Rebuilding Rwanda: The Role of Women

The Rwandan genocide claimed a lot of lives including many men who would traditionally provide financially for their families. After the war this responsibility fell to the women who had to go out and work, many of them starting their own businesses. This has over the years contributed to a sense of independence and empowerment for these women and has in a way encouraged their participation in governing the country: "... women hold 56% of the seats in Rwanda's parliament, by far the highest percentage of female MPs anywhere in the world."

The rest of the story can be found here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-20727127

Recognizing some of those who stood up against to corruption in 2012

"Standing up to corruption requires both courage and conviction, often in the face of great personal danger. Again in 2012 we saw how people took on this challenge. This article is a tribute to a few of those from around the world who have made a difference in the fight against corruption, one of whom paid with his life...."

Read more at: http://www.transparency.org/news/feature/2012_a_year_of_courage_and_conviction

Pioneering surgery repairs girl's spine with leg bone

A five-year old girl has had pioneering surgery to repair a large gap in her spine using bone taken from her legs.

Before the operation, Rosie Davies, from Walsall in the West Midlands, was "basically a timebomb", her family said.

Missing bones in her spine meant her upper body weight was unsupported and her inner organs were being crushed.

The lifesaving surgery came at the cost of her lower legs, which she had always been unable to move.

Read more at: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-20426413

A Breakthrough Against Leukemia Using Altered T-Cells

"Emma Whitehead has been bounding around the house lately, practicing somersaults and rugby-style tumbles that make her parents wince....It is hard to believe, but last spring Emma, then 6, was near death from leukemia. She had relapsed twice after chemotherapy, and doctors had run out of options.

Desperate to save her, her parents sought an experimental treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, one that had never before been tried in a child, or in anyone with the type of leukemia Emma had. The experiment, in April, used a disabled form of the virus that causes AIDS to reprogram Emma’s immune system genetically to kill cancer cells.

The treatment very nearly killed her. But she emerged from it cancer-free, and about seven months later is still in complete remission."

Read more at: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/10/health/a-breakthrough-against-leukemia-using-altered-t-cells.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&hp