Perhaps it’s time to state firmly, and insistently, that we see everyone who let themselves be swooped up in machines of inhumanity, and not just the masterminds. And perhaps it’s not too late to call out enough of the small bureaucrats and agents so that they, too, squirm, question and upend the pact of purposeful obtuseness that is required to carry on with systems of oppression designed to harm from a safe distance.

More than a trend, the increasing number of countries implementing a tax on soft drinks shows that this kind of fiscal measure is a cost-efficient policy to tackle the obesity epidemic in the Americas.

Understanding a population’s legal needs is critical in order for states to know how to manage and resolve those needs in a broader access to justice framework. Approaching legal disputes from the perspective of citizen demands allows the state to more adequately grasp the gaps for particular population groups and design and implement public policies that properly address the the legal needs of societies.

Sustainable development and conservation must incorporate from the outset the voices and proposals of the communities that have historically inhabited the territories in question. Through the a concept called “Kawsak Sacha,” or “living jungle,” the Sarayaku indigenous community in the Ecuadorian Amazon demonstrate how this can be done.  

Juan Pedro Lares, a 24-year old Colombian-Venezuelan young man, who was abducted by a hundred civilian-dressed members of the Venezuelan Intelligence, the National Guard, the police, and armed civilian groups from his family’s home in July of last year was finally set free . But a feeling of injustice still lingers.

Examples from initiatives across Mexico, Colombia and South Africa shed some light on policies that could help reduce the homicide rate across the Global South. Inclusive and holistic policies that include a wide range of societal actors may offer remedies to tackle this crisis.

As drug policy reform takes on new meaning and energy across the hemisphere, let us also remember the historic indigenous effort to retain sovereignty over territory and sustain communities, now challenged by both drugs and the wars against them.

Offering new needles to drug users - no matter how controversial it could be - is increasingly urgent in order to protect the health and rights of these populations.

Daughters from a same mother are mobilizing in Colombia, Ecuador, the United States, Philippines and Mexico to defend it.