Stories in Volume 20, Issue 2 — January-June 2009
 Community Development
Historic series of conferences aims at stirring the grassrootsUVIRA, Democratic Republic of the Congo - Located on the northern shore of Lake Tanganyika in the war-torn province of Sud-Kivu, this small and underdeveloped African city might seem an unlikely place to start building a new global civilization. But for some 800 people... Read more |
 Perspective
Perspective: "Animal spirits," spirituality, and the economic crisisEvents over the course of the last year have made economics a prime topic everywhere, from the global commons to the village square. Traditionally, economics has been a dry subject. Defined as a social science, its practitioners have largely sought to reduce forces that... Read more |
 Sustainable Development
Young people give input to UN Sustainable Development sessionUNITED NATIONS - As one of the youngest representatives from a non-governmental organization to attend this year's UN Commission on Sustainable Development, it was natural that 19-year-old Alicia Cundall would participate in the Youth caucus. But she didn't expect to be... Read more |
 Women
"Learning to be a Girl" strikes a chord at UN women's conferenceUNITED NATIONS - Addressing the main theme of this year's Commission on the Status of Women, the workshop "Learning to be a Girl" focused on how cultural norms, social roles, and the gender stereotypes associated with them determine household roles for women and men and... Read more |
 United Nations
UN conference on racism overcomes controversy with concrete suggestions for changeGENEVA - A United Nations conference held here in April strongly reaffirmed the world's commitment to "prevent, combat and eradicate racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance." Held 20-24 April 2009, the Durban Review Conference sought to review... Read more |
 Human Rights
Egyptian court removes barriers to ID documents for Baha'is and othersCAIRO - In a ruling that opens the door to a new level of respect for religious privacy in Egypt, a court here has removed all grounds for preventing Bahá'ís from receiving proper official identity documents. The decision, issued in March by the Supreme Administrative... Read more |
 Human Rights
Baha'is express concern over turmoil in Iran as their co-religionists remain in prisonNEW YORK - Against the backdrop of growing turmoil in Iran since the disputed national elections there in June, Bahá'ís around the world have sought to express their concern over reports of increasing human rights violations in that country. In July, for example, many... Read more |
 Review
Bridging the gap between traditionalist Islam and the modern worldGate of the Heart: Understanding the Writings of the Báb By Nader Saiedi Wilfrid Laurier University Press Canada For Bahá'ís, the story of the Báb is well known. The forerunner of their Faith, the Báb appeared in Iran in 1844 - and within six years he had established... Read more |