Israel is administering a fourth COVID-19 vaccine dose to a test group of health workers in the country’s largest hospital. They say it’s the first major study into whether it will help contend with the fast-spreading omicron variant. And across the globe, extreme poverty rates continue to decline. This phenomenon is powered by continued economic growth in places like India and China, but how sustainable is this positive trend? Also, for more than 30 years, Memorial International has been Russia’s most prominent human rights organization, with a founding mission to archive Soviet-era crimes. On Tuesday, Russia’s Supreme Court shut down the organization. 

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

We remember Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South Africa's Nobel Peace Prize-winning Anglican cleric. The longtime activist for racial justice and LGBTQ rights died over the weekend at the age of 90. And omicron seems to be retreating in South Africa. Health care workers stretched thin during the surge are now able to catch a break. Also, 30 years ago, the red Soviet flag came down from atop the Kremlin, and the new Russian tricolor flag was raised. Sunday marked 30 years since the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

The pandemic — and social isolation — has been especially hard on people in long-term care. We hear from a toddler and his mom in Canada who wanted to bring a little joy to residents at a retirement home. Also, Zandile Ndhlovu, South Africa's first Black free-diving instructor, is trying to change the story of who belongs in the water. Plus, how many times over the past 20 months have you answered, “I’m hanging in there,” when asked: “How are you doing?” We hear responses from all over the world to that age-old question. Happy holidays from The World. 

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

As many Americans travel to see loved ones for the holidays, COVID-19 rapid tests are in short supply and often expensive. We hear from a disease expert about how affordable testing options can result in better community health. And the long-awaited election in Libya was set for Dec. 24, but it has been called off, even though the current government’s term is set to expire. What does this signal for future discord in a country that has managed to avoid internal conflicts since 2020? And public attitudes about psychedelics have run the gamut, from excitement to vilification. Today, a crop of entrepreneurs and investors are betting that psychedelics will be the next big thing.

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

As millions around the globe prepare to gather for the holiday season, omicron is taking hold in more and more countries. It’s now the dominant COVID-19 strain in the United States, Denmark, Portugal and the United Kingdom.  And as snow falls in Kabul, Afghanistan, humanitarian workers are bracing for a difficult winter. We hear about a domestic abuse shelter for girls and women that is struggling to remain open. And omicron has interfered with Christmas plans in the Holy Land. Israeli authorities have banned most foreigners from visiting the country. 

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

Shab-e Yalda is the Iranian celebration of the winter solstice when families gather to eat, dance, sing and recite poetry. It's all about honoring the slow return of daylight as the shortest day of the year comes to an end. Like any good celebration, food plays a vital role. And one of the ways Russia exerts its power across continents is through mercenaries known as the Wagner Group, which has strong ties with the Russian military. Last week, the European Union sanctioned the organization, accusing it of “serious human rights abuses.” Plus, in a forest outside of Norway, 1,000 spruce trees planted in 2014 are quietly growing — for a “future library.”

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

Omicron is driving the surge in new infections of the coronavirus around the world. Public health colleagues across the globe have been calling for a robust "vaccine-plus" strategy to meet the current moment. And Sudan’s pro-democracy revolution has taken a heavy toll on civil society. Activists say more than 200 people have been killed by security forces in recent years and that this is the reason why anti-military protests will continue. Plus, a security camera has captured the moment when a real deer attacked a fake Rudolph featured in a holiday scene on a couple’s lawn in Fort Nelson, in northern British Columbia. 

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

Hong Kong will hold its first election under a new system imposed by Beijing — one in which every candidate must be a so-called “patriot,” meaning they must show pride in mainland China. Hong Kong politicians who question Beijing can’t run, and some have been locked up. And US President Joe Biden recently met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, hoping to deescalate tensions between the two countries, but Russian troops have not retreated from the border with Ukraine. In fact, the military buildup continues. Plus, “Sounds of Disappearance,” a soundtrack of Australia’s threatened birds, aims to raise awareness about biodiversity loss. This week, the soundtrack leaped to third in the country’s music charts — outcompeting ABBA, Justin Bieber, and Christmas music.

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

Haitian police say kidnappers have released all the remaining missionaries they held from an Ohio-based missionary group Christian Aid Ministries. The notorious Haitian gang 400 Mawozo had seized 17 members of the group exactly two months ago. And Amazon has officially launched its smart speaker, Alexa, in Arabic. The service is now available in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. But creating smart speakers that can understand Arabic has its own set of challenges. Plus, how are international students dealing with COVID-19 shutdowns at US universities? New York University, which has the largest population of international students in the country, just canceled almost all in-person gatherings and events and have mandated booster shots for all students.

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more and make your gift today.

Police in Germany foiled an assassination plot against the state of Saxony's political leader. The group behind the plot was reportedly angry about the country's COVID-19 response and vaccine rollout. And in Sudan, anti-military demonstrations continue nationwide after the military coup in October. Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok was reinstated but now he must create a new government after a wave of official government resignations. Plus, the Swedish city of Gävle has put up its annual Christmas goat, a 100-foot-tall straw structure that’s regularly burned down despite the town’s attempts to secure it with webcams and guards.

There is still time to support The World before our fundraising drive ends on Dec. 31. Your gift ensures that all our coverage on the air, on the web, and via the podcast remains free and accessible to everyone. With a donation of $130 (or $11/month), host Marco Werman will personally thank you on the podcast! Learn more andmake your gift today.