It is July 23, 2026. Jorge Blas stands at Granja Escuela Nuestra Tierra, an educational farm outside San Martín de Valdeiglesias. Approximately 500 meters away, a vehicle catches fire on the M-501. “At first, we didn’t think it could reach us, partly because you never think these things are going to happen to you,” he recalls. The farm stood opposite the fire station. Naturally, he assumed that if something happened, the firefighters would extinguish it before the fire spread

On August 10th a 7.4 magnitude earthquake occurred in the Chocó Department in western Colombia. This earthquake struck a poor rural area approximately 150 miles west of Bogotá. The impact from this quake was felt in numerous major cities throughout Colombia and as far away as Panama, Ecuador and Peru. It was the largest earthquake to strike Colombia in a decade. Damage was widespread, even though the epicenter was located far from the major cities. The mayor of Cali reported

On September 2, Chevron made public new terms for its joint ventures in Venezuela. Those terms reportedly outline new fiscal, commercial, and legal conditions intended to facilitate long-term investment and expanded production. As part of the agreement, Chevron will receive new acreage in the Orinoco Belt in addition to existing acreage Chevron is already developing. This would normally be considered a standard corporate statement. However, reading this alone does not provide

I would argue that protectionism persists not because free trade fails economically, but because it creates political, social, and strategic costs that governments cannot ignore. Free trade is an economic theory that allows the unrestricted exchange of goods and services across borders without tariffs, quotas, subsidies (for example voluntary exchange restraints and dumping), export restrictions or any other barrier on international trade. Such governmental laissez - faire p

As you enter a bakery in Caracas, you will be able to view the modern Venezuelan economy in one glance: Prices are listed in U.S. dollars, and change is occasionally given in Bolivars. Furthermore, you will likely notice the bakery’s staff performing mathematical calculations as fast as a calculator would. Venezuela is not simply "rebuilding" or "collapsing." It is creating a new economy, which creates small pockets of regular life within a larger macro economy which is still

For years, Venezuelans have lived with a painful contradiction: a country rich in resources, but hollowed out by tyranny, corruption, fear and exile. In that story, one name has come to symbolize freedom and hope - María Corina Machado. María Corina Machado’s story is inseparable from the story of modern Venezuela: a country where institutions collapsed slowly, elections lost their meaning, and speaking the truth became an act of heroism. She did not begin her public life as

The conflict between Israel and Palestine has completely taken over the media. One of the biggest religious battles of our modern time, this conflict has been escalating this summer to what could almost be considered the third world war. Whilst we cannot ignore the role that politics and historical factors play, we mustn't forget religion is a source of conflict all over the world, one very under-acknowledged example being the largely silent genocide in Nigeria. Christians al

In the last 30 years, Africa has received $1.2 trillion in aid. However, not enough real improvement has been seen. It is still underdeveloped as a continent, lacks thriving industry, and has large amounts of poverty and hunger with little prospect of improving as quickly as is necessary. The aid they have been provided with is unequally distributed within the continent and is mostly used for emergency and relief purposes with no investment in long-term solutions. In a contin

Inditex and Zara: the secrets behind the popular fashion retailer. Our world is evolving and becoming increasingly connected and interdependent. From our privileged western perspective, it’s easy to see the benefits of globalisation. It’s allowed us to learn more about other people and cultures, travel more and try and see new things. Of course, it has also had negative effects. The consequences of globalisation can be seen in the damaging changes in our physical environment.

The 24th February 2023 marks 365 days of the biggest invasion in Europe since the Second World War. Russia does not look like they will stop the aggression any time soon; they may even escalate it even further. On the other hand, the Ukrainian army looks invincible as they are determined not to end up under Russia’s dictatorship ever again. Russia has lost approximately 175,000 soldiers, a mind-blowing number considering that in the 9 year Afghanistan War Russia fought in the

The Great Garbage Patch is a collection of marine debris in the North Pacific Ocean which has grown since its discovery in 1973 and now contains an estimated number of 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic within an area twice the size of France. Imagine a plastic water bottle is discarded off the coast of California; what will happen next? It will follow the California Current south towards Mexico. There it may catch the North Equatorial Current, which crosses the vast Pacific. Nea

The topic of migration is one that has garnered much attention in recent years, particularly in the United States where differing views on the issue have led to increased political polarisation. This essay will examine the impacts of differing views on migration, including increased political polarisation in the US between Republicans and Democrats, and the conditions that migrants are subjected to at the US border. One of the key impacts of differing views on migration is in

The controversies of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar were perhaps the climax of FIFA’s ethically promiscuous history. Many outraged football fans (myself included), perhaps torn between a sense of patriotism and a moral compass, pondered what could be done to combat FIFA’s decisions. Some decided to boycott in protest, and others simply watched. Was boycotting an effective strategy to fight back against FIFA, and did the World Cup deserve to be boycotted in the first place? The f

On the 31st of January, 2020, the United Kingdom officially withdrew from the European Union (EU). The UK is the first and, so far, the only sovereign country to leave the EU. This occurrence has had an impact both on the country and the rest of the world; especially on countries which are members of the EU. We are all aware that Brexit has led to changes including the European Union’s power, the UK’s independence and the lives of people living both in the UK and outside - ma

Just six months ago, semiconductors were the rulers of the world, the driving force of almost every technological device in existence. Firms such as Intel were booming and expanding at an unbelievable rate, attempting to satisfy consumer needs and wants. Today, demand for these micro silicon pieces has become practically stagnant. There are several reasons that explain such a transition, such as rapidly increasing inflation and the combination of lack and over supply of certa

Drafts and going out of the country The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin recently announced that he will now be drafting people to fight in the invasion of Ukraine. This is Russia's first draft since World War II. Flights from Russia to Georgia (the only available flights to another country) were soon after fully sold out. Russian citizens also started paying people to sail from the eastern tip of Russia to Alaska and many boat companies have profited off of that. Convict

Upon writing this, Putin’s forces have been at war in Ukraine for 58 days. The Western world’s condemnation of President Putin’s actions has been reflected in the implementation of significant economic sanctions against Russia, and whilst the full global humanitarian, economic, geopolitical and strategic fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine will take time to comprehend, some of the immediate economic consequences are already clear. The conflict is a major blow to the glo

With the 26th Conference of Parties (COP) climate change summit having come to a close, many have been left wondering: what has been achieved? Whilst the Glasgow Climate Pact has been signed, binding nations to accelerate action in mitigating the effects of climate change, the UN Secretary General has claimed that “It is an important step but is not enough”. The goal of limiting global warming to 1.5ºC (compared to pre-industrial levels) seems increasingly out of reach as eac

Who can forget the snows that descended on Madrid last year and brought everything grinding to a halt. And now we hear theories circulating that state that there will indeed be a second Filomena in January 2022. In January 2021, 1,35 million kg of snow fell for 30 hours non-stop. This led to a whopping £1,398 million lost whilst the snow blocked all movement in Spain's big cities such as Madrid. Last year a 14 year old boy, Jorge Rey, from Cabañuelas was able to predict Fil

With the countdown approaching for the COP26 climate conference, held in Glasgow this year, and after UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s promising declaration that this year’s Conference of Parties will be “the turning point for humanity” at the UN General Assembly this September, many have been left wondering what exactly to look out for at this United Nations’ annual climate summit. Who’s attending? The climate gathering will bring together heads of state, campaigners and cl