Marc Silver : NPR

Marc Silver Marc Silver edits NPR's global health blog.

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Marc Silver

Monday June 29, 2015

The U.S. Now Has A 'Girls Count' Law. But Don't Boys Count, Too?

Children in Bangladesh display their birth registration cards. Jannatul Mawa/UNICEF hide caption

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Jannatul Mawa/UNICEF

The U.S. Now Has A 'Girls Count' Law. But Don't Boys Count, Too?

June 29, 2015 • Some 220 million children under age 5 do not have a birth certificate. A new U.S. law pledges to support efforts to register girls around the world. Should the law mention boys as well?

Saturday June 27, 2015

A little boy and his goat have an encounter with a painted lion in West Bengal, India. Courtesy of Partha Kar hide caption

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Courtesy of Partha Kar

A Boy Won't Let A Lion Get His Goat

June 27, 2015 • An award-winning photo captures a friendly encounter between a young child and a painted feline.

Friday June 19, 2015

Guess Which Country Has The Biggest Increase In Soda Drinking

Vietnam is seeing an increase in soda drinking. STEPHEN SHAVER/BLOOMBERG NEWS hide caption

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STEPHEN SHAVER/BLOOMBERG NEWS

Guess Which Country Has The Biggest Increase In Soda Drinking

June 19, 2015 • It's Cameroon, closely trailed by Vietnam and India. Sugary fizzy drinks are making inroads in the developing world.

Thursday June 18, 2015

via Youtube

What We Can Learn From A Herd Of Hungry Goats

June 18, 2015 • They didn't quite break the Internet, but the video of 700 goats on their way to a snack is definitely having a moment. We wanted to hear the story behind the herd.

Wednesday June 17, 2015

It's Time To Pay Attention To 'Below-The-Belt' Cancers

Kenyan women visit an outreach team from Marie Stopes, a reproductive health organization that can screen for and treat cervical cancer. Jonathan Torgovnik/Getty Images hide caption

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Jonathan Torgovnik/Getty Images

It's Time To Pay Attention To 'Below-The-Belt' Cancers

June 17, 2015 • That's another way of referring to gynecological cancers, which strike more than 1 million women a year — and are on the rise in the developing world.

Thursday June 4, 2015

Aly Hurt/NPR

Sexual Violence Against Children Is A Global Problem But Few Get Help

June 4, 2015 • Young people in seven developing countries were interviewed about past sexual violence. On average, more than 1 in 4 girls and more than 1 in 10 boys reported abuse.

Screengrab from Sunflower Farm Creamery video. Sunflower Farm Creamery/Youtube hide caption

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Sunflower Farm Creamery/Youtube

Your Moment Of Baby Goat Bliss

June 4, 2015 • The world has a lot of sad stories. But as a blog called Goats and Soda, we feel it is our duty to bring you a minute (and three seconds) of relief with the latest viral goat video.

Wednesday June 3, 2015

A New U.N. Health Goal Targets Folks 69 And Under. Ageism Or Realism?

The U.N. wants better health for older folks, like nomadic herder Mijiddorj Ayur of South Gobi, Mongolia. John W. Poole/NPR hide caption

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John W. Poole/NPR

A New U.N. Health Goal Targets Folks 69 And Under. Ageism Or Realism?

June 3, 2015 • A proposal calls for countries to reduce the death rate among 50-to-69-year-olds from diseases like cancer and stroke. So are 70-year-olds out of luck?

Saturday May 30, 2015

It's A 'Year Of Fear' For Kids, U.N. Says. Can We Make Things Better?

Afghan children look on at a refugee camp in Jalalabad on May 3, 2015. Like thousands of Afghan returnees, Neik Mohammad became unwanted in Pakistan after a Taliban massacre at a Peshawar school, forcing him to return home to a life of misery and fear in a squalid refugee settlement. SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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SHAH MARAI/AFP/Getty Images

Goats and Soda

It's A 'Year Of Fear' For Kids, U.N. Says. Can We Make Things Better?

May 30, 2015 • Gordon Brown of the U.N. said it's the worst year for refugees since 1945, and cited a litany of other miseries for youth. We asked experts what can be done to make 2015 a little less horrible.

Wednesday May 20, 2015

I'd Like To Buy The Emerging World A Coke

A woman walks past an ad for Coca-Cola in Bamako, the capital of the Republic of Mali. New York Daily News Archive/NY Daily News via Getty Images hide caption

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New York Daily News Archive/NY Daily News via Getty Images

Goats and Soda

I'd Like To Buy The Emerging World A Coke

May 20, 2015 • The Mad Men finale featured the classic jingle: "I'd like to buy the world a Coke," sung by a globally diverse group. Today, the global market is more important than ever to Big Soda.

Tuesday May 19, 2015

A 10-Year-Old Makes A Video So We 'Don't Forget Nepal'

Lucas met this woman who lost her home and all her children except for one daughter. Donatella Lorch for NPR hide caption

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Donatella Lorch for NPR

Goats and Soda

A 10-Year-Old Makes A Video So We 'Don't Forget Nepal'

May 19, 2015 • Lucas Zutt has lived in Nepal since 2013. It's "where I belong," he says. He made a video so the world will have a close-up — and personal — view of the earthquake's impact.

Thursday May 14, 2015

TRAVEL TIME OECD hide caption

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OECD

Goats and Soda

Are You Smarter Than A 15-Year-Old?

May 14, 2015 • The results are out: Fifteen-year-olds who took a skills assessment test had a hard time with it, no matter where they lived. See how you might fare with some sample questions.

Thursday May 7, 2015

On Saturday, The Ebola Outbreak In Liberia Should Officially Be Over

Lucy Barh, head of the Liberian Midwives Association, says of the impending end of the Ebola outbreak: "It is a joy, it is a joy. And I am so grateful to God. The Lord almighty has love for this nation. That is why we have come to this point." Jason Beaubien/NPR hide caption

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Jason Beaubien/NPR

Goats and Soda

On Saturday, The Ebola Outbreak In Liberia Should Officially Be Over

May 7, 2015 • On May 9 — 42 days after the last reported case — the World Health Organization will announce that the epidemic has ended in the West African nation. Its citizens are proud, sad and a bit leery.

Monday May 4, 2015

Irene, A Ugandan Prostitute, Explains How To Use A Condom

Irene lives in a fishing village in Uganda where the rate of HIV infection is 43 percent. Wilbur Sargunaraj for NPR hide caption

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Wilbur Sargunaraj for NPR

Goats and Soda

Irene, A Ugandan Prostitute, Explains How To Use A Condom

May 4, 2015 • With her shy charm and sunny smile, she makes viewers realize that behind the label "sex worker" there's a sweet young mom, just trying to feed her kids.

Thursday April 23, 2015

She Got 80,000 Girls To Attend School And Won A $1.25 Million Prize

Safeena Husain says: "I educate girls." Her efforts have brought 80,000 Indian girls into school; last week she received a Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship (above). Courtesy of Skoll Foundation/Gabriel Diamond hide caption

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Courtesy of Skoll Foundation/Gabriel Diamond

Goats and Soda

She Got 80,000 Girls To Attend School And Won A $1.25 Million Prize

April 23, 2015 • A harsh encounter in an Indian village inspired Safeena Husain to found a group called Educate Girls. And now she has been honored with a Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship.