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SPECIALS
Finding a Niche
Finding
a Niche looks at how societies with strong local
traditions are responding to the challenges and opportunities
of the global marketplace. At the heart of each story is
a moment of decision about identity and tradition, modernity
and change. Nobel laureate Amartya Sen and National Geographic
anthropologist Wade Davis provide contrasting perspectives
on the choices facing traditional peoples.
Listen to the Program
Feature stories heard in this hour
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Andean
Harvest
Peasant farmers in Peru's central highlands grow
hundreds of varieties of potatoes, almost all
for their own consumption. Now
they're being encouraged to sell part of their crop to high-end
urban consumers. But potatoes
are more than just food in the Andes—they're
part of a complex spiritual, social, biological and cultural universe. Will
the market change that? Jon Miller visits
during the harvest.
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A
Map of the Sea
For centuries, the Newfoundland fishery was hailed as the greatest in the world.
Then, after years of overfishing, the cod disappeared. Fishing
was at the heart of the oldest non-aboriginal culture in the Americas. Now the
islanders must find a way to keep that culture from going the way of the cod.
Newfoundland native Chris
Brookes produced this complex meditation on memory, culture,
music and dance. |
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Connecting
the Hebrides
Scotland's Outer Hebrides are peaceful, quiet and starkly beautiful—but
they're a tough place to make a living. For decades, well-educated islanders
have been leaving in search of economic opportunity on the mainland or overseas.
But now they're streaming back, thanks to new technology. Vera
Frankl looks at how the Internet
is transforming the economy and keeping the culture alive. |
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Mezcal
Dreams
Mexican migrants to the US send home billions of
dollars every year, but their absence comes
at a price. Families are divided,
villages are deserted and centuries-old traditions are
slipping away. For many rural Mexicans, taking part in the
global economy means leaving home. But others are looking
to the global market for ways to stay put. Marianne
McCune visits one pueblo that's pinning its
hopes on its fiery local liquor. |
Related stories
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Café
Rebeldía
The Mutvitz cooperative in Chiapas,
Mexico, is using its ties to the Zapatista
rebel movement to tap into the growing global "solidarity
market" for its organic, shade-grown
coffee. For members of the cooperative, selling
coffee is a way of reaffirming their Mayan
identities. Tatiana
Schreiber listens in as the group
entertains a delegation of American and European
buyers. |
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Sri
Lanka: An Exodus of Women
Hundreds of thousands of Sri Lankan women work
abroad as maids, mainly in the Middle East. Their
remittances are a cornerstone of their country's economy,
and a desperately needed source of income for their families.
But what is the impact of this mass migration on Sri
Lankan culture and society?
Sandy Tolan travels
to Jordan and Sri Lanka to find out. |
Series credits
Executive Producer: Jon
Miller
Associate Producers: Lara
Ratzlaff and Melissa Robbins
Senior Producers: Sandy
Tolan and Alan Weisman
Host: María Hinojosa
Engineer: Robin Wise
of Sound
Imagery
Theme music: Samite,
whose non-profit organization is Musicians
for World Harmony
Website design: Jackie
Cerretani of Lost
Art Media
Thanks
to (alphabetically): the AIR
listserve, Jay Allison, Chris
Ballman, Helen Barrington, Vincie Bertolino, Deb Blakeley,
Peter Breslow, David L. Brown, Steve Burke, Bill Buzenberg,
Betsy Gardella, Deborah George, Peggy Girshman, Nancy
Hand, Beckie Kravetz, Loren Jenkins, Martha Little, Ingrid
Lobet, Margaret Low Smith, Joyce MacDonald, Amy Mayer,
Rebecca Nelson, Eric Nuzum, Keith Porter, Nancy Postero,
Jeff Ramirez, Rod Richards, Marcus Rosenbaum, Didi Schanche,
Steve Schultze, Stu Seidel, Jacqueline Sharkey, Bill
Sokol, Sue Schardt, Bari Scott, Lynn Szwaja, Gwen Thompkins,
Jeff Towne, Cecilia Vaisman, Gosia Wojniacka, Ellen Yuan.
Thanks also
to the following people for granting interviews
for the Worlds of Difference specials:
Vohra Anupam, Hurriyet Babacan, Tyler Cowen, Wade Davis,
Jonathan Friedman, Chip Gagnon, Barry Gills, Michael Hardt,
Debra Harry, Mickey Hart, Ronald Inglehart, Pico Iyer,
Mark Juergensmeyer, Smitu Kothari, Luisa Maffi, Ali Mazrui,
Bill McKibben, Walter Mignolo, Ashis Nandy, Brendan O'Leary,
Agnes Pareiyo, Kaiping Peng, Jules Pretty, Amartya Sen,
Richard Chase Smith, Suresh Sharma, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz,
Rhajib Vohra, Owens Wiwa, Mato Wyacopi.
Major funding for Worlds of Difference comes from the Corporation
for Public Broadcasting, the Rockefeller
Foundation, the Polson
Institute for Global Development at Cornell University
and the Department
of Journalism at the University of Arizona.
Homelands
Productions is a non-profit journalism
cooperative specializing in radio documentaries. Its
mission is to illuminate complex issues through compelling
broadcasts, articles, books and educational forums, and
to foster freedom of expression and creative risk through
the media arts.
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