North America

September 11th, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Plear

For Kunrath Lam, the most special occasion for eating plear - this Cambodian beef salad - came after the murderous Khmer Rouge was finally driven out of power. | Photo by Mary Stucky

When Kunrath Lam was just a little girl she endured one of the most brutal regimes the world has ever known. Nearly 2 million Cambodians died during the reign of the Communist Khmer Rouge in the 1970s. Kunrath Lam and her parents somehow managed to survive – though her childhood was one of intense deprivation. Lam used to dream of the delicious meals her grandmother had prepared for her in happier times. Lam’s absolute favorite– plear salad. Now, in the new country she calls home, Lam makes plear for customers at her restaurant in St. Paul, Minnesota. Mary Stucky paid her a visit. Her story appeared in World Vision Report.
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September 11th, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Goat Cutlet

Jamal Hashi shows off the goat stew his mother taught him to make years ago. | Photo by Mary Stucky

Throughout East Africa, goat is a traditional source of both meat and milk. When he was a boy in Somalia, Jamal Hashi spent his summers herding goats on his family’s farm.   Now, he’s in the United States,  introducing Americans to Somali delicacies – including goat — at his restaurant in Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Mary Stucky visited Jamal Hashi as he prepared roasted goat cutlet with vegetables in a special sauce – a dish he says his mother served on special occasions in Somalia.
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August 7th, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Dual Identity and the Liberian-Minnesotan Experience

Tamia Dakinah is Miss Liberia Minnesota. | Photo: Facebook, Miss Liberia MN Beauty Pageant

To make other cultures real through vivid first-hand stories and to explain the connections between “us” and “them” – that’s our goal here at Round Earth Media, and Linda Sjostrom, our web editor, understands it well. Linda has spent time reporting and editing for print and radio both in the United States and abroad. Here, a recent event prompts her to not only reflect on a story she covered in the past, but to also consider identity.

Just last month, a crowd gathered at the Miracle Empowerment Center to witness the crowning of Tamia Dakinah as Miss Liberia Minnesota 2010. In the same way, others across the country have or will name someone the Miss Liberia of their own state this year.

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June 22nd, 2010  |  By Mary Stucky

From a Friend of Round Earth

Elisa Bernick (at left) is one of those people who never had to be convinced about the importance of reliable global journalism. She’s a former radio reporter and video producer and the author of The Family Sabbatical Handbook: The Budget Guide to Living Abroad With Your Children. I’ve used the fabulous checklists in this book to plan for a reporting trip and it’s a great resource for anyone who lives or travels abroad. You can buy Elisa’s book through Amazon or intrepidtraveler.com. Elisa currently works as a writer for The Family Handyman magazine, a national DIY home improvement magazine published by The Reader’s Digest Association, Inc. Here’s what she has to say about Round Earth.

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April 22nd, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Mexico’s markets going mainstream

Alongside the more traditional fresh food markets in Mexico, US-style supermarkets are beginning to appear. | Photo by Mary Stucky

Alongside the more traditional fresh food markets in Mexico, US-style supermarkets are beginning to appear. | Photo by Mary Stucky

Visitors to Mexico are charmed by all of the colorful food markets – fruits and vegetables in gorgeous display and, maybe not so appetizing – raw meat hanging from hooks and piled on chopping blocks. But these traditional markets in Mexico are giving way to US-style supermarkets with produce and meat wrapped neatly in plastic. Mary Stucky reports about the recent and dramatic growth of supermarkets in Mexico.
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April 10th, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Edible flowers in Mexico

Mexican food writer Nicholas Gilman buying colorin outside the church in Malinalco Mexico. | Photo by Mary Stucky

Mexican food writer Nicholas Gilman buying colorin outside the church in Malinalco Mexico. | Photo by Mary Stucky

In the United States it’s traditional to put a bouquet of flowers on the dinner table but we don’t think of eating those flowers. Not so in Mexico where you’re almost as likely to find flowers in the food as on the table. As Mary Stucky reports, Mexicans have been cooking with flowers – and eating them – for centuries.
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April 8th, 2010  |  By Round Earth Media

Abortion and gay marriage new hot-button issues in Mexico

Busy bar scenes like this one in Pata Negra are a common occurrence in Mexico City's Condessa neighborhood. | Photo by Christopher Wilson

Busy bar scenes like this one in Pata Negra are a common occurrence in Mexico City's Condesa neighborhood. | Photo by Christopher Wilson

Hot button social issues like abortion and gay marriage are a staple of American politics. But in Mexico these controversial issues were rarely a factor in elections – until now. It all started when Mexico City legalized abortion three years ago. And, late last year Mexico’s huge capital city gave legal approval for gay marriage. This in a country that’s overwhelmingly Catholic. As Mary Stucky reports, Mexicans have broken what was once considered a taboo: mixing religion and politics.
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March 14th, 2010  |  By Mary Stucky

Does Mexican Food Deserve UN Designation?

chocolateLast month, Mexico asked the United Nations to designate Mexican food a “cultural patrimony” that must be protected. Mexican cuisine dates back thousands of years to the Mayas and their diet based on diverse varieties of corn, beans and vegetables. Traditional Mexican cuisine should never be confused with what passes for “Mexican food’ in many U.S. restaurants and fast food joints. This photo shows 2 young women in Oaxaca enjoying a traditional chocolate drink called chocolate atole. Photo: Ginny Grossman

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February 13th, 2010  |  By Mary Stucky

Earthquakes

mx city earthquake from wikimediaNow, a month after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, I’m reminded of the many conversations I had with people in Mexico City over recent weeks. While I struggled to comprehend what it might have been like to feel the earth shake and buildings topple, many Chilangos, as residents of Mexico City sometimes call themselves, were eager to tell me what had happened and how it had felt in 1985 when a massive earthquake killed at least 4500 people – most likely many more. 

(Photo of Mexico City earthquake: Wikimedia)
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February 9th, 2010  |  By Mary Stucky

Reporting from the Mexican village of Malinalco

MalnalcoVendor In one of our reports from Mexico, we’ll explain what this 83 year old woman is selling in the market in Malinalco, a village nestled in a valley several hours from Mexico City. It can’t be found in U.S. supermarkets but has been an important food in Mexico since pre-hispanic times.

(Hint: they’re not chilies.)

Coming soon from Mexico, Round Earth stories on social issues, culture and politics which will be broadcast on PRI’s The World, the World Vision Report and other outlets. We are honored to bring these stories and voices from Mexico to millions of people in the United States.

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