David Blanton

David Blanton is the founder and executive director of Friends of Serengeti, a nonprofit conservation association that works with travel companies to advance sustainable tourism.

October 20, 2026

Columns/Geopolitics

The French Protests Are Being Misunderstood

The French protests that are spreading over Europe are not receiving proper attention. The explanation that students all over France, with the disturbances spreading into Italy and Belgium, are burning down historic

Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s illicit cigarette trade costs government Rs 29.5bn in lost tax revenue

Sri Lanka lost an estimated Rs 29.5 billion in potential tax revenue in 2025 because of illicit factory-made cigarette consumption, according to an economic assessment by Oxford Economics, which estimates that illegal products accounted for 20% of the market despite

October 20, 2026

Sri Lanka: Rising Prices and People’s Patience

Sri Lanka

A familiar storm gathers Sri Lanka’s inflation reached 8% in September 2026, above the Central Bank’s 3–7% target band for a third straight month,

Women’s Role in Peacekeeping Stalls Worldwide

Editor's Choice/Geopolitics

More than 25 years after the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security, women’s representation in multilateral peace operations

How Maasai Women’s Dairy Initiatives Protect Wildlife and Communities

September 23, 2025

Columns/Human Rights

The Serengeti—whose name means “endless plains” in the Maasai language—is one of the most renowned natural landscapes in the world. Spanning northern Tanzania and extending into southwestern Kenya, this vast ecosystem is home to

Tourism’s Role in Protecting Kenyan Wildlife

March 8, 2025

Geopolitics/Kenya/Social

The Serengeti ecosystem is regarded as one of our planet’s greatest natural treasures, where one can witness“the largest remaining unaltered animal migration in the world,” according to UNESCO. Kenya’s share of the Serengeti plains