This Week from the Pulitzer Center:
February 19, 2009

Latest Reporting | Featured Video | Pulitzer Center News & Events

This Week from the Pulitzer Center

Latest Reporting | Featured Video 

  A wheat killer in the heart of Africa

Sharon Schmickle reports on a serious wheat rust epidemic in Africa, the first in 50 years.

Small farmers in Kenya and Uganda who depend on their limited yield have seen their crops completely destroyed by this new strain, Ug99, and experts believe that if the strain continues to spread, real damage could be done to the world's supply of this essential grain.

Schmickle reports from Africa and St. Paul, Minnesota, where scientists are working to develop a variant capable of resisting Ug99.

Read her latest article in The Washington Post and click here to watch an audio slideshow on the epidemic. 

See more reporting at Schmickle's project page

 Alison des Forges 1942 - 2009

Jon Sawyer, Pulitzer Center

Alison des Forges, the Human Rights Watch researcher and Rwanda scholar who was killed in the crash of a commuter plane near Buffalo last Thursday night, touched so many people in so many different ways. For those of us who did not know her in person perhaps the best tribute we can give is to learn her story, to understand the profound difference one individual can make, and to follow her lead.

One of the individuals inspired by des Forges is journalist Michael Kavanagh, currently on assignment for the Pulitzer Center in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. His appreciation of des Forges was published Monday in Slate. 

Latest Reporting:

Inside Gaza: Elliott Woods reports on the recent Israeli elections from the Gazan perspective for The Washington Times. 

India: Jason Motlagh reports on the strengthening Maoist insurgency in India with an audio slideshow for The Washington Post.

DRC: Michael Kavanagh reports on new violence in the DRC for our Untold Stories blog. 

Yemen: François-Xavier Trégan, special to the Pulitzer Center, profiles Nasser al Bahri, a former bodyguard of Osama bin Laden and creator of a rehabilitation center for "wayward crusaders."

  Featured Video on Foreign Exchange

Kashmir: The Promise of Protest

Begins airing February 20, 2009 

Produced and Reported by Jason Motlagh

Over the summer, tens of thousands of Kashmiri protesters jammed the streets demanding independence from India. It was the biggest public outcry since the revolt of 1989, when mass demonstrations were a prelude to years of militancy. The difference today is that a new generation of politically-minded youth is leading the way. While frustrations over the heavy-handed presence of Indian forces and economic inequalities still run deep, they are choosing non-violent means to push for change.

Where and when to watch Foreign Exchange

See related reporting at the India: Conflicts Within project page

News Points 

Pulitzer Center's Janeen Heath and Alex Amend each take a look at the current state of journalism and discuss the Pulitzer Center's role in its future. Join the conversation! Add your opinion on the new media landscape -- and where it's headed.

Read Online News Consumption: Strengthening the Fourth Estate or Devaluing Serious Journalism? 

Read Where's the Profit?

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