by Odelia Putterman | 18 Jun 2018 | Asia, China, Personal Reflections, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Youth Voices
I spent the past year in Beijing. The Chinese language has taught me that change is inevitable — and life will yield new loves for me. “The Orchard Pavilian Gathering” (Wikimedia Commons) This past year I lived in China as a 17-year-old American high...
by News Decoder | 11 Jun 2018 | King's Academy, Middle East, Student Posts, Youth Voices
By Dania Abuhashish (King’s Academy) If you look at me closely, I am trembling and shaking. Three years ago, I would have already been cracking a couple of jokes. It’s surprising how much a person can change; they can go from A to Z just like that. As I grew up...
by News Decoder | 7 Jun 2018 | Art, Contests, Friends Seminary, Greens Farms Academy, School Year Abroad, Student Posts, Thacher School, Westover School, Women, Youth Voices
These photos were submitted by students participating in News-Decoder’s twice-yearly Reporting and Writing Contest. You can see the winning entries among Student Posts. *** By Yatong Shi (Westover School) In my photo report “Censorship,” I explore...
by James Langan and Luca Pieretti | 4 Jun 2018 | Contest winners, Contests, Environment, Student Posts, Thacher School, Youth Voices
We knew the dangers of California’s drought. Soon the rush of school life muffled the warning. Until a raging fire awakened us from our indifference. The view from Thacher’s Outdoor Chapel features the pristine Topa Topa Mountains of the Ojai Valley. (Photo...
by News Decoder | 1 Jun 2018 | Contest winners, Contests, La Jolla Country Day School, Student Posts, Youth Voices
The media sensationalizes wildfires, overlooking beneficial effects that fire can have nature. Journalists need to take a more sophisticated approach. A firefighter lights a “backfire” to contain the Rocky Fire near Clearlake, California, 3 August 2015. (AP Photo/Josh...
by News Decoder | 31 May 2018 | Europe, Indiana University
(This story has been corrected to make clear, in the fourth paragraph, that it was Shushkevich who fell victim to an anti-corruption drive, and not Lukashenko, who was a former state farm boss.) By Elaine Monaghan Twenty-one years ago, I learned the true meaning of...
by Emma Juvan | 30 May 2018 | Art, Contest winners, Contests, Environment, Student Posts, United States, Westover School, Youth Voices
Humans are driving climate change — a fact many ignore. So I have captured our changing landscape in photos that show the consequences. Melting map of climate change patterns (all photos by Emma Juvan) This story shared first prize in the photography category in...
by Rand Al-Harahsheh | 29 May 2018 | Contest winners, Contests, King's Academy, Middle East, Student Posts, Syria, Youth Voices
When Syrian refugees started flooding into Jordan, citizens in my city were angry and concerned. But with time and investment, tensions have eased. Syrian refugee children at the Za’atari refugee camp near Mafraq, Jordan, 19 March 2014. (EPA/Jamal Nasrallah) This...
by Madeleine Steele | 25 May 2018 | Art, Contest winners, Contests, Environment, Student Posts, Westover School, Youth Voices
I’ve always wanted to show how overfishing harms ocean life and fish populations. My photo essay lets you know you can make a difference. The unsustainable killing of fish demands that consumers become more empathetic. (All photos by Madeleine Steele) This story...
by Nick Trombola | 3 May 2018 | Indiana University, Politics, Student Posts, United States, Youth Voices
Some U.S. firms have cut ties with manufacturers of guns following the mass shooting at a Florida high school. But the impact of the moves is unclear. Guns on display at Dick’s Sporting Goods in Danvers, Massachusetts, 28 February 2018(EPA-EFE/CJ Gunther) The mass...