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This article considers the impact of globalization on American cities and how they will function and rank in a globalized economy. It argues that almost all American cities grew from an original economic raison d’ être, greatly impacted by the industrial era. The end of that era and the arrival of a new economy affect their utility, for better or worse. Secondly, most American cities are place-based, to take advantage of nearby raw materials and to serve trading routes and surrounding communities. Global cities will, by necessity, need to sever these geographical ties and find new places in…
Across much of the globe, the universal right of freedom of thought, conscience, and religion or belief remains under assault. From laws restricting or abrogating this right to violent acts committed by private citizens against religious practitioners, serious violations continue to occur in many regions. In this article, two members of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, Chairman Leonard A. Leo and Katrina Lantos Swett, focus on current violations of freedom of religion or belief in South Asia, specifically Pakistan, Afghanistan, and India. From the promulgation and enforcement…
The issue of the delivery of urban water and sanitation services in African countries is one of the continent’s greatest development challenges. The purpose of this essay, focusing on Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, is to critically analyze the nature and implications of that city’s recent growth spurt on the ability of local government to meet the basic needs of all its citizens, particularly needs for water and sanitation services. The essay finds that while financing water and sanitation services is a major problem, problems of infrastructure and management are of equal if not more…