How a Postage Stamp May Have Helped Create the Panama Canal
The decision to build a Panama Canal came about because of two lobbyists, one of whom thought a stamp would make a telling point.
Mexico’s Radical Women Artists
Art by Mexican "Radical Women" artists capture the turbulent times of the feminist movement in Mexico in the 1970s and still ring true today.
Climate Change is Turning Dehydration into a Deadly Epidemic
A mysterious kidney disease is striking down laborers across the world and climate change is making it worse. Meet the doctors who are trying to stop it.
The Last Glacier of Venezuela
Glaciers are retreating around the world. The Andes are no exception: in Venezuela, the ice has mostly already disappeared.
Two Women of the African Slave Resistance
African women, always a minority in the slave trade, often had to find their own ways of rebellion against slavery if they could.
What Venezuela Can Teach Us About Saving Failed States
Outside intervention in Venezuela is built on the idea that the fallout of a failed state has ramifications beyond its national borders.
“Filibuster” Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Does
The term "filibuster" used to refer to Americans who went to foreign countries to fight in their wars without the government’s permission.
The Illustrious History of the Avocado
Avocados had an important place in Mesoamerican peoples’ diet, mythology, and culture. It’s possible that they were eaten in Mexico 10,000 years ago.
A History of Brazil
The largest country in South America is home to a wide variety of cultures, fascinating history, and some of the most pristine wilderness found anywhere in the world.
Objects of Wonder: Costa Rica’s Stone Spheres
The people who chiseled Costa Rica's stone spheres out of granite belonged to a distinct Latin American culture called the Chibchan.