DUBLIN, Ireland – Same-sex marriage was signed into law in Ireland on Thursday, five months after a historic referendum saw the traditionally Catholic nation become the world's first country to vote for gay unions.
For some governments, improving their country's standing in the World Bank's Doing Business survey has become a national priority. Yet the results of such efforts sometimes are deceptive.
From Barbados to Belize, Cancún to Tulúm, a viny brown seaweed known as sargassum has invaded the Caribbean basin this year. Vast floating mats have washed up and buried beaches. "It's been horrendous," said David Freestone, executive secretary of the Sargasso Sea Commission.
President Luis Guillermo Solís said a new poverty index, created by Oxford University, puts people over statistics. The index reported that 21.8 percent of Costa Rican households are considered poor, totaling 1.26 million people.
Bolivia announced plans Thursday to build a $300 million nuclear complex, including a research reactor, with Russian technology and help from Argentina.
China announced the end of its hugely controversial one-child policy after decades of strict, sometimes brutal enforcement. All couples will now be allowed two children.
The Honduran appellant hopes the complaint will push the government to act on other pending petitions from gay refugees fleeing violence in the region.
The U.N.'s top climate negotiator, Christiana Figueres, a Costa Rican, told Reddit users Wednesday that she's optimistic for success at the upcoming Paris climate talks, but frustrated with the pace of progress. She also praised Costa Rica for "its extremely clean energy generation."
