Author: Michal Burgunder

LOS ANGELES — When it comes to delivering entertainment, poverty has never been a focus of major Hollywood companies. In the past few years, major film studios have been focusing much more on bringing action-packed fantastic worlds to life, rather than focus on the poor and their struggles. But many films can either be a cry for help — such as many movies shown at the International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival in the Czech Republic — or deal with generally ignored social issues, such as the 2017 Academy Award Winner Moonlight. This is why Moonlight winning best picture was…

SEATTLE — Of all the threats that climate change is bringing with it, there is not one climatic change that is as potentially devastating as desertification. From the etymology of the word, we instantly think of lifelessness of the world’s deserts like the Sahara, Mojave and Gobi. Desertification is the “creation” of desert-like conditions in the areas surrounding existing deserts, which erodes arable land and water supplies. Desertification is a problem for everyone because it is not only prevalent at the edges of deserts, but also at every farm. Desertification, more generally, refers to land slowly becoming unsuitable for agriculture, which…

SEATTLE — Since humans began to farm, people have founded settlements based on a few basic principles: is there farmland (Midwest)? Is the location of the settlement viable for trade (Rome, New York)? And the most important factor, by far, is there access to clean water? Examples of such settlements would be any towns, cities or villages on rivers and lakes, of which there are countless many examples, because people living in those settlements have a seemingly infinite source of water. Conservation and Climate Change With higher populations, and with human and industrial waste seriously affecting the status of rivers, it…

SEATTLE — When thinking about poverty, we generally think about large communities of people who cannot sustain themselves due to lack of food. This is true for at least 600 million people around the globe. Yet, a common misconception is that “people living in poverty” merely states that these people live under some global or national poverty line, and can be brought out of poverty by channeling funds into the development of their living environment. Of course, one can fund all sorts of things such as wells, food/water aid, developmental equipment, shelter etc., and this will help the poorest to…

CYPRUS — When discussing poverty, the island of Cyprus is very interesting especially in relation to the nation’s governance. About half of the island is governed by the Republic of Cyprus (southern part of the island, also known as just Cyprus) and the other half by the self-declared state of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (northern part of the island). As a result, the island has been incredibly divided since the Turkish military take-over in 1974, and a U.N. peacekeeping force has been trying to ease the tensions ever since. As both governing bodies are very different, whether it…

SINGAPORE — Although many countries in Asia suffer from a low GDP, Singapore is not one of them, and ranks 16 out of 57 countries in the Asia and Pacific region. Yet, when looking at the GDP per capita, we notice that Singapore is even wealthier than that: Singapore has a stunning $82,000 mean GDP per capita, which only Qatar has a higher income ($143,000). So many have to ask: why is Singapore poor? What Singapore is Doing Right and What Could be Improved  Of course, poverty is in every country in the world; this is undeniable. But people who…

SEATTLE — The Maldives is a group of islands known for the sunshine, the open ocean, scuba diving and an escape from worldly problems. But beyond its attraction as a tourist destination, the Maldives has its own development struggles. That is not to say that tourism doesn’t play a role in its economy: It is the biggest industry in the Maldives making up 25 percent of its GDP. But any causes of poverty in the Maldives that might exist are not visible to tourists, as about half of its 200 islands consist of only tourist resorts. The other 100 islands…

PORT VILA — Of all the countries in the world, Vanuatu is a relatively new one, gaining its independence in 1980. Although the island nation took control of its trade from the French before then, its independence pushed the European control out of the islands. Vanuatu has a GDP per capita of about $3,000, and the country is continuously getting aid from France for free education. The country is still struggling in some areas, so the causes of poverty in Vanuatu need to be explored and understood. The poverty rate in Vanuatu is 12.7 percent. Many other island states in the Pacific…

SEATTLE — Antibiotics resistance is a growing problem throughout the world, whether it be in developing countries, or in more developed countries such as the US. Currently, 23,000 people die from antimicrobial resistant bacteria every year, in the United States alone. Around the world, the number is likely to be much higher due to poorer treatment facilities. Bacteria, when exposed long enough to a particular drug, become resistant to it, slowly making the medicine obsolete. As a result of this fact, scientists need to use other drugs for treating bacterial infections which are also becoming obsolete. Thus, the medical community…