The members of the Awra Amba community in rural Ethiopia believe there is a way out of poverty—through improved education, equal rights for men and women, and hard work. It may sound simple, but these values turn many firmly ingrained local traditions and deeply held religious beliefs on their head.
Having lost family members in the Khmer Rouge regime, Phreaktra Neath now hosts Cambodia's top-rated television program covering the current UN-sponsored trials of the regime's former leaders. "Time for Justice" looks at what these trials mean for him and for Cambodia as a whole.
In Koraro, Ethiopia, many factors prevent girls from obtaining an education. However, girls like Regbe are now able to attend secondary school because of scholarships provided by the Millennium Villages Project. The girls previously would have married at a young age into a poor family. Now, they have a brighter future.
In the backcountry of the Dominican Republic, poor cacao farmers have been fighting a losing battle with the global economy for as long as anyone can remember. But the thriving Loma Guaconejo cooperative has found a way to turn the system on its head.
Dorah Nyanja runs a micro-franchise clinic in Kibera, a slum of Nairobi. She works 14-hour days to serve a community that desperately needs her, and she has found satisfaction in her work that equals the relief her patients receive from her.
African fashion entrepreneurs are attempting to breath new life into Mali's declining cotton industry. Mali is one of the largest countries in Africa and also one of the poorest; the country is dependent on money from cotton to pay for food and basic social services like schools and housing. But could traditional cloth-making skills hold the key to a more prosperous future?
Local people in Sulawesi island, Indonesia have developed a community-based forestry cooperative, the first in the country to achieve Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification for sustainability. This has helped to regulate teak production and secure fair prices for producers. However, the group's members face an ongoing battle with Indonesia's endemic corruption.
The Knasaimos people in Indonesia have been severely affected by an illegal logging trade that has destroyed the livelihoods and social structure of their villages. Recent government enforcement action has clamped down on this illicit trade, and now the local communities are benefiting from having increased control over their ancestral forestland.
Midwives in Chiapas, Mexico's poorest state, represent the front line in a nationwide battle to improve the lives of women. They are helping to reduce domestic violence and improve education, while also working hard to maintain a maternal mortality rate of close to zero.
A small town in northern Mexico has come up with a unique way to stem the exodus of workers migrating illegally to the United States: create a theme park–style event for tourists to experience a simulated border crossing, complete with fake immigration patrols and balaclava-clad coyotes. This film adds a fresh perspective to the ongoing debate surrounding economic migration, especially with regard to its impact on those people left behind.
In Hong Kong, domestic helpers are often denied basic employee rights, like equitable wages and time off. Helpers for Domestic Helpers is empowering workers to stand up for their rights, and Empowered in Hong Kong is one example of their work.
In 2003, a devastating flash flood caused over 239 deaths in the Indonesian village of Bukit Lawang. The deluge was attributed to illegal logging in the surrounding Gunung Leuser National Park. Since the floods, the local community has begun to organize patrols of the forest in an attempt to curb illegal logging.
Cleto Choque is a Bolivian shoeshiner who's fighting the negative stereotypes surrounding his profession. As he struggles to pay his way through school and support his younger brothers, he's being helped by the Nuevo Dia Foundation.
A new generation of leaders is rising in El Salvador, tackling some of the toughest environmental and community-driven challenges in unlikely ways. This film profiles Douglas Chica, a young wetlands ranger who is working to protect marshland. He also hopes to inspire local youth to follow his example.
It's more than eight years since the Taliban ruled Herat but, for many women here, life has barely changed, with forced marriage, domestic violence, and rape still commonplace. Now a fledgling women's rights movement is determined to change that legacy.
What happens when people in remote rural areas can't afford to travel to the hospital for surgery? Dr. Edgar Rodas has created an innovative solution: an operating theater built on the back of a truck that can travel to treat people living in the poorest—and hardest to reach—areas of Ecuador.
