by Tiziana Barghini | 9 Oct 2024 | Decoder Replay, Economy, Europe, France, Uncategorized
If you owe too much money and can’t repay it, you could lose your car or home. Can a nation have too much debt? What happens then? A rooster, a national symbol of France, peeks out from within an empty bank vault. (Illustration by News Decoder) Editor’s...
by Alexander Nicoll | 25 Sep 2024 | Decoder Replay, Journalism, Media Literacy
How we perceive events like the war in Ukraine depends on our news sources. While never perfect, news media perform invaluable services. A note tacked onto a refrigerator reminds someone to pick up needed items including news. (Illustration by News Decoder)...
by John West | 23 Sep 2024 | Asia, China, Decoders, Economy, Politics
Vietnam has long had to dance between powerful allies and enemies. That’s left it poised to maneuver in the political chaos that now swirls around it. The Vietnam flag waves behind a screen of bamboo. (Illustration by News Decoder) This article was produced...
by Katharine Lake Berz | 18 Sep 2024 | Culture, Decoder Replay, Europe, Politics
With an influx of migrants over the past decade, Germany is reconciling to rapidly changing demographics. The idea of German identity is evolving. In a refuge for asylum seekers in Eichsfeld, Germany, a father hugs his son who has just returned from school, 24 April...
by Daniel Warner | 16 Sep 2024 | Decoders, Educators' Catalog, History, Human Rights, Politics
Russia didn’t attend the 75th birthday of the Geneva Conventions. Are the treaties that govern how nations conduct war still relevant in today’s chaotic world? Members of the UN Security Council mark the 75th anniversary of the signing of the Geneva...
Use this piece to explore international relations, geopolitics, the politics and history of conflict. Last month marked the 75th Anniversary of the Geneva Conventions. Russia didn’t attend. Political Scientist Daniel Warner decodes whether the treaties that govern how nations conduct war are still relevant in today’s chaotic world.
Exercise: Debate. Split students into groups. In each group, divide students into two teams. One will defend the Geneva Conventions, the other is against the conventions. In preparation, watch this video and share the ICRC website. Each team undertakes research to build an argument for their case. Ask students to debate the issue. After the debate, discuss the difficulties teams had in supporting their arguments.
by Kaja Andrić | 11 Sep 2024 | Decoder Replay, Politics
It is easy to write off mass shootings as a U.S. problem. But they are on the rise globally. Can we find global solutions to this massive problem? Candles, flowers and other memorabilia are placed at the Viertola school in Vantaa, Finland, 3 April 2024. A 12-year-old...
by Jonathan Sharp | 4 Sep 2024 | China, Decoder Replay, History, North Korea, Politics, Sports, United States
A selfie on the Olympic podium of competing ping pong players from North and South Korea reminds us of the ability of sports to bridge political divides. North Korea’s Ri Jong Sik, left, and Kim Kum, foreground left, with their bronze medals, China’s Wang...
by Bernd Debusmann | 3 Sep 2024 | Decoders, Human Rights, Politics, United States, Wh-Y Vote
One candidate in the upcoming election vows to deport millions of people. The other wants complicated changes to current laws. Is either solution feasible? A group claiming to be from India sit in the shade of the border wall as they wait to be picked up by U.S....
by Bernd Debusmann | 28 Aug 2024 | Decoder Replay, History, Politics
Drones are being used in warfare in Ukraine, Sudan and the Middle East. Other nations have them. How did we get to this point and how much should it worry us? Ukrainian servicemen of the Ochi reconnaissance unit launch a drone to fly over Russian positions at the...
by John West | 21 Aug 2024 | Asia, Decoder Replay, Economy, Japan, Politics
As China and Russia tighten their alliance, Japan has emerged as an important partner to the West. A sudden change in leadership there has wider implications. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida shakes hands with U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris in Tokyo on 26...