What is this about?
This issue is a little different. Think of it as a global mixtape of stories that didn’t make it into the newsletter in 2024 but still deserve your attention. Lucia and I put together 20 stories that surprised us, moved us, or made us rethink what we thought we knew. They expanded our horizons—whether it’s by watching a doc in Indonesian (with subtitles, don’t worry), supporting freelance Zambian journalists, or watching Sikh pop stars make history. Consider this your invitation to discover, learn, and connect with a world you might not have seen before.
Why this matters: The stories we tell shape how we see the world—and, more importantly, how we see each other. This list isn’t just a round-up of cool documentaries or investigative reports. It’s about challenging stereotypes, amplifying underrepresented voices, and making room for perspectives that aren’t always front and center. They’re a reminder that the world is bigger, messier, and more connected than we often give it credit for.
1. Where are all the Congo Trees? The DRC's trees are not doing well, thanks for asking. The country's protected hardwoods are paying a heavy price. Quite literally, timber is being trafficked illegally en masse, benefitting mostly East Africa; think Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. All of this is happening thanks to "big men" close to security services and politicians across the region. How? They make sure the border controls fail. Ugandan Journalist John Blanshe Musinguzi did a four-part investigative series in English on exactly how those Congo trees are smuggled into East Africa. For his work, he was recognized with the African Investigative Journalist of the Year Award at the 2024 African Investigative Journalism Conference. Read the entire series here, and follow John on X if you're still on there.
2. How does anyone even do investigative journalism in Venezuela? A team from Frontline, the investigative documentary program from the US broadcaster PBS, in collaboration with the Venezuelan investigative group Armando.info answered that question in a 90-minute must-watch documentary for anyone interested in the high stakes of reporting under authoritarian regimes. It follows Armando.info and a massive corruption scandal involving top government officials in Venezuela. The doc also follows journalist Roberto Deniz, who was forced into exile. Watch it the documentary in English here. Btw, Armando.info, like this newsletter, celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2024. Congratulations!
3. "Digital slavery" in Indonesia Imagine being trafficked into a scam center. Sounds like dystopian fiction, but it’s the reality for thousands in Southeast Asia. Border Hell, a documentary by Indonesia’s Deduktif team, exposes how armed groups and politicians enable these operations along the Myanmar-Thailand border. The team tracked everything—how victims are recruited, the money trails, even scam centers hidden in hotels. It’s dark, it’s important, and it was deservedly nominated for Best Short Documentary at the Indonesian Film Festival. You can watch it online, and if you don’t speak Indonesian, grab a Chrome extension like Language Reactor for subtitles.
4. Small islands are having a nationalism problem What happens to a country when its land disappears? For small island nations like Tuvalu, Kiribati, and the Marshall Islands, this isn’t a future problem; it’s happening right now. Rising seas, caused by emissions from wealthier nations, are swallowing their homes. For these communities, the climate crisis is about survival, culture, and identity at the same time. Tuvalu, with a population of 11,000, could be the first country to disappear completely under the ocean. But what happens then? The world often sees sovereignty—being a country—as something tied to land, a concept shaped by European history. Leaders from island nations are challenging these old ideas of sovereignty. There are some suggestions being offered like creating self-governing communities in other countries or even virtual “de-territorialized” nations, as Riad Meddeb from UNDP writes. However, wealthy nations created this crisis, and now the most vulnerable are paying the price. 25-year-old Grace Malie, an activist from Tuvalu, has been traveling the world to raise awareness as part of the initiative Rising Nations Initiative (Tuvalu and Marshall Islands themselves founded it). People call Grace “Tuvalu’s Greta Thunberg” or even “the real-life Moana,” but Grace is her own leader, and you can follow her on Instagram. If you’re interested to learn more about Tuvalu and Grace, there’s an award-winning Channel 4 News short-doc you can watch on YouTube.
5. How to market African books worldwide Cameroonian author Patrice Nganang opened up to The Republic about the challenges of writing and publishing African stories. His takeaway? African literature doesn’t always have to center on hustlers or dictators. His novel Mount Pleasant—rejected 44 times before finally finding a publisher—made him rethink how these stories are marketed. With Mount Pleasant, he became a different writer: "There is a new person in me that started writing with Mount Pleasant. It is the writer I am today. There is no going back." Another gem from the interview stuck with me: "Just go and interview your parents." Why? Documenting family histories is important because "written biographies are so rare in Africa." I shared this excerpt from the interview on my Instagram story, and a friend of mine criticized that oral storytelling is already a huge part of African traditions (which is true). As someone with Kurdish roots, I see where both my friend and Nganang are coming from. We also have a lot of oral history, but it does take a very interested and dedicated youth to ask and willing to carry them through the next generation. Over the past few years, I’ve been looking for my own stories, recording different family members, asking them questions I haven't asked before, and I’ve noticed how memory changes. Writing it down feels like holding onto something before it slips away. Read the interview here in English—and if you’re inspired, pick up one of Nganang's books.
6. “Punjabi aa gaye Coachella oye” ("The Punjabis have arrived at Coachella") Diljit Dosanjh has been on this newsletter’s Spotify "Go Global Weekly" playlist for ages, but for many, he broke into the mainstream in 2023 when he became the first Punjabi and Indian artist to perform at Coachella, opening his set with "G.O.A.T". Diljit has sold out arenas worldwide, including massive venues in "the West". His tour tickets in India? Gone in 30 seconds. He also made history as the first Indian artist to headline a music performance on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, where Fallon introduced him as “the biggest Punjabi artist on the planet.” He’s also changing the narrative about Sikh men, long sidelined in Indian media. His 2023 role in "Crew" broke ground as a Sikh man cast not as comic relief but as the object of desire. As Surbhi Gupta put in New Lines magazine, "perhaps Hindi cinema needed the female gaze to make the audiences realize there is more than one way to look at turban-wearing men—and that they could be hot." This matters in a country where Sikhs, though a small minority (less than 2% of India’s population), have often faced stereotypes and anxieties from the Hindu majority.
7. How are Lusaka’s children doing? Kids living on the streets of Zambia's capital Lusaka are addicted to a toxic drug made from jet fuel called "sticker." Some are as young as 14; some children have been sexually abused in exchange for it, some lose their eyesight even, and are hit by cars. Freelance journalist Annie Zulu received the 2024 MakanDay Eminent Prize for Investigative Journalism for her investigative report on the whole situation. I mean, how could she not? To figure out how and where the drug is being sold to the children, she even dressed as a "street adult" because "they don't sell it to just anybody". This newsletter is officially a Annie Zulu fan girl. Watch her documentary here; it's got English substitles, too.
8. March against male supremacy Pakistan ranks super low in global gender equality reports. What’s often overlooked though, is the country’s long history of feminist resistance. Hira Azmat for No Niin magazine writes about Pakistan's young feminist movement, The Aurat March (Instagram). The group is pushing for a public platform and voice for those affected by gender-based violence. For the past five years, they’ve organized demonstrations on March 8th. Operating anonymously to protect participants, The Aurat March works with feminist lawyers on major court cases and occasionally collaborates with political parties. No Niin magazine itself is a great place to drop by; they've also just published a piece in English by Kurdish artist and researcher Êvar Hussayni on "Who Gets to Live? — On Archives and Kurdish Identity Formation" that I also think is worth your time.
9. Indigenous Climate Action Want to stop deforestation? Give land back to the Indigenous communities that protect it. That’s exactly what AIDESEP (Instagram), an Indigenous rights group in Peru, has been doing. Last year, they secured 37 land titles in the Amazon—a record. This piece by Miguel Guimaraes Vasquez and Wendy Pineda for Mongabay explains why it’s such a big deal. Speaking of the Amazon, another investigation I came across last year (are we already referring to 2024 as 'last year'? Wow.) was by a team of reporters for Mongabay Latam, in collaboration with Earth Genome, who discovered 67 illegal landing strips in the Peruvian Amazon were being used by narcotraffickers to transport drugs. Thanks to what? Yes, technology, using satellite data and AI technology. (I'm sounding like a tech sis right now. I swear, I'm critical of technology, too.) But, yes, new technology is making it possible for investigative reporters to track what is happening across huge swathes of jungle areas, tracking deforestation or in this case, the construction of illegal landing strips. Read the article here; it's in Spanish.
10. When algorithms get it wrong (See, I can be also critical.) Back in 2018, the government of Telangana, India, thought it had the perfect plan: use AI to monitor welfare programs and make sure financial support only went to the right people. The idea? Use an algorithm to analyze data from multiple government databases to spot—and cut off—anyone fraudulently receiving aid. Sounds efficient, right? Except it wasn’t. According to an investigation by Al Jazeera, this "smart" system turned out to be a bullsh*t idea for thousands of needy families. The algorithm made arbitrary decisions, canceling benefits for several thousand existing recipients and rejecting nearly 150,000 (!) new applications—many without any warning. And this happened during one of the toughest times imaginable: the COVID-19 crisis. Repeat after me: AI systems are often opaque, meaning no one—not even the people running them—fully understands how they make decisions. Read the article in English here.
11. Hunger as a weapon in Sudan In Sudan, war isn’t just fought with guns—it’s fought with hunger. A Reuters investigation, led by journalist Maggie Michael and photojournalist El Tayeb Siddig, uncovered how millions of civilians are being deliberately starved as the Sudanese Army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) escalate their fight in Darfur. Here’s how it’s playing out: food aid is being stolen, agricultural fields are destroyed, and aid warehouses are looted. Families in overcrowded camps are so desperate they’re eating dirt and tree leaves to survive. The numbers are staggering—nearly five million people are on the brink of famine, and diseases are spreading fast. This isn’t bad luck. It’s calculated. Both sides are intentionally blocking aid and destroying resources to starve out civilians. The investigation pieced this together through interviews with over 160 civilians and aid workers, as well as food security surveys. Read the report here in English.
12. "Our slaves" I was speechless for a second and a half when I read the title of this eight-part podcast series by Swiss public service broadcaster RTS. "Our slaves" is about one of the darkest periods in Switzerland’s past, and it tells the stories of the the Swiss traders, financiers, soldiers, settlers, workers, and even federal authorities involved in "the abominable traffic" of slaves. Journalist Cyril Dépraz for two years traveled from Switzerland to the former slave port of Nantes, and to the Brazilian city of Helvécia, going into different archives, interviewing several historians. The podcast could not have been produced even a generation ago because as Bouda Etemad, one of the historians interviewed, pointed out: "No one talked about colonial Switzerland 15 years ago." The podcast is in French; you can use MacWhisper to transcribe it for you, and then you can use a translation software of your choice. Listen to it here.
13. Getting a visa for Europe is so f*ucking difficult Need a visa to visit Europe’s Schengen area? Brace yourself—it’s not just paperwork; it’s a whole nightmare. For many, even getting an appointment can set you back $500, thanks to a thriving black market. I see this struggle up close. My parents fled Kurdistan, Iraq, in the late ’90s, and one silver lining is that I’ll never need to jump through these hoops. But last year, my favorite cousin finally made it to visit me in Germany (she’s the reason I skipped writing you that week—blame her, not me). Her success story came after endless hurdles. It’s not just Kurds facing this. In Senegal, journalists Azil Momar Lô (X) and Valdez Onanina (X) investigated how impossible it’s become to secure a Schengen visa. They uncovered a black market where intermediaries promise to fast-track appointments—for a hefty fee, of course. How they did it: The journalists spoke with applicants, visa brokers, and even consulate staff. They also went undercover, posing as desperate applicants to gather first-hand evidence. What they found? Some brokers were charging as much as $500 for just an appointment. Listen to the investigation here; it's in French.
14. What about the West Bank? Since the Hamas attack on Israel in October 2023, global attention zeroed in on Gaza and Lebanon. But there was/is another story: Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank. Spoiler alert—it’s not new. In fact, 2023 saw record levels of violence, even before the October attack. A CAPA-produced investigation for Franco-German TV channel ARTE’s digital magazine Source took on the issue, and here’s what they uncovered: Using open-source data, videos filmed by Palestinians and Israeli peace activists, and geolocation techniques, they documented violent incidents. The team then mapped these attacks—and surprise (or not), they overlapped with the locations of new Israeli outposts. The numbers tell a troubling story: 26 new outposts were built in the West Bank in 2023 alone, despite being illegal under international law—and even Israeli law. The takeaway? These settlements and violence go hand in hand. Watch the documentary here (it's in French).
15. U.S. mercenaries, hired by UAE to kill in Yemen If you missed this jaw-dropper of a documentary when it came out in early 2024, let me catch you up. BBC Arabic managed to secure on-camera interviews with U.S. mercenaries from Spear Operations Group, a private military contractor hired by the UAE. Their job? Carry out targeted killings in Yemen. Yes, you read that right. These mercenaries openly detailed their operations, revealing how they were paid to eliminate people the UAE considered political enemies. But it doesn’t stop there. The investigation also uncovered that Spear Operations trained Emirati officers in assassination techniques—skills later used to target Yemeni civilians. These killings in Yemen continue to this day. Watch it here, with Arabic subtitles.
16. Turkey's EU-funded deportation machine You know how it goes. Economy down? "Refugees out". With Turkey’s economy struggling and anti-refugee sentiment rising, hundreds of thousands of Syrians and Afghans have been deported in recent years. In fact, Turkey’s been busy building one of the largest migrant detention systems in the world—and the EU has been footing the bill. A Lighthouse Reports investigation, done in partnership with outlets like El País, Der Spiegel, and Le Monde, uncovered how EU money is being used to fund detention centers where migrants face awful conditions. Journalists spoke with detainees who described systemic violence, overcrowding, and being forced to sign “voluntary” deportation forms. The team also tracked how EU-funded equipment is being used to round up and deport refugees. Read the article here in Arabic.
17. 41 workers trapped underground Picture this: a tunnel collapses during highway construction in India, trapping 41 workers underground for 17 days. They survived, but why did it come to that in the first place? India’s highest-circulation daily Hindi newspaper Dainik Bhaskar reported out a series of investigative stories on the worksite tragedy and found out that ignored safety protocols, government failures, and shortcuts by the construction company were to blame. Oh, and that same company? Turns out, it’s a major political donor. The series marks a big step for Dainik Bhaskar as it moves toward hard-hitting investigative journalism. Read the article in Hindi here.
18. Why did it exactly collide? I'm a sucker for data journalism stories. What happens when two planes collide at Japan’s busiest airport? Disaster. On January 2, a Japan Airlines flight hit a Coast Guard plane at Haneda Airport, killing five people on the smaller aircraft. Miraculously, all 379 passengers on the commercial flight made it out safely. To figure out what went wrong, Nikkei used flight data, videos, and audio logs to create a 3D model of the crash. The result? A detailed breakdown of a tragedy that could have been avoided. Read the article in English here.
19. A Chinese true crime story Back in 1995, Zhu Ling, a chemistry student at one of China’s top universities, was poisoned with thallium—a toxic heavy metal. The case sparked national outrage, but despite having a suspect, authorities never closed the case. Zhu Ling passed away in December 2023, leaving behind more questions than answers. Journalist Chai Jing revisited the case in a gripping three-part series. She spoke to Zhu’s former classmates, family, and forensic experts to figure out what happened—and why key evidence mysteriously disappeared. Watch the documentary in Mandarin here.
20. Was your ketchup made with forced labour? Here’s a question you didn’t think you’d ask. A BBC investigation says it’s possible. The team traced tomatoes used in major UK and German supermarket brands back to fields in China’s Xinjiang region, where Uyghurs and Kazakhs have been forced to work under brutal conditions. Using satellite images, shipping records, and interviews with exiled workers, the team uncovered a chilling reality: impossible quotas, backbreaking labor, and harsh punishments for dissent. Watch the documentary in English, with Mandarin subtitles, here.
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