Valletta, Malta -- There is a competitive nature that courses through Malta so raw and unbridled that it’s written into the skyline of its capital, Valletta, and permeates across all walks of life on the archipelago. I’m talking about pika – a Maltese word that roughly means ‘a neighbourly rivalry’, but is one of those terms that feels like a fool’s errand when foreigners try to interpret it.
As a new space race gathers pace, many tech executives have sold Mars as humankind’s off-Earth destiny. But they may be looking too far afield. Our most immediate chance for life-beyond-Earth lies much closer, a path likely to be blazed by far lesser-known companies. Building colonies on the Moon will “provide a blueprint to Mars”, …
Continue reading The tiny nation leading a new space race (BBC Future)
Barcelona, Spain -- In late 2017, I conducted seven live broadcasts for Skynews, mostly concerning the Catalonia political crisis. It has taken me some time to upload these videos, but alas my schedule has finally allowed for it.
Amman, Jordan – When Khaled Khashet fled Syria over four years ago, he was the first of his family to leave. He said, straightly: “It was time.” This conclusion was not yet echoed by his loved ones, but Khaled upheld it with conviction, a hunch inspired by his experience in the Syrian army, which he fortuitously left a few months before war broke.
Amman, Jordan -- Picture the Appalachian Trail in the United States, or the Camino de Santiago in Spain. Then draw a route through more than 10,000 years of history, covering Neolithic ruins, Biblical sites, one of the New 7 Wonders of the World, and russet landscapes that wouldn't look out of place on Mars. That's the Jordan Trail, and only a slice of it.
Justin Calderón 