Why an Amazonian Tribe Built a Video Game

… and five other stories from outside your news bubble

Press image // Nadja Woczikosky Marin

We live in something of a bubble in the Western world — so it can be hard to find out what’s happening elsewhere. That’s why we started this weekly roundup of the best stories from beyond our borders. Every week, we monitor the newswires in South America, Africa, Eastern Europe, and Asia to uncover the stories you’re not hearing about if you only read Western media.


Brazil

The Kaxinawá people, an indigenous group living in the Amazon forest, has built a video game to preserve, explore, and share its culture and history. The game, Huni Kuin: os Caminhos da Jiboiam, lets players lead a pair of Kaxinawá children through a series of challenges and learn about the animals, plants, and spirits of the forest. It took three years to develop and will be released in April 2016 — with English subtitles if your Kaxinawá is a little rusty.

Japan

The sewage management department within Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism is making a set of collectible trading cards that feature manhole covers. The cards, which will be distributed for free at sewage plants, have pictures of the covers on one side and explanations of their designs on the other. The project’s creators are hoping to increase interest in the nation’s sewage system.

Arctic

Europe’s biggest dog sled race has begun in Norway’s northernmost county. The Finnmarksløpet calls for participants to cross 665 miles of icy terrain from the Atlantic port of Alta to the Russian border and back again — a journey that usually takes about a week. All participants are GPS-tracked, so you can follow their progress online.

Image credit: Badamczak80 // CC0

Chile

An accelerator program for female startup founders is now open in Santiago. Selected firms will receive 10 million Chilean pesos (about US$14,000) to develop their ideas and prototypes. Applications are open to startups from all countries, as long as the company has fewer than six months of development and a female founder.

Egypt

A group of companies from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates is looking to raise $3 billion to build an industrial city around the Suez Canal in Egypt. The project would involve the construction of 120 factories to produce everything from food to cars. The deputy chairman of the Suez Canal commission, Abdulqadir Darwish, says the aim is to carve out an area in Egypt free of bureaucracy to drive economic growth.

Argentina

Tubaro Gino, a student at Argentina’s National Technological University, has created a shirt that detects when you’re having cardiac problems. The 3D-printed garment relies on electrodes that are placed over the heart, as well as a small computer that plots pulse. It’s only a prototype right now, but Gino hopes to output 1,000 of them in the coming months.


If you’re a writer/reader living in one of these regions and think we’ve missed something incredible, tell us about it! We’re passionate about helping people throughout the world to share stories about how their lives are changing. Email ian@howwegettonext.com.