Every morning, as I step out of my home to go to work, I am faced with the same nuisances: the dilapidated road in front of my house which has been like this for as long as I can remember, the piled up garbage here and there, the open manholes spreading obnoxious smells, and the nonchalant vendors selling vegetables (and even fish) taking up half the space of the road.

About two and a half years ago, a global e-commerce company published its plan to set up its second headquarters, and invited proposals from cities that would be interested to collaborate with them in setting this up.

To me, this old, historic city is dying. The only thing that is developing in Dhaka is its population. The ideal manifesto for this city—and the only way to make it liveable again—involves decentralisation.

As the impeachment trial of US President Donald Trump unfolds in the US Senate, something very strange is going on.

Mimi Onuoha, an artist and adjunct professor at New York University, made an art installation titled “The Library of Missing Datasets”.

How does it feel to live day in and day out in a city where the air is not only heavy with unhealthy particles but bitter recriminations and even a heavier sense of doom and gloom?

A woman is seen squatting on the ground in front of a large pile of garbage. She is holding a baby whose face appears over her shoulder.

In what was perhaps the most public endorsement of extra judicial killings by lawmakers in Bangladesh, multiple Members of the Parliament on January 14 came out in support of killing the rapists in “crossfire”.

Global trade is being disrupted by the tax disputes over technology giants who mostly operate from Silicon Valley.

The recent rape incident of a second year Dhaka University student has reignited widespread public frustration on the prevailing culture of impunity for rape in our country.

Rafia dreads going to her phone carrier’s customer service centre.

Let us do an exercise. Clench your fist, and then gently loosen your fingers a little.

Let’s face what lies ahead with open eyes: 2020 is going to be a very tough year for the world, and developing countries in particular. The infant decade has already begun with thousands fleeing to beaches in Australia from raging bushfires, and the Middle East bracing for more conflict after a US air strike in Baghdad killed Iran’s top general.

On November 29, 2019, The Daily Star announced the demise of its Star Weekend magazine and the birth of Toggle, quoting Heraclitus as a justification, but without giving him due credit.

There is little doubt that technology will drive everything in the coming days. The developed world is witnessing an artificial intelligence-driven transformation of technology, earlier than us—but we are also embracing it.

A US air strike near Baghdad International Airport (ORBI/BGW) resulted in the death of Iranian Major General Qassem Soleimani and several high-profile Iraqi paramilitary leaders on January 3.

As 2020 begins with news of escalating tensions between the United States and Iran, it is important that we reflect on the defining features of the 2010s for a better understanding of the times we’re going through.

In coming years, balanced social, economic and environmental development will be critical for achieving the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

As we bade farewell to the teens of this century, most of us—if not all of us—must have been looking back on our changes, gains and losses as a person, as a society and as a nation.

When Singa-pore was expelled from Malaysia in 1965 and thrust into an unwanted independence, its overall condition—economic, social and political—were not at all conducive.