Menu Close

Articles on Panama

Displaying 1 - 20 of 21 articles

Planting trees on deforested lands in Panama. Jorge Aleman/Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute

Paying people to replant tropical forests − and letting them harvest the timber − can pay off for climate, justice and environment

It might seem counterintuitive to suggest timber harvesting when the goal is to restore forests, but that gives landholders the economic incentive to protect and manage forests over time.
Migrants heading north arrive in Panama on Oct. 6, 2023, after walking across the 100-kilometre stretch of treacherous jungle shared by Colombia and Panama known as the Darien Gap. (AP Photo/Arnulfo Franco)

Darien Gap: As migrants take deadly risks for better lives, Canada and the U.S. must do much more

Migrants who cross the treacherous Darien Gap between Panama and Colombia often experience violence and abuse, extortion or detention by migration authorities.
Jimmy Carter answered reporters’ election-monitoring questions in Caracas, Venezuela, May 29, 2004. Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images

I assisted Carter’s work encouraging democracy – and saw how his experience, persistence and engineer’s mindset helped build a freer Latin America over decades

A former staffer with The Carter Center saw how Jimmy Carter’s efforts to bring democracy to Latin America improved conditions, prevented bloodshed and saved lives.
Sabre-tooth tiger Smilodon meets the South American marsupial, Thylacosmilus. This is a classic image of supposedly ‘superior northerners’ outcompeting ‘inferior southerners’, but such meetings actually rarely happened as many of the southern species had already gone extinct. 'The rise of Smilodon', Hodari Nundu

South America is filled with mammals of North American origin but not vice versa – and scientists have figured out why

Why were mammals travelling south through newly-formed Panama so much more successful than those heading north?
Some tropical frogs may be developing resistance to a fungus that has devastated species like Atelopus varius, the variable harlequin frog. Brian Gratwicke/Wikimedia

The animal world is still awesome: 3 essential reads

A look at new research published in 2018 on fossa, deepsea corals and tropical frogs developing resistance to a deadly fungus.
Panama Canal construction in 1913 showing workers drilling holes for dynamite in bedrock, as they cut through the mountains of the Isthmus. Steam shovels in the background move the rubble to railroad cars. (Everett Historical/Shutterstock)

The Panama Canal’s forgotten casualties

The Panama Canal was a tremendous achievement by the U.S. and a display of their power and abilities. However, the health costs to the mostly Caribbean contract workers was enormous.
Panama City, Panama. The gleaming metropolis reflects a rapid economic growth with a marginal national investment in research and development. Carlos A. Donado Morcillo

Is Panama on the verge of a scientific brain drain?

In the midst of a rapidly growing economy, research budget shortcomings threaten a young scientific community that struggles to stay afloat.
A boy contemplates the guns handed in during an amnesty for gang members in Panama City. How do communities respond to violence? InSight Crime

Preventing violence: maybe communities know better

Many communities struggle with crime, violence and abuse, but they are not all the same. Those that look to local expertise for solutions offer hope in a world where success in preventing violence is rare.

Top contributors

More