Up," discussed the situation with The World's host Marco Werman.

In the Iranian diaspora community of Los Angeles, members of the heavy metal group TarantisT have added their artistic voices to the protests in Iran. Arash Rahbary is the band's singer and bassist. He speaks to host Marco Werman.

Ana Montes, who worked for the US defense department, was simultaneously spying for Cuban authorities. She's now been released after her 25-year prison sentence. Jim Popkin, who's written about her, shares her story with The World's host Marco Werman.

Paul Ninson joins The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the opening of the new photography library that he created, called the Dikan Center in Accra, Ghana, to showcase work by Africans and African Americans.

Ali Vaez, director of the International Crisis Group's Iran Project, talked with The World's host Marco Werman about how sustained protests in Iran may be impacting the power of the so-called "morality police."  

Journalist Mikhail Fishman, an anchor at the independent Russian news outlet TV Rain, joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about how the Russian government is placing "a big bet" on US midterm elections outcomes that will favor Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine.

Shehan Karunatilaka, author of "The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida," is winner of the 2022 Booker Prize. Karunatilaka talked with The World's host Marco Werman about the ways in which Sri Lanka's grim history of civil war — along with a bit of "gallows humor" — shaped the ideas in his award-winning novel.

The mapping app Gershad, launched in 2016, allows people in Iran — primarily women — to mark the location of the country's morality police so that others can avoid them. Human rights activist and app co-founder Firuzeh Mahmoudi joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about the app amid current protests.

"Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands," by Kate Beaton, tells the story of working in Alberta's tar sands, along with thousands of others from her native Cape Breton.  Credit: Courtesy of Drawn and Quarterly It is an age-old story — leaving home for work to build a better future for yourself and your family.It's a story that graphic novelist Kate Beaton knows well. Beaton is from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and her story took her almost clear across Canada, more than 3,000 miles west to northern Alberta, to join thousands of others who also left their homes for a better economic future.Her latest book, a graphic novel, is "Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands."Beaton joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about her compelling personal story of working in the Athabasca oil sands of Alberta, where these boom economies have led to tremendous environmental and human cost. Growing up in Cape Breton, Beaton said that she wasn't aware of the tar sands when she was very small. "It was a place that people started going to in the '80s and '90s, but not in the numbers that made a real difference until maybe the late '90s, when it really started booming," she said."And then everybody started going. And they were running news stories around here about how, you know, the streets were emptying and the classrooms had empty desks because they were gone to the oil sands."  Marco Werman: Symbolically, you kind of illustrate that with the empty chairs around the dining tables in Cape Breton. Kate Beaton: But that's not new here. We have had many generations of labor migration to wherever the engines of capitalism have been running to, to the Boston States' auto factories booming in the 70s, and in Ontario and Detroit, a mining boom in Sudbury.So the "Boston States," is that what Cape Bretoners call the US? Or New England, specifically?It's kind of New England. They would land around Boston and they'd call it the Boston States. Yeah, I had a grand aunt who worked as a maid, for instance, in a mansion in Boston. But that was the place to go for work. And they would work there and they'd send money home. And that pattern would repeat wherever the big job booms were. And I sort of fell in step with a pattern that had been going on and on for all this time. I thought nothing of going to the oil sands because people have been doing this where I'm from for so long."Ducks" takes place mostly in Alberta, but you often take readers back to Cape Breton in the book. Almost like a dream. Like one minute you're in the industrial work camp, the next you have your feet in the sand of a pristine beach, almost like your body and mind are in two places at once. What do you think is the long-term effect on workers being split like that? How did it affect you?Oh, it had a big effect on me, for sure. You were split. And so most of your life is in this work camp, where you are not living as your full self. You're cut off from things and you're counting down the days to when you're home. And when you're in the camp, you're isolated. And the sense of being totally outside of society is a very real feeling, that you're the shadow population.The book is called "Ducks," and the meaning is revealed later on in the book when the international news media picks up the story that hundreds of migratory ducks were killed after they landed in one of these tailing ponds at one of these mining sites. Why was that moment so meaningful to you that you decided to give this book the title "Ducks"?Well, the metaphor is apt. These were migratory animals who landed in a pond that they thought was a safe space, that they thought was natural. And it ended up being toxic. It was a dangerous place for them to land. And you could make the same argument for some of the people who landed there. This incident with the ducks was the first time that I saw the oil sands on national and international news. You know, you could sort of see the eyes of the world taking a look at the oil sands or going, "Oh, God, that's bad," you know, "We don't like that." These ducks all died. And I had seen people die — 2008 was a particularly bad year for accidents on Highway 63, which was nicknamed the Highway of Death. The graphic novel, "Ducks: Two Years in the Oils Sands," by Kate Beaton, tells the compelling personal story of leaving home in Cape Breton to work in Alberta's tar sands.  Credit: Courtesy of Drawn and Quarterly  And that's a highway that connects some of the living areas with these mines?Yes, that's right. It's the highway that goes from Edmonton to to Fort McMurray. And also, at the same time, there is a part of the book where a Cree elder, Celina Harpe, is talking about how there is increased incidences of cancer, rare cancers in the Indigenous communities around Fort McMurray. And the response to that is sort of  — silence. But the ducks got all this attention because of maybe how cinematic it was. And so that always stuck with me. That the human cost went under the radar.Homesickness is a major theme of your book, and one way it manifests is through music, I noticed. Cape Breton has so much great music, trad-modern fiddlers like Natalie MacMaster and Ashley MacIsaac. We asked you for a song that brought back feelings of home when you were away in Alberta. Who are we hearing and why does this music resonate with you? You're hearing John Allan Cameron sing "Headed for Halifax." He's singing about leaving Cape Breton for work. "I'm heading for Halifax to see what's to spare in the way of some work. And if there's nothing there, then it's Toronto out West or God only knows where." That was true before I was born. It's true now. You know, I listened to this growing up and I knew, that's going to be me. And it was. This is the life in Cape Breton. But he's he's also singing, you know, "Wherever I go, there's bound to be someone from home," because that is also true. Wherever the work is, we're all going. We're going together.  This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

"Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands," a graphic novel by Kate Beaton, from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, tells the story of leaving home and joining thousands of others to work in the oil sands of Alberta, Canada. Beaton joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about her experience.

"Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands," by Kate Beaton, tells the story of working in Alberta's tar sands, along with thousands of others from her native Cape Breton.  Credit: Courtesy of Drawn and Quarterly It is an age-old story — leaving home for work to build a better future for yourself and your family.It's a story that graphic novelist Kate Beaton knows well. Beaton is from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, and her story took her almost clear across Canada, more than 3,000 miles west to northern Alberta, to join thousands of others who also left their homes for a better economic future.Her latest book, a graphic novel, is "Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands."Beaton joined The World's host Marco Werman to talk about her compelling personal story of working in the Athabasca oil sands of Alberta, where these boom economies have led to tremendous environmental and human cost. Growing up in Cape Breton, Beaton said that she wasn't aware of the tar sands when she was very small. "It was a place that people started going to in the '80s and '90s, but not in the numbers that made a real difference until maybe the late '90s, when it really started booming," she said."And then everybody started going. And they were running news stories around here about how, you know, the streets were emptying and the classrooms had empty desks because they were gone to the oil sands."  Marco Werman: Symbolically, you kind of illustrate that with the empty chairs around the dining tables in Cape Breton. Kate Beaton: But that's not new here. We have had many generations of labor migration to wherever the engines of capitalism have been running to, to the Boston States' auto factories booming in the 70s, and in Ontario and Detroit, a mining boom in Sudbury.So the "Boston States," is that what Cape Bretoners call the US? Or New England, specifically?It's kind of New England. They would land around Boston and they'd call it the Boston States. Yeah, I had a grand aunt who worked as a maid, for instance, in a mansion in Boston. But that was the place to go for work. And they would work there and they'd send money home. And that pattern would repeat wherever the big job booms were. And I sort of fell in step with a pattern that had been going on and on for all this time. I thought nothing of going to the oil sands because people have been doing this where I'm from for so long."Ducks" takes place mostly in Alberta, but you often take readers back to Cape Breton in the book. Almost like a dream. Like one minute you're in the industrial work camp, the next you have your feet in the sand of a pristine beach, almost like your body and mind are in two places at once. What do you think is the long-term effect on workers being split like that? How did it affect you?Oh, it had a big effect on me, for sure. You were split. And so most of your life is in this work camp, where you are not living as your full self. You're cut off from things and you're counting down the days to when you're home. And when you're in the camp, you're isolated. And the sense of being totally outside of society is a very real feeling, that you're the shadow population.The book is called "Ducks," and the meaning is revealed later on in the book when the international news media picks up the story that hundreds of migratory ducks were killed after they landed in one of these tailing ponds at one of these mining sites. Why was that moment so meaningful to you that you decided to give this book the title "Ducks"?Well, the metaphor is apt. These were migratory animals who landed in a pond that they thought was a safe space, that they thought was natural. And it ended up being toxic. It was a dangerous place for them to land. And you could make the same argument for some of the people who landed there. This incident with the ducks was the first time that I saw the oil sands on national and international news. You know, you could sort of see the eyes of the world taking a look at the oil sands or going, "Oh, God, that's bad," you know, "We don't like that." These ducks all died. And I had seen people die — 2008 was a particularly bad year for accidents on Highway 63, which was nicknamed the Highway of Death. The graphic novel, "Ducks: Two Years in the Oils Sands," by Kate Beaton, tells the compelling personal story of leaving home in Cape Breton to work in Alberta's tar sands.  Credit: Courtesy of Drawn and Quarterly  And that's a highway that connects some of the living areas with these mines?Yes, that's right. It's the highway that goes from Edmonton to to Fort McMurray. And also, at the same time, there is a part of the book where a Cree elder, Celina Harpe, is talking about how there is increased incidences of cancer, rare cancers in the Indigenous communities around Fort McMurray. And the response to that is sort of  — silence. But the ducks got all this attention because of maybe how cinematic it was. And so that always stuck with me. That the human cost went under the radar.Homesickness is a major theme of your book, and one way it manifests is through music, I noticed. Cape Breton has so much great music, trad-modern fiddlers like Natalie MacMaster and Ashley MacIsaac. We asked you for a song that brought back feelings of home when you were away in Alberta. Who are we hearing and why does this music resonate with you? You're hearing John Allan Cameron sing "Headed for Halifax." He's singing about leaving Cape Breton for work. "I'm heading for Halifax to see what's to spare in the way of some work. And if there's nothing there, then it's Toronto out West or God only knows where." That was true before I was born. It's true now. You know, I listened to this growing up and I knew, that's going to be me. And it was. This is the life in Cape Breton. But he's he's also singing, you know, "Wherever I go, there's bound to be someone from home," because that is also true. Wherever the work is, we're all going. We're going together.  This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease specialist, joined The World's host Marco Werman to assess the current status of the COVID-19 pandemic and reflects briefly on five decades of service in public health.  

Haiti was once lush and teeming with biodiversity. Plants used to flourish there that were found nowhere else in the world. Take the northern Haiti magnolia, known for its flowers with bright white petals and delicate fragrance.But today, with Haiti among the most deforested countries on earth, sightings of the native magnolia had not been recorded there since 1925. In fact, no one had even snapped a photo of it. Then in June, a team of naturalists with Haiti National Trust trekked to Haiti's longest mountain range, the Massif du Nord, to try to find the elusive flower.Expedition leader Eladio Fernandez, from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, said the search was like "an act of faith." "You know, when you look for these lost species, there's a little fever in you that kind of drives your energy," Fernandez told The World's host Marco Werman.Before the trek, the team researched the original specimen collected by Swedish botanist Erik Leonard Ekman in 1925. They referred to the specimen's labels and matched those with the magnolia's locality. They were able to identify the exact town and base camp used by Ekman using Google Earth. And then they surveyed the area for these last fragments of forests where the magnolia might be growing. The northern Haiti magnolia known for its bright white flowers and delicate fragrance hasn't been spotted since 1925.  Credit: Courtesy of Eladio Fernandez Fernandez said that the three-day hike up steep ravines while carrying heavy camera equipment was not always pleasant. At times, hungry and tired, some team members started to lose faith.On the third day, after a five-hour trek, they arrived at the site and set up camp near a welcoming family. They showed them printed images of the magnolia flowers but the family said they hadn't seen one.Ferndanez said at first, it was "highly depressing" that no one in the area had seen the flower. And most of his team was already exhausted.But Fernandez was determined. He continued to search for the magnolia with naturalist Marcsillion L'Homme, while the others stayed behind. "We were walking by this ravine. It started to rain. And I ... looked behind the mountain. I saw the skies were clear. And I said, 'It's only a cloud. Let's just wait.' And while we were waiting and I took my binoculars, I actually saw the first tree in the ravine, and there it was." Getting a glimpse of the rare flower that had been lost to science for nearly a hundred years was "incredible," Fernandez said.Ecstatic, they laughed and celebrated the discovery of about 16 magnolia trees, with some that had flowers.Then they walked back to the campsite with a cutting and showed off the fragrant flower — much to everyone's delight — with each person taking a turn to inhale its perfume.  Marcsillion L'Homme (left) and Eladio Fernandez (right) naturalists who found the white flowers with their delicate fragrance on a mountain trek.  Credit: Courtesy of Andres Miolan Elation aside, Fernandez said that the really big, difficult work still lies ahead. "We need to go back. We need to collect seeds. We need to set up a nursery. We need to get the community involved. We need to do education. We need to find the funding for this," he said. Fernandez would like to see further collaboration between naturalists from Haiti and the Dominican Republic, two sides of the same island whose shared history has been fraught with conflict. "This expedition [is] a good example of what can be done if we all combine and collaborate for the better." 

Haiti was once lush and teeming with biodiversity. Plants used to flourish there that were found nowhere else in the world. Take the northern Haiti magnolia, known for its flowers with bright white petals and delicate fragrance.But today, with Haiti among the most deforested countries on earth, sightings of the native magnolia had not been recorded there since 1925. In fact, no one had even snapped a photo of it. Then in June, a team of naturalists with Haiti National Trust trekked to Haiti's longest mountain range, the Massif du Nord, to try to find the elusive flower.Expedition leader Eladio Fernandez, from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic, said the search was like "an act of faith." "You know, when you look for these lost species, there's a little fever in you that kind of drives your energy," Fernandez told The World's host Marco Werman.Before the trek, the team researched the original specimen collected by Swedish botanist Erik Leonard Ekman in 1925. They referred to the specimen's labels and matched those with the magnolia's locality. They were able to identify the exact town and base camp used by Ekman using Google Earth. And then they surveyed the area for these last fragments of forests where the magnolia might be growing. The northern Haiti magnolia known for its bright white flowers and delicate fragrance hasn't been spotted since 1925.  Credit: Courtesy of Eladio Fernandez Fernandez said that the three-day hike up steep ravines while carrying heavy camera equipment was not always pleasant. At times, hungry and tired, some team members started to lose faith.On the third day, after a five-hour trek, they arrived at the site and set up camp near a welcoming family. They showed them printed images of the magnolia flowers but the family said they hadn't seen one.Ferndanez said at first, it was "highly depressing" that no one in the area had seen the flower. And most of his team was already exhausted.But Fernandez was determined. He continued to search for the magnolia with naturalist Marcsillion L'Homme, while the others stayed behind. "We were walking by this ravine. It started to rain. And I ... looked behind the mountain. I saw the skies were clear. And I said, 'It's only a cloud. Let's just wait.' And while we were waiting and I took my binoculars, I actually saw the first tree in the ravine, and there it was." Getting a glimpse of the rare flower that had been lost to science for nearly a hundred years was "incredible," Fernandez said.Ecstatic, they laughed and celebrated the discovery of about 16 magnolia trees, with some that had flowers.Then they walked back to the campsite with a cutting and showed off the fragrant flower — much to everyone's delight — with each person taking a turn to inhale its perfume.  Marcsillion L'Homme (left) and Eladio Fernandez (right) naturalists who found the white flowers with their delicate fragrance on a mountain trek.  Credit: Courtesy of Andres Miolan Elation aside, Fernandez said that the really big, difficult work still lies ahead. "We need to go back. We need to collect seeds. We need to set up a nursery. We need to get the community involved. We need to do education. We need to find the funding for this," he said. Fernandez would like to see further collaboration between naturalists from Haiti and the Dominican Republic, two sides of the same island whose shared history has been fraught with conflict. "This expedition [is] a good example of what can be done if we all combine and collaborate for the better." 

Russian schools are revamping their curriculum and encouraging students to join a new patriotic youth movement in an attempt to steer them away from Western influence. To discuss how propaganda works, The World's host Marco Werman speaks with Nina Khrushcheva, professor of international affairs at The New School in New York and great-granddaughter of former Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev.

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was shot and killed during a campaign speech on Friday in Nara, Japan. We hear reactions from Japan and thoughts on Abe's legacy in the country. Also, tennis player Peng Shuai has made few public appearances since last year when she accused a former high-ranking member of China's Communist Party of sexual assault. Since then, many in the global tennis and human rights communities have feared for her safety. Plus, Danish Klezmer artists Mames Babegenush are back on the road again in North America, and their message is that COVID-19 stopped them in their tracks — but they're back! And, listen to music from around the globe curated by The World's director April Peavey, host Marco Werman and the team of journalists that create the show every week day.

History professor Charles Tshimanga-Kashama joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the historic visit and its implications for the future relations between the two countries.

Extremism expert Amarnath Amarasingam told The World's host Marco Werman that the shooter was deeply influenced by the white supremacist who killed 51 Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019.

Fifty years ago, during a few short weeks in the summer of 1967, thousands of hippies descended on San Francisco. The small suburb of Haight-Ashbury became a centre for sexual freedom, freedom to experiment with mind blowing drugs, to debate social and economic utopias and freedom to listen to loud rock music. Marco Werman looks back at those hedonistic times through the music and recollections of people who were there 50 years ago.