Year in Review

The Year in Stories

Global Press Journal reporters hiked through regions that don’t have electricity in Indian-administered Kashmir, interviewed indentured servants in rural Nepal and watched women prepare to find and capture poachers for stories that turned out to be among our best of 2018. Read those and other stories here!

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Can a group of women stop poachers in Zimbabwe’s Lower Zambezi Valley? One man, an Australian who is a former sniper, says they’re the best people to save endangered animals. GPJ’s Kudzai Mazvarirwofa visited the group’s camp and wrote about it here:

Women Rangers Pursue Poachers in Zimbabwe While Debate Ensues Over Anti-Poaching Tactics

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Zimbabwe doesn’t have it’s own money, but a surprise Oct. 1 government policy denominated all the U.S. dollars in bank accounts in the country as a local currency. GPJ’s Linda Mujuru wrote about that devastating change.

Is there a ‘Local’ Dollar in Zimbabwe? Banks Say Yes

That change led to frantic currency exchange on Zimbabwe’s black market, where you can find any money you need, if you can afford it. GPJ’s Mujuru followed a currency exchanger in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital city.

When is a Dollar not a Dollar? Inside Zimbabwe’s Labyrinth of Currencies

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Mexico’s indigenous people tend to endure poverty and abuse from authorities at higher rates than other groups in that country. GPJ’s Marissa Revilla wrote two stories that highlight those problems.

Parents in Prison, Children at Risk: A Mexican Family’s Two-Year Ordeal

Abandoned Homes, Fearful Children: Forced Displacements Are Common in Southern Mexico

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How can a reporter confirm claims that a proposed dam might displace tens of thousands of people? For this story, GPJ’s Raihana Maqbool hiked through an isolated section of Kashmir to talk to people who live near the proposed dam site, while the rest of the GPJ team created a to-scale simulation of the dam’s submersion area.

In a Kashmir Valley, a Massive Dam Threatens to Wash Away Lives

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The Kiowa Tribe, which is concentrated in the center of the U.S., has its own language, but few members of the tribe speak it. GPJ’s Amanda Hill wrote about an effort to keep the language alive.

Kiowa Tribe’s Language, Culture Revitalized in Classroom

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Zimbabwe’s leaders have claimed repeatedly during the past nearly four decades that their school system is among the world’s best. GPJ reporters there examined that claim to find out whether it was ever true and why schools there are so poorly-resourced now.

How Zimbabwe’s Schools Fell Apart

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What happens if your father dies before he pays back a debt? In Nepal, some adult children of debtors are still trapped in indentured servitude, paying off debts their parents owed. GPJ’s Kalpana Khanal interviewed people who say their country’s haliya system makes it nearly impossible for them to escape.

No Money, No Land: Nepal’s Indentured Servants are Free, but Can’t Escape System

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Coffee from Democratic Republic of Congo can rank among the best in the world, but coffee growers there say profits don’t often trickle down. GPJ’s Mariam Aboubakar Esperance headed to her country’s coffee fields to talk with farmers who can’t afford to continue growing the crop.

Their Coffee is World-Class, but DRC Farmers Say Growing It Doesn’t Pay

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GPJ’s Aliya Bashir captured heart-rending photographs of disabled women, for her story about a lack of support for people injured in Indian-administered Kashmir’s ongoing conflict,

Growing Number of Women Disabled Amid Kashmir Violence Receive Little or No Aid

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Oil exploration could drive tens of thousands of indigenous Zoque people from their homes in Chiapas, Mexico’s southernmost state, but local opposition could thwart those plans. GPJ’s Adriana Alcázar González and Marissa Revilla wrote about those efforts.

Local Activism Grows as Planned Oil Exploration Threatens Indigenous Land in Mexico