Issue 542 of New Internationalist

Conrad Landin introduces the Bigger Story: in which our writers make propositions for a just future.

For Andrew Simms the pandemic years reveal the prospect of rapid, transformational change.

Fungi have been touted as a panacea to our addiction to plastics, but Emma McKeever wonders if we are asking the wrong questions.

Amy Hall reports on the Kenyan court case that could give multinational tax avoiders a run for their money. Part of the Decolonize How? series. 

Dinyar Godrej looks to the moment when the perpetual swing of progress and pushback over our identities finally ceased.

How we can turn away from democratic dissolution and build a more participatory future? Nick Dowson explores the possibilities.

Rebecca Wilks explores what it could mean to legislate for future generations – with some lessons from Wales.

What does the future hold for art? A meditation from Raqs Media Collective.

ILYA and Jamie Kelsey-Fry imagine the world in 2073 – when, in spite of 21st century capitalism’s best efforts, things have actually turned out alright.

Rahila Gupta explores the Kurdish feminist revolution. 

The Indian Right is on a mission to rewrite history, as Tarushi Aswani reports.

We head back to 1990 when Anuradha Vittachi looked at the human tendency for denial in the face of climate change.

Moldova is one of the poorest countries in Europe, but wealth is far more evenly distributed than in most.

As legal action is launched in Nairobi against Facebook owners Meta, Rosebell Kagumire asks: are social media bosses beyond accountability?

Leonardo Sakamoto on trans champions in parliament. Plus: Kate Evans’ Thoughts from a Broad

Nilanjana Bhowmick outlines recent progress on abortion rights. Plus: Polyp’s Big Bad World

Filmmaker Ivey Camille Manybeads Tso on the power of people coming together, as told to Grace Livingstone.

Abyss by Pilar Quintana, translated by Lisa Dillman; Call and Response by Gothataone Moeng; The Heart of Our Earth by Tom Gatehouse with Jo Griffin; Banzeiro Òkòtó: The Amazon as the Centre of the World by Elaine Brum, translated by Diane Whitty
 

Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom directed and written by Pawo Choyning Dorji; Joyland by Saim Sadiq. 

Being by Baaba Maal; The Land, the Water, the Sky by Black Belt Eagle Scout.

All takin’ and no givin’? Agony Uncle looks at whether working for destructive industries to pay the bills is a long term strategy.

Young South African climate activist Ayakha Melithafa speaks to Uyapo Majahana about holding power to account.

The Wagner group, aka Putin’s private army, has been dragged into the limelight by its bloody contributions to the war in Ukraine – but its tentacles spread further.

Peruvian photographer David Arias captures the magic of a steaming mug of coffee in the valleys where it is grown. 

Climate activism is increasingly criminalized around the world. Danny Chivers looks at what can be done to resist.

Stephanie Boyd on a final farewell full of warmth in Peru’s southern Andes.

Social media were not for profit? Nick Dowson imagines a different world of online communities that puts our needs first.