BLANTYRE, MALAWI — Malawi, which already is suffering from food shortages, this week banned the import of unmilled maize from Kenya and Tanzania over concerns that the spread of maize lethal necrosis disease could wipe out the staple food. The ministry of agriculture announced the ban in a statement that said …
your ad herePoinsettia’s Origins, Namesake’s Checkered History Get New Attention
SANTA FE, N.M. — Like Christmas trees, Santa and reindeer, the poinsettia has long been a ubiquitous symbol of the holiday season in the U.S. and across Europe. But now, nearly 200 years after the plant with the bright crimson leaves was introduced in the U.S., attention is once again turning …
your ad hereOfficials Push to Get Kids Vaccinated as More US Parents Opt Out
Big Wins and Setbacks in 2023 For Biden’s Green Agenda
Injecting billions of dollars into green solutions to fight climate change has been a top priority of the Biden administration in 2023. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias looks at this year’s achievements and setbacks in the president’s environmental agenda. …
your ad hereIn Sudan, Health Care Crisis Looms for Unborn, Newborn as Conflict Escalates
Nairobi, Kenya — According to the British charity Save the Children, some 30,000 children will be born in war-torn Sudan over the next three months without access to proper medical care, such as through doctors, hospitals and medicines. The group says the lack of basic health care endangers both mothers and …
your ad hereDrought-Prone California OKs New Rules for Turning Wastewater Directly Into Drinking Water
SACRAMENTO, California — When a toilet is flushed in California, the water can end up in a lot of places: an ice skating rink in Ontario, ski slopes around Lake Tahoe, farmland in the Central Valley. And — coming soon — kitchen faucets. California regulators on Tuesday approved new rules to …
your ad hereWHO Classifies JN.1 Coronavirus Strain as ‘Variant of Interest’
Volunteers Join Annual Christmas Bird Count
North America’s oldest citizen science project is underway with thousands of volunteers measuring bird populations in the annual Christmas Bird Count. VOA’s Natasha Mozgovaya joined a birdwatching team in Seattle. …
your ad hereStudy Bolsters Evidence Severe Obesity Increasing in Young US Kids
NEW YORK — A new study adds to evidence that severe obesity is becoming more common in young U.S. children. There was some hope that children in a government food program might be bucking a trend in obesity rates — earlier research found rates were dropping a little about a decade …
your ad hereMen Charged With Killing 3,600 Birds to Sell on Black Market
US Woman Criminally Charged After Miscarriage
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio was in the throes of a bitter debate over abortion rights this fall when Brittany Watts, 21 weeks and 5 days pregnant, began passing thick blood clots. The 33-year-old Watts, who had not shared the news of her pregnancy even with her family, made her first prenatal …
your ad hereGuatemala Loses Landmark Indigenous and Environmental Rights Case
MEXICO CITY — Guatemala violated Indigenous rights by permitting a huge nickel mine on tribal land almost two decades ago, according to a ruling from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights on Friday. The landmark verdict marks a monumental step in a four-decade struggle for Indigenous land rights and a long, …
your ad here‘Prescribed Burns’ Could Aid Forests in US Southeast, Experts Say
WEST END, N.C. — Jesse Wimberley burns the woods with neighbors. Using new tools to revive an old communal tradition, they set fire to wiregrasses and forest debris with a drip torch, corralling embers with leaf blowers. Wimberley, 65, gathers groups across eight North Carolina counties to starve future wildfires by …
your ad hereNM Extends Ban on Oil and Gas Leasing Around Area Sacred to Native Americans
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — New oil and natural gas leasing will be prohibited on state land surrounding Chaco Culture National Historical Park, an area sacred to Native Americans, for the next 20 years under an executive order by New Mexico Land Commissioner Stephanie Garcia Richard. Wednesday’s order extends a temporary moratorium that …
your ad hereBiggest Solar Flare in Years Temporarily Disrupts Radio Signals on Earth
Companies Announce Partnership to Release Dengue-Fighting Mosquitoes in Caribbean
Conservationists, US Tribes Say Salmon Deal Is Map to Breaching Dams
seattle — The U.S. government said Thursday it plans to spend more than $1 billion over the next decade to help recover depleted populations of salmon in the Pacific Northwest, and that it will help figure out how to offset the hydropower, transportation and other benefits provided by four controversial dams …
your ad hereUS Launch of New Vulcan Centaur Rocket Delayed Until January
washington — The maiden liftoff of a new American rocket called Vulcan Centaur has been delayed from December 24 to January 8, the company that developed it said Thursday. The postponement stems from last-minute technical snags, but United Launch Alliance CEO Tory Bruno said on X, formerly Twitter, that a recent …
your ad hereSickle Cell Affects More in Africa, India, but New Gene Therapies Are Out of Reach
Moderna, Merck Drugs Combined Shown Effective Against Melanoma
Biden Praises New COP28 Climate Agreement
COP28 Climate Summit: ‘Historic’ Deal Set to Transition From Fossil Fuels
London/Dubai — Nearly 200 countries signed a deal Wednesday at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai to transition away from fossil fuels. Proponents say it heralds the end of the age of oil — but not all nations are satisfied with the text of the deal. The deal calls for “transitioning …
your ad hereCOP28 Delegates Agree to ‘Historic’ Transition Away From Fossil Fuels
Nearly 200 countries signed a deal to transition away from fossil fuels at the COP28 climate summit in Dubai. The summit’s president called it a historic agreement — but not all nations are satisfied, as Henry Ridgwell reports. …
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