Some studies predict sea levels could climb six feet by the end of the century due to climate change. For the Maldives, an island chain off the southwest coast of India with a population of about 300,000, such a change would be disastrous.

For a look at how the Maldives are trying to deal with the problem, Worldfocus producer Megan Thompson traveled there recently as part of an 18-day trip sponsored by the U.N. Environmental Program.

In this extended interview, he talks about why he believes his nation faces grave danger from climate change — and how the Maldives hopes to set a positive example by becoming the world’s first carbon-neutral country.

Watch our signature story, Creeping seas threaten tiny island chain of Maldives.

In the Caribbean, she heard from residents of Grenada and Antigua how rising tides are dramatically effecting their livelihoods.

The report was sponsored by the U.N. Environmental Program and the Alliance of Small Island States. Some of the underwater footage was provided by Acqua Films.

Read Megan’s blog from the field: Message in a Bottle: reporting from Antigua and Grenada.

Special correspondent Kristen Gillespie looks at an unusual effort in Jordan, where an unlikely champion of animal rights is trying to end widespread abuse and help her canine friends.

Read Kristen Gillespie’s blog about adopting one of the rescued dogs, A mistreated dog gets a new home in Amman.

Along with their proud heritage and striking landscapes, residents struggle with unemployment, poverty and cultural dislocation. Suicide rates among Inuit youth are ten times higher than the national average.

In the tiny Arctic town of Igloolik, where there are barely 1500 inhabitants, around 5 young adults commit suicide every year.

In response to this widespread despair among the young in Igloolik, the village launched several initiatives. A film company, Iglooklik Isuma Productions, went on to win the Camera d’Or prize at the Cannes Film Festival.

With the help of a Montreal acrobat, several young people also created a circus troupe called Artcirq that blends modern circus activities with traditional Inuit culture.

Filmmaker Linda Matchan, in association with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, is documenting these efforts in a project called Hope on Ice.

Artcirq has taken its performance all the way to the Olympics, performing in a Vancouver medal ceremony on February 21st.

Linda Matchan blogged this week from Vancouver about the large native presence at the Olympics:

The Aboriginal presence at the Olympics is conspicuous to anyone who watched the opening ceremonies on TV, which were dominated by four massive totem poles representing each of the host First Nations. The work of Aboriginal artists appear in every Olympic venue. The gold, silver and bronze medals feature West Coast aboriginal designs.

Not all Aboriginal people are buying this. As Joseph himself acknowledged, First Nations people experience an unemployment rate that is at least double of other Canadians. The suicide rate in Aboriginal communities is twice the national rate. Two out of three Aboriginal children living on reserves will not graduate from high school.

Members of an Olympic Resistance Movement have argued that the Olympics is merely window dressing. They say the money would have been better spent on remedying the after-effects of colonialism, such as homelessness among Aboriginals, many of whom live in Vancouver’s Downtown East Side known as the poorest postal code in Canada.

Canada’s Arctic Inuit people have many of the same social problems, though they have not been addressed so vocally at the Olympics (It is the source of some pride, though, that the official Olympic logo is an inukshuk, a traditional stone sculpture used by Canada’s Inuit people).

Chinese consumers in second-tier cities can’t get enough of these small, cheap electric cars that require around six hours of charging to go 75 miles — at a maximum speed around 35 mph.

Video journalist Jimmy Wang reported and produced the video for TIME and the Asia Society.

See other posts on Chinese environmental change produced with China Green at the Asia Society: In pursuit of 8% growth, China wields double-edged sword and Tibetan plateau experiences ill effects of climate change.

This website offers more information - in Greek - about Fotis Bibasis, who was featured in the story.

Watch part one of our series, “Disabled Greeks face daily challenges getting around.”

See more Worldfocus coverage on Greek Technology for the Disabled.

That is not always the case in other countries.

During a reporting trip to Greece last summer, correspondent and producer Megan Thompson met a young woman who showed her just how challenging Athens life can be in a wheelchair.

Find out more about Disability NOW, the group covered in our Signature video.

And, learn more about the first blind woman in the Greek parliament, Eleftheria Bernidaki-Aldous, who is profiled in our story.

See more Worldfocus coverage on Greek Technology for the Disabled.

Special correspondent Kira Kay and producer Jason Maloney of the Bureau for International Reporting recently traveled to central Bosnia to report on how one ethnically-partitioned school mirrors the country’s struggles with ethnic identity today. The history and geography books have yet to teach students about the last 20 years of their country’s history. Both local and foreign analysts have expressed fear of future conflict.

This video was produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

Listen to Martin Savidge host Worldfocus Radio on Bosnia’s Delicate Balance. He speaks with Nenad Pejic, Sarah Meharg and Srecko Latal about the roots of the conflict and whether or not the peace deal is on the brink of collapse.

Visit the Pulitzer Center’s site on Fragile States to explore how countries with weak infrastructures, internal conflicts and lack of economic development are vulnerable to insecurity and violence.

For more Worldfocus coverage of Haiti, visit our extended coverage page: Haiti’s Poor.

Amna Nawaz of NBC News traveled to Pakistan on a grant from the International Reporting Project. She reports on a charity called The Citizens Foundation, which has built 600 schools and enrolled over 80,000 Pakistani students.

The latest casualties are likely to increase the debate in Canada over their commitment to the war.

In a Worldfocus Signature story, Martin Himel takes a look at Canada’s role in the war in Afghanistan.

Our signature stories delve into issues around the world — from the long-term effects of Agent Orange in Vietnam and gang violence in Mexico to discrimination against whites in South Africa and Afghan immigrants in Iran.

Here are the 15 Signature stories most popular with viewers in 2009:

	MOROCCO Moroccan single moms cope with hostility, shame	Young Muslim women who become pregnant out of wedlock face intense pressures. They are often shunned and scorned. Hoda Osman, Rebecca Haggerty, Megan Thompson and Reda Fakhar report on how mothers are coping.
	HAITI Dirt poor Haitians eat cookies made of mud	The cookie recipe — dirt, butter and salt — has been passed down through the generations, despite a lack of nutritional value. Benno Schmidt and Ara Ayer report on how these dirt cookies are managing to keep Haiti’s poor alive.
	JORDAN Oprah brings taboo topics to Middle East	The Middle East’s MBC-4 began airing “The Oprah Winfrey Show” more than four years ago, and the program now reaches about 6 million viewers in the Arab world each day. Kristen Gillespie reports from Jordan on the ”Oprah effect.”
	VIETNAM Agent Orange devastates generations of Vietnamese	During the Vietnam War, the U.S. dropped millions of gallons of Agent Orange, a toxic defoliant. Generations of Vietnamese civilians have suffered the consequences. Mark Litke and Ara Ayer report on the devastating effects the toxin has left behind.
	MEXICO Gangsters spill blood and spread fear in Tijuana, Mexico	Over the last year, more than 6,000 people have been murdered in Mexico’s drug wars, more than 700 of them in Tijuana alone. John Larson, Bryan Myers, Megan Thompson and Ivette Feliciano report from Tijuana.
	SOUTH AFRICA Poor white South Africans blame reverse discrimination	To some extent, the economic playing field has been leveled since the end of apartheid 15 years ago. Martin Seemungal reports on South Africa’s white community, where poverty has doubled since 1994.
	JAMAICA One island, two Jamaicas and a ‘whole heap’ of difference	A public debate erupted when graphic Dancehall music lyrics and images were banned from Jamaican radio and TV. Lisa Biagiotti, Micah Fink and Gabrielle Weiss report on how the ban highlights the divide that dates back centuries.
	ISRAEL Israeli company builds infrastructure for world’s electric cars	One Israeli company is designing an entire system to service electric cars with battery charging stations. Many other countries are expressing great interest. Michael Greenspan, Yuval Lion and Ara Ayer report from Israel.
	LIBERIA Liberia, “America’s stepchild,” searches for own identity	Liberia was settled by freed American slaves, and now, as Lynn Sherr and producer Megan Thompson report, the nation is trying to re-shape its identity. Liberia, a small country in West Africa, has longstanding ties to the U.S.
	LATVIA Empty stores, offices tell tale of Latvia’s economic fall	Until the global recession, Latvia was experiencing rapid economic growth. During the past year, it has tumbled down, with unemployment around 14.5 percent. Daljit Dhaliwal, Sally Garner and Ara Ayer report on the scope of Latvia’s fall.
	IRAN Afghan immigrants find refuge in oil-rich Iran	Though the West has branded Iran a nuclear outlaw and supporter of terrorism, Iran is a model of stability compared to its neighbors. Three million Afghan immigrants in Iran are low-skilled laborers. Richard O’Regan reports from Tehran.
	DENMARK Taxes curb Danish oil use, promote energy independence	In Denmark, a Ford Focus costs $51,000 — $34,000 of which is in taxes. John Larson explains how taxing energy and subsidizing alternative technologies have reduced the country’s dependency on oil and created thousands of jobs.
	INDIA India’s “untouchables” trudge through sewers	While India has largely transformed into a modernized economy, the country remains strongly tied to the traditions of the caste system, which often governs the jobs that people hold. Martin Himel reports on India’s lowest class of laborers.
	TURKEY Rising Islamist movements challenge secularism in Turkey	Secular critics are branding Turkey’s growing conservative groups as fundamentalist. Gizem Yarbil and Bryan Myers report on how traditional religion and modern democracy are trying to coexist.
	PHILIPPINES Journalists risk their lives reporting in the Philippines	Today in the Philippines, journalism is robust. But more than 70 journalists have been murdered since 1986. Mark Litke and Ara Ayer report on the risks that many reporters face doing their jobs — from Manila to rural areas.

Worldfocus producers Mary Lockhart and Ara Ayer and correspondent Daljit Dhaliwal reported on the food crisis from the slums to high-rise buildings outside of Delhi in a Worldfocus Signature story first aired late last year.

(View full post to see video)

The Kurds see themselves as an oppressed minority, while the Turkish government sees many of them as dangerous separatists.

Correspondent Gizem Yarbil and producer Bryan Myers recently traveled to the Kurdish enclave of Diyarbakir in eastern Turkey for a closer look at the allegations that the Turkish government had engaged in a so-called “dirty war” against the Kurds. Gizem writes about how the ruling threatens reconciliation between Turks and Kurds.

(View full post to see video)

Photos and interview of Abdulkadir Aygan is courtesy of Hakan Akcura of the blog Open Flux.

For more Worldfocus coverage of Turkey, visit our extended coverage page: Turkey between East and West.

Worldfocus special correspondent Edie Magnus and field producer Ara Ayer report from Chile on the health of private social security and new regulation from the Chilean government.

For more Worldfocus coverage of the Chilean Economy, click here.

Worldfocus special correspondent Edie Magnus and producer Ara Ayer traveled to Chile earlier this year to explore the legacy of the so-called “The Chicago Boys,” economists whose policies still impact modern-day Chile.

For more Worldfocus coverage of the Chilean Economy, click here.

In 2008, a United Nations’ Adaptation Fund was launched to help poor countries finance projects to blunt the effects of global warming, but industrialized nations have failed to make the promised donations. In Copenhagen, Denmark, climate talks may reveal a deepening rift between developing countries and industrialized nations.

Producer Steve Sapienza of the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting provides a view from Bangladesh, a nation already reeling from the impact of climate change.

For more on climate change, watch videos from Worldfocus’ signature series: Green Energy in Denmark.

Worldfocus’ John Larson has been reporting on Denmark’s forward-thinking energy policy, as the small Scandinavian nation plays host to the Copenhagen summit.

Here, he journeys to Denmark’s Samso Island. In 1998, Samso, population 4,000, won a national contest with a bold plan to completely switch to renewable energy.

In just ten short years, the island has achieved its goal of becoming carbon-neutral. Residents use wind, sun — and even rapeseed oil — to power their homes and cars.

However, how quickly you get treated actually depends on what disease you have and how likely you are to be cured.

Watch the interview with Victor Rodwin about the intricacies of the health care system in Chile and how it compares to the United States.

For more Worldfocus coverage of the Chilean Economy, click here.