WORLD ISSUES RESEARCH TOPICS

Lost Boys of Sudan - -Where are they now?The Lost Boys of Sudan is the name given to the groups of the surviving 20,000 boys from the country of Sudan who became refugees because of the Sudanese Civil War of 1983-2005.

The term “lost boys” was given by aid workers who helped these kids survive in various refugee camps in Northeastern Africa.

Slum Dogs – Caste System in India and Street ChildrenSlumdogs is a slang term used to refer to the children who live on the streets. They are deprived of family care and protection. Most children on the streets are between the ages of 10 and 14 years old. These kids are usually part of the lowest caste system in India.

Caste System refers to a hierarchy of social classes Discrimination against India's lowest Hindu castes is technically illegal. But the 160 million “Untouchables” who are at the very bottom face violent punishments if they forget their place.

Saudi Arabia – Women’s RightsWomen living on the Arabian peninsula live in a cultural tradition of patriarchal, nomadic tribes, that separate women from men in many aspects of daily living. They do not have the same rights as men in terms of having a driver’s license, educational experiences, jobs, and political participation.

Manal al-Sharif, a women's rights activist from

Saudi Arabia.

Invisible Children – Rwanda and BurundiInvisible Children is term used to refer to the group of kids in the eastern part of Africa who have been and continue to be abducted and forced into being child soldiers for the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) led by Joseph Kony.

Invisible Children Organization is also a charitable organization started by a couple college students. The organization promotes its cause by dispensing films on the internet and presenting in high schools and colleges around the United States.

Pictured here is a large group of children who sleep together at night in a city center so they are not targeted to be kidnapped.

Child Labor Food IndustryChild labor refers to the employment of children in any work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school, and that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful. Common Industries using Children = Sugarcane, tobacco, cocoa, tea, and coffee

Incidence rates for child labor worldwide, per World Bank data. The data is incomplete, as many countries do not collect or report child labor data. 

Child Labor with ClothingSome of the clothes we wear are manufactured by children who suffer difficult working conditions. Bangladesh, Brazil, China, Guatemala, India, Indonesia, Lesotho, Morocco, the Philippines, Portugal and Thailand are among the countries in which children are believed to help produce garments.

Children who help produce garments do not typically work in clean conditions and/or locations.

Pictured to the right are childrenwho are producing clothes in sweat shops.

Child Sex Trafficking – South East Asia

Child prostitution is still ongoing in Southeastern Asia. Children as young as four are sold to brothels in Cambodia, often coming from poor families that are in desperate need of money. The families are told that their children will be employed and will be able to mail money back from their wages, but they often do not know that their child will be beaten, ill treated, drugged, raped, and prostituted.

Child Soldiers in Syria The use/recruitment of children in combat.These children can take direct part in hostilities, or they can be used in support roles such as porters, spies, messengers, look outs, etc.

More than 2 million people, over half of whom are children, are now refugees after fleeing the terrible violent war in Syria.

Victims of becoming a Terrorist - The Black Widows in Russia (Sochi, Russia – Winter Olympics Terrorist Issues)

Two weeks before the Winter Olympics, Russian security forces were reportedly searching for potential suicide bombers.

The suspects are thought to be linked to Islamist militants who are fighting to throw off Russian control and create a fundamentalist Muslim state in Russia's North Caucasus Mountains.

The term "black widow" refers to the belief that these women took the desperate step of becoming suicide bombers in order to avenge husbands or male relatives killed in Russia's long fight against Islamics.

Labor – Mining (Blood Diamonds, Gold)

Many of the world's diamonds are mined using practices that exploit workers, children, and communities. A million diamond diggers in Africa earn less than a dollar a day. Miners are dying in accidents, child labor is widespread, and corrupt leaders are depriving diamond mining communities of funds badly needed for economic development.