This month's big story

Who owns the skies?

A new space race is set to worsen global inequality and extend conflict. We need to return to seeing space as a place for all humankind, argues Nick Dowson.

In November 1572 a brilliant new star appeared in the sky – initially bright enough to be seen during daylight. Its appearance was recorded worldwide and it stayed v...

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A note from the editor

Nick Dowson

Nick Dowson

Starstruck

As we edited this magazine a rocket exploded on its launchpad at the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. This was not owned by NASA but by Blue Origin, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ company, which announced they had ‘experienced an anomaly’. Some euphemism: footage shows a gigantic ball of flame and something that looks very mu...

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Magazine archive

Here are the most recent magazines we've published.

NI 562 - The new space race - July, 2026 The new space race Nick Dowson 1 July 2026 NI 561 - Trade Unions - May, 2026 Trade Unions Henry Fowler 1 May 2026 NI 560 - AI: the people behind the machine - March, 2026 AI: the people behind the machine Decca Muldowney 1 March 2026

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NI 557 - The global far right - September, 2025 The global far right Bethany Rielly 1 September 2025

Recent feature articles

A selection of feature articles from each of the latest New Internationalist magazines.

A plane surveys a distorted landscape. Photo: Lone Thomasky & Bits&Baume/betterimagesofai.org/creativecommons-by-4.0

AI and its discontents

Imagery generated by artificial intelligence has become the beloved aesthetic of today’s dictators, argues Decca Muldowney. A robust media is needed to combat misinformation and its miseries.

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The world’s first hydrogen bomb, codenamed ‘Mike’ is detonated by the US during ‘Operation Ivy’ in the Marshall Islands. Nuclear weapons testing conducted at Bikini and Enewetak atolls in the Pacific Ocean during 1946–1958 exposed local people to radioactive fallout. Photo: Science History Images/Photo Researchers

Flashpoints to fallout

Could the threat of nuclear war be closer than ever? Amy Hall explores how we got here and the pathways out of the crisis.

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From left: Leanne Mohamad, who narrowly missed out on unseating senior Labour politician Wes Streeting in Ilford North; Jeremy Corbyn; Andrew Feinstein, New Internationalist contributor and former South African MP who challenged Keir Starmer; and Iqbal Mohamed, who defeated Labour in Dewsbury and Batley. Photo: Zuma Press/Alamy

Political parties Independents’ day

Britain’s general election saw the rightwing Conservatives swept out – and a huge majority for Labour. But the shallowness of the victorious party’s support points to an existential threat to dominant parties across the world, argues Conrad Landin.

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A woman plays the cello amid riot police at a demonstration for safe and legal abortion to mark International Safe Abortion Day in Mexico City, on 28 September 2023. Earlier that month Mexico's Supreme Court decriminalized the procedure. Photo: Raquel Cunya/Reuters

Freeing abortion

The global trend towards liberalizing abortion is being overshadowed by a newly emboldened anti-rights movement that wants to erode bodily autonomy. Bethany Rielly learns how feminist movements are organizing to put abortion back in the hands of the people – and keep it there.

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Protestors in Panama City in July 2022 demand the government puts a ceiling on the price of fuel, food and medicines. Photo: Erick Marciscano/Reuters/Alamy

Whodunnit?

As the cost of living crisis becomes entrenched, Nick Dowson examines the scene of the crime, tracks down the culprits and proposes a route to resolution.

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India’s railways are frequently hailed by defenders of the British Empire as a positive legacy of colonialism. While the country has an extensive network which ranks among the world’s biggest employers, it was designed to serve the interests of imperialism and private profit – with the directors of the sub continent’s first railway drawn from the ranks of the East India Company. Here passengers prepare to eat on board a modern-day sleeper train. Photo: Boaz Rottem/Alamy

Back on track?

On every continent, the railways are experiencing a renaissance. But what will it take to reshape them in the interests of people? Conrad Landin investigates.

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From the archives

A selection of articles from the New Internationalist magazine archives.

Men tackle domestic violence

Men tackle domestic violence

Meet the non-profit art group trying to end violence against women in Mozambique. By Rebecca Cooke.

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Nightlife vs Nazis

Nightlife vs Nazis

Tbilisi’s clubbing scene is in the crosshairs of a war on culture led by reactionary elements in Georgia, opposed to its progressive ethos.

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Game over for hunters in Tanzania

Game over for hunters in Tanzania

Maasai activists hope Tanzania’s newly appointed Natural Resources Minister Hamisi Kigwangalla could put an end to big-game trophy hunting, Nick Dowson writes.

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Mixed Media: Film

Mixed Media: Film

Two to One; Julie Keeps Quiet.

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Mixed Media: Books

Mixed Media: Books

Why Christian should be Leftists; Landscape with Landscape; Big Kiss, Bye-Bye; Notes From a Lost Country.

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 Illustration: Sarah John

Holding on

Mariam Barghouti opens her series from Ramallah by examining the Palestinian city’s coffee boom – and what it says about life under occupation.

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Environmental campaigner Claire Nouvian. Photo: Courtesy of Goldman Environmental Prize

Making Waves

The untiring campaigner and guardian of the deep, Claire Nouvian, speaks with Veronique Mistiaen about the transformative experience that led to her choosing her path – on to eventual victory.

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Isaias Afwerki

Worldbeater: Isaias Afwerki

We put the track record of Isaias Afwerki, President of Eritrea – and a liberation fighter turned ruthless dictator – under the spotlight.

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United Nations - The Facts

United Nations - The Facts

Components, budget, and the peacekeepers of the United Nations.

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Country Profile: Colombia

Country Profile: Colombia

The photos, facts, and politics of Colombia.

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 Illustration: Kate Evans

Thoughts from a Broad

Lemme help you with that, by Kate Evans.

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