The Reporter for Kids - Who's in the News?

2024 is a year of elections all over the world. In January, it’s not just the elections for Taiwan’s 16th President, Vice President, and the 11th legislature, but also the month for Bangladesh’s general elections. Elections will carry on throughout the year, all the way to Uzbekistan’s in December, with at least 48 countries carrying out various kinds of elections in 2024. According to data recorded up until January 3, 2024, by the International Foundation for Electoral Systems (IFES), at least 20 national leaders will be elected worldwide. 

This election year also will see the number of voters worldwide at an all-time high. The Economist estimates that more than half of the world’s population, 4.17 billion people, will be involved in elections, and around 2 billion of them will be able to vote.  And Blooomberg estimates that countries accounting for 42% of the Gross Domestic Product will elect new leaders. 

Does a calendar full of elections mean the world is more democratic? On today’s podcast, we’ll start with a global overview, and look at elections on each continent. We'll then discuss five national elections that have garnered worldwide interest, and explore what the state of democracy in 2024 could look like.

Summer is getting hotter and hotter. It’s a shared experience of people around the globe. In fact, climate change and global warming brought about by greenhouse gases have already been affecting people’s lives. Yet, is summer really getting warmer? What are some reasons behind rising temperatures? Besides higher temperatures, what are some other impacts climate change is bringing? Let’s look at some key numbers and take a look at the effects of climate change.

Taiwan has been promoting inclusion of young people in policymaking for the past 10 years. The issues raised by these “youth representatives” have become increasingly diverse, and some of their proposals have even been adopted as government policies.  As these youth representatives accumulate experience in political participation, they have not only become a talent pool for Taiwan's future public affairs but have been targeted by China’s youth exchange groups.

In 1948, the Jews established the state of Israel in Palestine causing the Arabs who have historically lived there to lose their homeland and forcing them into exile. As a result,  Israeli-Palestinian relations have been tense for more than a century with bloody conflicts occurring non-stop. However, in the 1990s, the United States attempted to intervene and took the lead in facilitating the Israeli-Palestinian peace talks. Unfortunately, the push for peace failed due to opposition from radical forces on both sides.

In the early morning of October 7, the Palestinian militant organization Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel. They sent more than a thousand armed fighters across Israel's heavily fortified border wall and attacked 22 towns along Israel's southern border. They not only injured and killed soldiers and police, but also kidnapped civilians to become their hostages. This attack called "Operation Al-Aqsa Flood" has been recognized as Israel's version of the "911 Incident", the largest disaster since the founding of the country. Israel's retaliatory "Operation Iron Sword" intensively bombed the Gaza Strip, where even civilians were not spared. In less than a month, there have been more than 7,000 casualties from both sides, making it the bloodiest battle in the 50-year history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The resulting destruction and casualties are rooted in years of historical tensions and deadlocks that have persisted between Israel and Palestine over land and sovereignty. In order to understand the current situation, let’s take a step back and look at how the years of resentment were fueled by 6 keywords.

"If you don’t smoke, don’t start. If you smoke, quit. If you don’t quit, change," - this is the slogan launched by Philip Morris International Inc., one of the world's largest tobacco companies, in 2019, which implicitly aims to encourage people to "change" their smoking habits - from traditional cigarettes to new tobacco products.

Compared to traditional cigarettes, electronic cigarettes and heated tobacco products are referred to as "new tobacco products," and have become the main products of major tobacco companies in recent years. Various countries have experienced a period of confusion regarding whether to open up or regulate these products. In January 2023, Taiwan finally amended its laws to comprehensively ban electronic cigarettes and regulate heated tobacco products. We use graphical representation to explore the principles of new tobacco products and discuss why much evidence still shows that they pose the same health risks as traditional cigarettes.

- Read The Reporter for Kids' original story - 

At the beginning of this semester, there was a significant change in the primary and secondary school campus. The principal and teachers no longer have the final say in major school affairs. The Cabinet passed an amendment to the Primary and Junior High School Act on May 29 this year (2023), stipulating that primary and junior high schools should have students attending the ‘school affairs meeting’ as non-voting delegates. The new school year starting in September began to implement these changes.

What can the school affairs meeting decide? What is the difference in the exercise of rights between future student representatives who are able to attend and other teachers who are legally required to attend? The Reporter For Kids visits various campuses to see if the schools and classmates are ready. What kind of learning and lessons can students gain from this bill that extends the right of Taiwanese children to express themselves in primary and junior high schools?

As global warming intensifies, the threat of high temperatures is becoming more severe. Many countries are experiencing an increase in the prevalence of air conditioning to reduce heat-related injuries. However, the electricity consumption of air conditioning units generates waste heat. Therefore, countries are starting to contemplate adaptation measures in architecture and urban design to address this issue. Architects are brainstorming ways to make indoor spaces cooler through ventilation, shading, heat dissipation, and insulation, reducing the need for air conditioning. Taiwan not only experiences a hot and humid climate but also has a highly concentrated population. Therefore, cooling strategies related to architecture and urban design are even more crucial for Taiwan and will be a key factor in coping with ongoing climate warming. Let us reflect on examples from other countries to identify ingenious solutions and policies that Taiwan can learn from.

2023 marks the 50th anniversary for the founding of Cloud Gate Dance Theater. Three years ago, I took over the role as the Artistic Director from Mr. Lin Hwai-min. Not long after that, COVID-19 broke out and many people have wondered how I would carry on the incredible legacy Mr. Lin Hwai-min has gifted to the world. In fact, my background vastly differs from that of Mr. Lin Hwai-min's, making any efforts to compare and duplicate his genius impossible. All that I am able to do is to continue to choreograph dances in my own style, communicating my movements to the audience and hope that I would be able to convey the power of dance to the people. The gift of dance provided an opportunity for me to return to the right track, putting behind the encounter I had with drug abuse in my youth.

July 2023 was the hottest in history with severe heatwaves sweeping the world. In North America, the temperature exceeded 43.3 degree Celsius for 31 consecutive days in Phoenix, Arizona, the semiconductor city in the United States which not only posed a fatal threat to the safety of the residents but was also the longest heatwaves since the city was founded. Countries in Asia have also experienced temperature increases. South Kora observed a historically high temperature of 44.1 degree Celsius, and Thailand also set a new record of 45.4 degree Celsius. However, the country most affected by the heatwaves in Asia was India.