By Osman Bahadir Dincer, Senior Researcher, Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC)
Bahar Baser, Professor in Political Science and International Relations, Durham University
Zeynep Sahin Mencütek, Senior Researcher in International Politics, Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies (BICC)
It was around seven o'clock in the evening when we arrived at a church in the city of Hama, Syria, to attend the wedding of a friend. As guests gradually filled the courtyard, music began to echo through the building. One by one, the bride, groom, and their relatives entered the church accompanied by songs, applause and cheers.
After the religious ceremony concluded, groups of young men and women began performing Ewiha, a traditional wedding chant in Syria and the Levant. Their voices rose and fell in a rhythmic dialogue as verses praising the bride and groom were answered…
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By Helen McCabe, Professor in Political Theory, University of Nottingham
I first heard about Harriet Taylor Mill when reading about her much more famous collaborator and future husband, the British philosopher and politician John Stuart Mill.
Appropriately for someone who remains in the margins of history despite her enormous contribution – including to her husband’s status – Taylor Mill was deeply angered by injustice. Throughout her life, she railed against the way society made it impossible…
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By Susan Ann Samuel, Postdoctoral Researcher, International Climate Politics, University of Leeds
Delegates from 196 nations plus EU officials have met in Mongolia to discuss how best to tackle drought and desertification.
Often overlooked by the larger and busier climate summits, this small UN desertification summit, known as Cop17, felt more important than ever. Yet countries still could not agree on what needs to be done.
Negotiations that were often inconclusive and frustrating continued until 4am on some nights. The closing plenary was gavelled…
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By Athalie Redwood-Brown, Senior Lecturer in Performance Analysis of Sport, Nottingham Trent University
You finish a workout feeling pleased with yourself. But an hour later, your legs feel heavy, climbing the stairs seems impossible and all you want to do is sit down.
The feeling of being drained after a tough working is often described as “post-workout fatigue”. You might feel low on energy, while your muscles may feel heavy, weak or less able to perform.
While some tiredness…
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By Ana Catalano Weeks, Associate Professor in Comparative Politics, University of Bath
Anna Helgøy, Postdoctoral Fellow - Department of Political Science, University of Oslo
The results of the May local elections across England highlighted a persistent problem in British politics: women remained underrepresented in local government. While attention often focuses on increasing the number of women elected, an equally important challenge is keeping them in office once they get there.
Although there has been progress in recent decades, women still make up only around a third of councillors…
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By Ryan J. Persram, Research Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Toronto Metropolitan University
Thinking about the quality of friendships allows us to consider the different elements that promote safety, support and security for both teens in a relationship.
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By Carsten Schradin, Director of Research, Université de Strasbourg; University of the Witwatersrand
About 200 million years ago, furry little egg-laying creatures evolved the ability to feed their offspring with a secretion from some special glands: milk. Their evolutionary journey continued and by about 160 million years ago, the first mammals with a real placenta had come into being. Instead of laying eggs, they gave birth to live young that had been connected via a placenta directly to their mother during pregnancy, allowing the exchange of oxygen, nutrients and waste products.
These early…
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By Amy Sarah Padayachee, Lecturer, Cape Peninsula University of Technology
Questions about the integrity of educator appointments remain unresolved in South Africa ten years after a ministerial task team investigated the alleged sale of teaching posts.
The inquiry exposed vulnerabilities in a system intended to ensure that appointments are fair, equitable and transparent. A decade later, how well does South Africa’s system protect teacher appointments and promotions from improper influence? The question remains relevant because allegations…
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By Yap Boum, Professor in the faculty of Medicine, Mbarara University of Science and Technology
Marie Roseline Belizaire, Researcher, School of Medicine, Universidad de Alcalá
The Democratic Republic of Congo’s fight against Ebola has reached a tipping point. It can accelerate what it has been doing to bring the latest outbreak under control, or risk allowing it to persist as the worst Ebola epidemic ever recorded.
As at 1 September 2026, more than 6,186 confirmed cases and 3,007 deaths have been reported since May…
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By Moha Ennaji, Professor, Université Sidi Mohammed Ben Abdellah
International attention needs to be paid to Europe’s outsourcing of border controls, and to the relationship between Spain and Morocco.
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