The protests led by farmers in India are entering their third month with no sign of ending. Now, global celebrities are weighing in on the standoff including Rihanna and Greta Thunberg. And, the people helping manage vaccine shortages and rising cases of the coronavirus in populations across African countries are some of the best equipped for responding to infectious diseases and the pandemic. But the continent is now facing a second, more threatening wave of COVID-19. Also, Scandinavia's largest festival, the Göteborg Film Festival, is going ahead this year but for an audience of one.

In Myanmar, a military coup has outraged citizens. Some of their elected leaders have been detained and cut off from the world and no one knows if the army will lock up even more civilians. And, Tuesday, President Biden signed three executive orders to alter US immigration policies. Also, a new study published by the Lancet shows that Russia's Sputnik V vaccine is nearly 92% effective against COVID-19, according to interim trial results.

For a second weekend in a row, demonstrators across Russia came out to the streets to call for the release of opposition politician Alexei Navalny from jail. And, Myanmar’s military has seized power in a coup. The takeover happened before dawn on Monday with politicians taken from their homes and detained. Also, while concerns are growing over the limited supplies of approved COVID-19 vaccines, behind the scenes, the vaccine powerhouse Serum Institute of India is massively scaling up and is expected to play a pivotal role in supplying the world.

The global race toward the mass vaccination of populations continues to face hurdles around the world just as new, more contagious variants of the coronavirus are identified. And, the United Kingdom, with one of the highest COVID-19 mortality rates per capita in the world, has a new way to stop the spread of the coronavirus by putting people in hotels to quarantine. Also, long before Wuhan became known as the city where the first cases of the coronavirus were found, it had built a very different reputation as a hotbed of punk and indie rock.

The Biden administration has been undoing several controversial policies of the last four years including former President Donald Trump’s crackdown on immigration. And, with less than six months until the Tokyo Olympics are scheduled to take place, officials are still finalizing plans for how to keep athletes safe from the coronavirus. Also, cleaning, cooking and taking care of children is work typically unpaid and overwhelmingly, around the world, done by women. But a political party in India is putting forward a bold proposal that could change that.

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday held a confirmation hearing for President Joe Biden's nominee to represent the US at the United Nations, veteran diplomat Linda Thomas-Greenfield. Also, a new study suggests that the global economy will take a major hit if low- and middle-income countries aren’t able to vaccinate their populations. And, more and more Arab women are becoming professional mountaineers, and they are making history on the mountains.

Thousands of farmers took to the streets of India’s capital on Tuesday as part of monthslong protests against agricultural laws that farmers say put their livelihoods at risk. Vishavjit Singh, a Sikh American artist and activist, suggests there’s an important similarity between the farmers in India and minorities in the US: the need to be seen and heard. And, President Joe Biden’s longtime confidant and longtime statesman, Antony Blinken, was confirmed as the next US secretary of state. Also, most ski resorts in Europe shut down this winter because of the pandemic. But Austria decided to keep running the lifts.

Just after President Dwight D. Eisenhower assumed office on Jan. 20, 1953, deep in the middle of the Cold War, his greatest adversary died. The speech that followed is considered one of his best, though not his most well-known. Today, it’s not hard to imagine Eisenhower standing up before us and making the same case he did almost 70 years ago. In this episode of "Things That Go Boom," The World's partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley sits down with US Sen. Chris Murphy, someone in a position to offer a unique perspective on Eisenhower’s “Chance for Peace.”

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador — known to flout wearing a mask — said Sunday that he has tested positive for COVID-19 and was receiving treatment for mild symptoms. And, civil rights groups are raising concerns about moves by the US Congress to strengthen laws to investigate and charge domestic terrorists suggesting it could result in the targeting of Black and other diverse communities. Also, after being inspired by South Korea's K-pop genre, a band named Ninety One pioneered "Q-pop," or Qazaq-pop, in Kazakhstan.

The Biden administration announced plans to overturn former President Donald Trump’s travel ban on refugees and travelers from many Muslim-majority countries. And, as President Biden and his foreign policy team get to work, one country presents some big challenges: China. Also, the rumor mill heated up on Thursday after a London newspaper reported the Summer Olympics would be called off. But officials with the International Olympic Committee say that the games are on schedule.