The Geopolitical Power of Hallyu

Does the name “J. Y. Park” ring a bell? If so, chances are that you have brushed shoulders with the K-pop industry. While not a household name outside of K-pop fandom circles, this Korean songwriter and entertainment CEO also maintains the almost unexplainable role of “weird dad of the K-pop industry” – from overly-autotuned and […]

Four Years After the Fall of Kabul, Afghan Refugees Have Nowhere to Turn

In the months after the United States-backed government of Afghanistan first fell to the Taliban, international condemnation of the regime and support for Afghan refugees were swift and widespread. But now, the shifting tides of international immigration policy have definitively turned against Afghan refugees. As Iran, Pakistan, and the United States all begin to either […]

Controversy Sparks Amid Chinese Military Bases in Africa

In an international world of constant strategic moves, especially when it comes to military assets, there is bound to be conflict between countries. This time, one such conflict happens to be flaring between China and the United States over nothing less than the continent of Africa. A proposed naval base on Africa’s coastline is causing major […]

South Africa Claims Genocide

Under the United Nations Convention on Genocide, “genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such: On January 26th, 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) released an interim ruling on South Africa’s case against Israel. In bringing […]

Volcano Fears Heat Up in Iceland

In November of last year, after detecting a flow of moving magma stretching nine miles long under Grindavík, a fishing village in southwest Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula, officials ordered an evacuation of at least 3,000 people living in the area. Although the evacuation took place as a preventative measure, not because citizens were in immediate danger, […]

Decolonizing the Climate Crisis

Western society has become entrenched in finding solutions to climate change that fit into a colonized understanding of the world. Much of Western academia operates on the widely-held assumption that the Anthropocene Epoch has led to the current climate crisis and the solution to climate change lies in reverting the world to how it was […]

Turmoil Before the Storm: Underlying Political Risk in Libya

Derna was a beautiful seaside town, built on the ruins of a Greek colony by Spanish Muslims in the late 15th century. It was home to Libya’s first movie theater, dozens of religious buildings, cafes, and bookstores. It was a town rich with culture and intellectual vitality. But the physical evidence of that is now […]

Dissatisfaction and Disappointment at UNGA78

“Compromise has become a dirty word. Our world needs statesmanship, not gamesmanship and gridlock . . . It is time for a global compromise. Politics is compromise. Diplomacy is compromise. Effective leadership is compromise. Leaders have a social responsibility to compromise in building the common future of peace and prosperity for our common good.” With […]

Press Issues Take Rise in India

“I have resigned. You won’t hear me on NDTV anymore saying, ‘Hello, I’m Ravish Kumar.’” These were the final words uttered by Ravish Kumar during a YouTube video last November in which he declared his official departure from New Dehli Television (NDTV). The Current State of Affairs Kumar making his exit from NDTV is just […]

Why China’s Growing Influence in the Middle East Matters

Trailing behind the exit of the United States, China has taken an interest in the Middle East, brokering diplomatic deals between Saudi Arabia and Iran. This is a surprising role for China to take on, as the country has, in the past, shown relatively little interest in that region of the world. The spike in […]