In Canada, protection of a free press is so ingrained that we almost take it for granted. In Tanzania, unfortunately, one op-ed really can mean the difference between earning a living and the death of an entire paper.

By abandoning the UN Desertification Convention, as well as other important international agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol, Canada is sending the wrong message to the world community. We're saying that exporting resources like oil and timber matter more to us than contributing to dialogue and partnership on global issues.

It is the deadliest conflict since World War II, the epicentre has been called the "rape capital of the world," and it has produced a long list of accused before the International Criminal Court charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is a far away conflict in a far away land. But unbeknownst to many readers, it's also in your pocket. Congolese mineral deposits are invaluable to the production of basic electronics, like the cell phone in your pocket and laptop in front of you. The link between the joy our toys bring to us and the suffering they bring to others is irrefutable. Such a reality should be unacceptable.

The hunger crisis in West Africa owes more to a lack of reserves rather than sudden spikes in food prices or weather that kills crops and livestock, s...

In the Congo, a small town called Bunagana is falling to rebel troops. This led to 600 government soldiers and thousands of refugees fleeing into Uganda. What does this have to do with Canada? Everything. The DRC is the stage of a violent and bloody conflict that is being fueled by a rush for resource exploitation. The conflict may seem far away but Canada is right in the heart of it all.

There are an estimated 12 million displaced people on the planet at this moment and most of them are children. News of this came around the same time as the controversy surrounding Bill C-31, and the way the Harper government wants to crack down on immigration and refugees. But this World Refugee Day, let's be careful and conscious in our assessment of exactly who these people are.

Charles Taylor is the first tyrant to be tried, convicted and sentenced. Some even think that Taylor's fate may worry Syria's Bashar al-Assad, and perhaps persuade him to ease off on killing his people. But Assad continues to rampage against his people; it's clear there's no interest in direct action against homicidal leaders.

New malls, expensive hotels and fancy casinos are springing up everywhere in Uganda. Ex-pats and middle-class Ugandans drive flashy four-wheel jeeps and you can get any food craving satiated. Indian, Italian, Mongolian, Thai: they have it all here. And yet, it is a large urban centre where goats and chickens still roam the streets and witch doctors ply their trade.

The world has reached the Millennium Development Goal (MDG) of cutting by half the number of people without access to safe drinking water, five years ahead of the 2015 deadline. While that is good news, millions of people, for instance, still live without a toilet. Not a very sexy topic -- but one which is of great concern if the world is to meet goals on reducing under-five mortality.

Sunday as Kalusha Bwalya held the African Cup, he wasn't just celebrating the Zambian team's soccer victory. The head of soccer in the country shared the victory with his former teammates, the ones who died in a 1993 plane crash he fatefully missed.

If the gender dimensions of the digital world -- in terms of access and use, capacity building, employment and potential for empowerment -- are explicitly identified and addressed, the result can be a powerful catalyst for political and social change for women, and the promotion of gender equality.

Should the West continue to ignore the overall needs of Africa's continental economy, then it shouldn't be surprised when it finally decides on long-term investments for natural resources that China has already set up shop and captured most of the contracts.