This essay explores the traditional Sudanese beauty practices of shulukh (facial scarification) and dagg al-shaloufa (lip tattooing) as markers of identity, beauty, and tribal belonging. Tracing their historical roots and symbolic meanings, it examines their social and gender dimensions and documents their gradual decline due to education, urbanization, globalization, and health concerns.
As universities in Khartoum prepare to resume operations, students face profound academic disruption, displacement, and uncertainty. This article argues that the return should not be limited to reopening campuses, but must also address learning gaps. It highlights the importance of flexible academic policies, blended and digital learning, fair admission and assessment systems, and protection for students from unjustified financial burdens, viewing this return as a genuine opportunity to reform higher education in Sudan.
This article documents the Kijana Jitambue Sasa Challenge, a youth-led art and music initiative redefining sexual and reproductive health education in Mwanza, Tanzania. Facing high adolescent pregnancy rates, low HIV-prevention knowledge, and entrenched silence around sexuality, the project paired SRHR education with creative expression. Through boot-camps, original songs, visual art, and community performances, adolescents became trusted messengers within schools, families, and faith spaces.
Thie essay traces a student-led initiative at the University of Khartoum that emerged in 2025 to restore the spirit of education amid destruction. What began as a spontaneous act of care evolved into a collective effort to reclaim the university as a space of knowledge, memory, and hope.
By Butros Nicola and Khansa Taha
Plastic pollution along Juba’s Bahr Al Jabal River is endangering livelihoods, health, ecosystems, and cultural heritage. Driven by rapid urban growth, single-use plastics, and weak waste management, the crisis has turned the Nile into a carrier of waste. While grassroots groups and youth-led initiatives offer hope, lasting change depends on stronger policies and coordinated action to protect the river for future generations.