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.

The launch of the GRACE-FO spacecraft aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in May 2018. The mission is a joint US-German effort which uses twin satellites to measure the mass of Earth and its atmosphere, and any anomalies. Photo: Bill Ingalls/NASA

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.

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Placards at a train station during the general strike of 1926. Photo: General Strike Photograph - GS071/People’s History Museum

The general strike

From 1926 to 2026. A century on, Bethany Rielly and Decca Muldowney examine Britain’s only general strike, a walk out with a scale and impact that remains unprecedented in the country’s history. What can movements learn from it today?

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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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In an age of despair, monsters rise from the gutter. Artist James Colomina’s sculpture of Donald Trump crawling from a Manhattan manhole unveiled on 23 July 2024, blurs the line between street art and social warning. Photo: Kylie Cooper/Reuters

A time of monsters

In an age of crisis, despair is the currency of the global far right. How, asks Bethany Rielly, can we turn this reactionary tide?

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Drop the Debt: Protesters call for debt cancellation, wearing face masks of Yoshiro Mori, the then prime minister of Japan. They gathered outside Downing Street, London, during Mori’s meeting with Britain’s leader Tony Blair on 3 May 2000. Photo: Jonathan Evans/Reuters

Who owes whom?

Rising costs, Covid-19 and austerity have pushed too many countries – and households – into unmanageable debt. Amy Hall asks how we got here, and finds a movement shaking off the stigma of debt and getting organized.

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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.

Pollution struggle

Pollution struggle

Residents from a coastal village in the Gambia are suing a Chinese-owned fishmeal plant accused of pollution, writes Nosmot Gbadamosi.

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Divided over driving

Divided over driving

Saudi Arabia has lifted its ban on women drivers, but there not everyone agrees it’s a good thing. By Lydia Noon.

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Mixed Media: Film

Mixed Media: Film

No Other Choice; My Father’s Shadow.

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Mixed Media: Books

All Hands on Deck; Fascist Yoga; The Evin Prison Bakers’ Club; Heart Lamp.

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Mixed Media: Music

Mixed Media: Music

The Kasambwe Brothers; Manizeh.

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 Illustration: Sarah John

A rite of passage

Labouring for hours over six kilos of simmering onions, Maya Misikir reflects on the invisible weight of ‘women’s work’, family and gratitude.

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 Photo: courtesy of Gina Lopez

Making Waves: Gina Lopez

The Philippines’ maverick environmentalist fighting the powerful mining industry, speaks with Veronique Mistiaen.

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 Photo: Gage Skidmore/Alamy Stock Photo

Worldbeaters: Donald Trump

Ego? Tick. Money? Tick. Power-hungry? Tick. A disaster for the world? Tick.

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Critical minerals rush - The Facts

Critical minerals rush - The Facts

Rising demand; Where from?; Big dirty business; Real needs?

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Country Profile: Senegal

Country Profile: Senegal

The photos, facts, and politics of Senegal.

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Only Planet

Only Planet

Omnicorp lab rats, by Marc Roberts.

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