World

• With US-Russia nuclear arms pact expiring, new players like China pose challenges

  As a key nuclear arms agreement is set to expire, the world ponders what kind of arms-control architecture needs to be built to address the geopolitical challenges of the 21st century. 
• 2026 Winter Olympics are set to soar. Here are the faces to watch.

  For the first time in 20 years, the Winter Olympics are back in the Alps. At the 2026 Milan Cortina Games, there will be other firsts – from near gender parity to the debut of ski mountaineering. 
• As global trade splinters, India finds leverage

  At a time when U.S. trade policy has alienated traditional allies and drawn middle powers closer together, what do India’s recent trade deals tell us about its position in the emerging global order?
• In southeastern Ukraine’s bitter cold, troops try to halt relentless Russian advance

  Russia and Ukraine might be negotiating elsewhere. But along the battlefront in Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine, where Russian forces have been advancing under cover of drones and glide bombs, peace talks seem far away.
• Venezuela hopes oil revival will ease economic woes. People want political change, too.

  President Donald Trump and Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez are banking on oil for the success of their political futures. But that may not be enough for Venezuelans who want more than just economic relief.

USA

• As tech companies race to build data centers, more communities are pushing back

  Concerns about electricity bills and local impacts are fueling bipartisan opposition to the massive data centers that power the digital economy, from cloud services to AI chatbots. In Wisconsin, as in other states, the tussles are personal – and fraught.
• Congress ends the shutdown. Now, Democrats eye immigration enforcement reforms.

  Republicans and Democrats in Congress voted to end the shutdown, but remain divided on their next big task: Whether to reform how the Department of Homeland Security conducts immigration enforcement. Democrats are pushing for more accountability; the GOP is pushing back. 
• Beyond Minneapolis, claims of excessive force by immigration agents are rising

  In cases that haven’t gotten a national spotlight, U.S. citizens and legal residents say they’ve been tackled, kicked, or injured by federal immigration enforcement personnel. 
• Goodbye, granola bars. Hello, whole milk. How MAHA is reshaping school programs.

  Schools are imposing new nutrition guidelines and reinstating the Presidential Fitness Test as they adjust to the “Make America Healthy Again” agenda in federal policy.
• Vision and vibe: New smart glasses offer our reporter a glimpse of future computing

  Meta and Ray-Ban have teamed up for the latest smart glasses. Our reporter tries them and reflects on ways high-tech lenses might enhance daily life.

Editorials

• The Monitor's ViewLifelines amid a deepfake flood

  AI is allowing people to produce and share highly manipulated, often sexualized, imagery. Governments, tech leaders, and citizens are being called to rebalance core freedoms and protection from harm.
• The Monitor's ViewEurope’s future pivots on a Hungarian election

  Voters in the Central European nation “yearn” for integrity after nearly 16 years of antidemocratic misrule by Viktor Orbán. They largely back a new party promising clean governance.
• EditorialsAn Olympic spirit of discipline – and love

  The Monitor’s editor-in-chief made a bid for the 2002 Olympics and came away with an essential lesson. In the Olympics, as in journalism, humanity is prized above all else.
• The Monitor's ViewA glint of liberation for Venezuela

  The country is gradually releasing political prisoners. But some say a recent offer of “amnesty” implies they have broken the law – when, in fact, they have been exercising legitimate democratic rights. 
• EditorialsOne redesigned magazine. One integrated Monitor.

  The Monitor has just launched our newly redesigned print magazine. We hope that it serves to connect you, expansively, to the world around you.

Economy

• How profits and resources drive foreign policy in the Trump era

  Responding in part to Chinese competition, President Trump is more aggressively leveraging economic tools in foreign policy, from Venezuela to Greenland.
• The Trump economy: No recession, but no boom either

  So far, predictions that President Trump’s tariffs would drive up inflation have not been borne out. But expect to hear more political debate about affordability this year.
• Powell pushes back on Fed probe as Trump denies intimidation charge

  Fed Chair Jerome Powell, backed by past chairs and bipartisan lawmakers, accuses the Trump administration of using a DOJ criminal probe to force lower interest rates.
• 2026 could be a ‘defining’ year for AI, from shopping to electricity

  Artificial intelligence impacts grew in 2025. Experts say the technology is poised to become an even greater part of people’s daily lives in 2026.
• Trump wants US companies to produce Venezuelan oil. But will they?

  In its takeover of Venezuela, the Trump administration aims to give U.S. Gulf Coast refineries access to the country’s large reserves of heavy oil.

Environment

• A year after LA wildfires, slow recovery but ‘a feeling of hope’

  The Eaton and Palisades wildfires destroyed 13,000 homes, and left thousands more uninhabitable. Some survivors are frustrated at the pace of recovery. 
• EPA’s new clean-water rules: What a farmer, builder, and scientist say

  The EPA proposes to narrow the scope of a key part of the Clean Water Act – a change criticized by environmental groups but welcomed by businesses.
• FocusRegaining a sense of place: People and culture come first after Lahaina wildfire

  After the deadliest fire in 100 years of U.S. history, houses are rising from the ground once again in Hawaii. But the people of Lahaina are trying to do more than rebuild buildings – they are also trying to rebuild their culture.
• Cover StoryMake Oil Great Again? Even California drills as global climate action stalls.

  Gov. Gavin Newsom made green energy a priority. But as President Donald Trump makes oil the focus of U.S. energy policy, even California considers “Drill, baby, drill.”
• The ExplainerClimate money is flowing around the globe. Sometimes, corruption makes it disappear.

  Protesters accuse the Philippine government of misusing billions in climate money. One issue concerns whether such spending reaches the most vulnerable.

Technology

• China’s humanoid robots are gaining ground – but they’re not there yet

  The U.S. and China are racing to build humanoid robots capable of performing many daily tasks – but the complexity of home and business environments makes that challenging. 
• First LookGeorgia leads toward a nuclear future with its first operating reactor

  Georgia Power Co. announced one of its two new reactors reached self-sustaining nuclear fission on Monday. The announcement is a key step toward reaching commercial operation of nuclear energy in the United States. 
• First LookCellphone at 50: Its inventor reflects on mobile advances and risks

  Cellphone inventor Martin Cooper, who placed the first mobile call on April 3, 1973, remains hopeful the technology can transform lives, but he’s also concerned about its impact. “We don’t have any privacy anymore,” Mr. Cooper said at a trade show in Spain.
• First LookWhat links toothbrushes and weapons systems? A $52 billion investment.

  The U.S. government has reached a rare bipartisan agreement to invest $52 billion to develop advanced computer chips. Factories, autos, appliances, electronics, toys, toothbrushes, and weapons systems all depend on semiconductors.
• First LookInternet speech: Supreme Court to weigh who is protected online

  Two cases before the U.S. Supreme Court this week challenge Section 230, a 1996 law that protects tech companies from liability for material posted on their networks. The cases are part of a global trend toward holding social media platforms accountable.

Science

• Russia sees opportunity in thawing Arctic. But it’s looking for partners, too.

  Russia is ramping up efforts to take advantage of the opening Arctic, both through military and economic means, and through international cooperation.
• Difference Maker‘The tools to imagine solutions’: Science educator inspires Pakistani children

  Science Fuse, a social enterprise, primarily teaches children in impoverished areas, including the Machar Colony slum area in Karachi.
• Trump sees a ‘con’ in climate change. Xi sees cash.

  While President Trump decries climate change as a “con,” China’s Xi Jinping is going all-in on green tech. The latter approach is providing some hope as the COP30 climate conference gathers in Brazil.
• Cover StoryMake Oil Great Again? Even California drills as global climate action stalls.

  Gov. Gavin Newsom made green energy a priority. But as President Donald Trump makes oil the focus of U.S. energy policy, even California considers “Drill, baby, drill.”
• The ExplainerClimate money is flowing around the globe. Sometimes, corruption makes it disappear.

  Protesters accuse the Philippine government of misusing billions in climate money. One issue concerns whether such spending reaches the most vulnerable.

Culture

• Purrs in paradise: Lanai Cat Sanctuary rescues felines and protects vulnerable birds

  This four-acre, open-air haven exists in Hawaii to make feral cats “become friendly,” says the sanctuary’s director of operations. The ultimate aim is to make it easier for the felines to find loving forever homes.
• Minneapolis inspires protest songs, from The Boss to Billy Bragg

  Billy Bragg, who just wrote and released the song “City of Heroes,” talks with the Monitor about the impact of protest songs.
• Warming up to winter: How I learned to lean into the season

  When the doldrums and darker days of winter descend, embrace the renewal, and exuberance, of the season. 
• In Oscar-nominated ‘One Battle After Another,’ a message for a troubled America?

  In “One Battle After Another,” nominated for best picture, the risks of political extremism come to the fore in a film that might feel uncomfortably close to the current news cycle.
• Southeastern Spain has a dry landscape. Sensor technology is bearing fruit.

  Advances in agricultural tech play a key role in ensuring that crops receive what they need, particularly under extreme environmental conditions. 

Books

• How an Iraqi Jewish family grew roots in a new land

  In her memoir “Always Carry Salt,” Samantha Ellis builds “an ark” for the next generation of her family. It involves culture, cuisine, and history.
• Snow day? No better time to dive into January’s 10 best books.

  Our reviewers’ picks for this month include a tribute to winter, a police blotter’s-worth of mysteries, and a real-life spy thriller involving the KGB.
• What trees mean to Russia, through a history of war and peace

  Sophie Pinkham’s “The Oak and the Larch” traces how Russian history and literature have shaped – and been shaped by – its deep forests.
• How Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson ended up pitted against each other

  Author Howard Bryant juxtaposes the politics and power of the two men in “Kings and Pawns: Jackie Robinson and Paul Robeson in America.”
• One man held the keys to KGB records. He turned them over to MI6.

  “The Spy in the Archive” by Gordon Corera spotlights a KGB archivist whose actions led to the biggest counterintelligence bonanza of the postwar period.