Government

Conference president Rena Lee of Singapore announces an agreement was reached on Saturday.

Historic Treaty Protects Marine Life in the 'High Seas'

The United Nations agreement will help conserve 30 percent of the planet’s oceans by 2030

Even before the Covid-19 restrictions, tourism numbers were dropping amid widespread demonstrations.

Hong Kong Is Giving Away 500,000 Free Plane Tickets

The government hopes to boost tourism in the wake of the pandemic and civil unrest

Officials in Peru closed Machu Picchu following security concerns and damage to nearby railways.

Machu Picchu Reopens Following Weeks of Civil Unrest

Authorities, protesters and businesses came to an agreement to ensure the site's safety

Untitled (Ship in a Storm) by Sabri Al Qurashi, 2010

Pentagon Releases Guantánamo Bay Prisoners' Art

Since 2017, detainees have been barred from taking their art out of the prison

Cows are considered sacred in Hinduism.

India Wants to Replace Valentine's Day With 'Cow Hug Day'

The Hindu nationalist government says that Western culture threatens Indian traditions

The Kokalik River in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska

A Controversial Arctic Oil Drilling Project Is One Step Closer to Moving Forward

The Biden administration recommended a scaled-back proposal for drilling in Alaska, which may emit 280 million metric tons of carbon dioxide over 30 years

Acclaimed director Jafar Panahi was arrested after asking about the arrests of two fellow filmmakers.

Iranian Director Jafar Panahi Released From Prison After Declaring Hunger Strike

The renowned filmmaker had been arrested in July when authorities reactivated a 2010 sentence

Officials in Peru closed Machu Picchu following security concerns and damage to nearby railways.

Peru Closes Machu Picchu Amid Anti-Government Protests

More than 50 people have died as demonstrations escalate and police crack down on dissent

Robert Garcia, a newly elected congressman from California, selected several items with personal significance to use at his swearing-in ceremony.

This Congressman Was Sworn Into Office With Rare Superman Comic

California’s Robert Garcia says the superhero embodies values like truth and justice

Egyptian officials with the ancient sarcophagus on January 2, 2023

U.S. Returns Looted Sarcophagus to Egypt

The "Green Coffin" had been at the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences since 2013

Machu Picchu, a 15th-century Inca structure in the Andes Mountains

Helicopters Evacuate Travelers Stranded at Machu Picchu

Hundreds of tourists found themselves trapped at the site as protests spread through Peru

View of the Grand Canyon showing the Bright Angel Trail, which leads to Havasupai Gardens, formerly known as Indian Garden

Officials Rename Popular Grand Canyon Site to Honor Havasupai Tribe

The National Park Service forcibly removed members of the tribe from the area in the 1920s

J. Edgar Hoover (second from left) stands behind Franklin Delano Roosevelt as the president signs a bill in 1934.

How World War II Helped Forge the Modern FBI

Under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, J. Edgar Hoover consolidated immense power—and created the beginnings of the surveillance state

The newly unearthed odeon in Crete

Cool Finds

Archaeologists Unearth 2,000-Year-Old Odeon in Crete

The dig at the remote site is the first in more than 50 years

Dancers perform in the plaza of Sant Feliu Sasserra during the town’s annual Witches Fair, or Fira de les Bruixes, on October 31, 2017.

Spain’s Centuries-Long Witch Hunt Killed 700 Women

In recent years, local officials have broken the spell and apologized for what happened generations ago

A butte in Gem County, Idaho, is now named Sehewoki’I Newenee’an Katete.

Hundreds of Federal Sites Officially Drop Racial Slur From Their Names

The Interior Department is renaming locations across the country to remove the derogatory word for Native American women

Flooding in Livingston, Montana, in June

Federal Flood Maps Are Outdated Because of Climate Change, FEMA Director Says

The maps don't take into account intense rainfall events, like those plaguing many parts of the country this summer

Many of the children who survived Hurricane Katrina are still healing from the trauma of their experiences.

The Black Children of Hurricane Katrina Finally Tell Their Stories

A new documentary, 'Katrina Babies,' spotlights the disaster's youngest survivors

Few arguments showcase the fraught politics of state foods than the debate over red and green chiles in New Mexico.

The Contentious History of Official State Foods

How a bill about muffins, chili, or plums becomes law—or doesn't

Dropping water levels in Lake Mead, a reservoir of the Colorado River, revealed this formerly submerged boat.

Western States Are Fighting Over How to Conserve Shrinking Water Supply

The Colorado River, which supplies water to 40 million people, is drying up

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