From the trading pits of the stock exchange to the marbled halls of power in Washington, everybody looks toward economists for explanations about the world around us and where it’s headed. While economists present themselves as sober scientists, they are actually closer to shamans, and their function in society is much like the prophets of old, John Mauldin said this morning on the Markets Hub.

In the damp, lush and humid rainforest of northern Sarawak, on Borneo, the indigenous Penan tribe who have lived on the island for centuries fight a daily battle against the logging juggernauts who want to raze their homes to the ground.

An Amazonian community has threatened to "go to war" with the Brazilian government after what they say is a military incursion into their land by dam builders.

The Munduruku indigenous group in Para state say they have been betrayed by the authorities, who are pushing ahead with plans to build a cascade of hydropower plants on the Tapajós river without their permission

One by one they squeezed into a meeting room at a Harlem needle exchange on Thursday — roughly two dozen men and women with drug problems — and Dimitri Mugianis, 50, greeted them all. This was not your average 12-step program meeting. A small altar was set up on top of a plastic box and the tall candles on it were lit and the lights were turned off.

Yeongdeung Halmang has departed Jeju until next year, leaving behind the promise of a bountiful marine harvest. The goddess of wind and sea visits the island for only 2 weeks each year, and during this time haenyeo (diving women) and others placate her with rituals and offerings. On the day of her departure, 2.14 (lunar), villages throughout Jeju hold a rite of farewell.