Hump Day recs - 9/6/23

Listen:David Byrne and Choir! Choir! Choir! perform a David Bowie classic. Check out the musical magic as David Byrne, frontman for the classic 70s-80s band Talking Heads, joins several hundred friends to bring new life to the iconic Bowie anthem “Heroes.” – Willis

Read:The War That Doesn’t Say its Name. Scholar and journalist Jason Stearns dives deep into the roots of the conflicts in the mineral-rich eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo, focusing in particular on why cycles of violence continue two decades after the 2003 peace deal that led to billions in international aid and the largest U.N. peacekeeping mission in world history. – Matt Kendrick

See: A Frank Lloyd Wright house. As a Michigander, I’ve had the opportunity to tour Wright’s Meyer May House in Grand Rapids, and I’ve enjoyed seeing the Pope-Leighey House in Alexandria, VA. But nothing prepared me for the wow factor of Fallingwater, which I visited this weekend. Built of locally quarried stone and sand, and perched over a waterfall, this rural Pennsylvania home — constructed as a weekend getaway — offers stunning views from every window that pull you toward the great outdoors. If you love great design, find a Wright house in your area. – Tracy

Listen: “The Retrievals.” The women in this story who went to the Yale Fertility Center for IVF treatment thought they were in the best hands at a time of intense vulnerability. What happened to them next was nightmarish. This five-part series from Serial and the New York Times tells a dark story with compassion and nuance. – Gabrielle

More from GZERO Media

A miniature statue of US President Donald Trump stands next to a model bunker-buster bomb, with the Iranian national flag in the background, in Kananaskis, Alberta, Canada, on June 19, 2025.
STR/NurPhoto

US President Donald Trump said Thursday that he will decide whether to bomb Iran’s nuclear facilities “in the next two weeks,” a move that re-opens the door to negotiations, but also gives the US more time to position military forces for an operation.

People ride motorcycles as South Korea's LGBTQ community and supporters attend a Pride parade, during the Seoul Queer Culture Festival, in Seoul, South Korea, June 14, 2025.
REUTERS/Kim Soo-hyeon

June is recognized in more than 100 countries in the world as “Pride Month,” marking 55 years since gay liberation marches began commemorating the Stonewall riots – a pivotal uprising against the police’s targeting of LGBTQ+ communities in New York.

Port of Nice, France, during the United Nations Oceans Conference in June 2025.
María José Valverde

Eurasia Group’s biodiversity and sustainability analyst María José Valverde sat down with Rebecca Hubbard, the director of the High Seas Alliance, to discuss the High Seas Treaty.

Housing shortages in the US and Canada have become a significant problem – and a contentious political issue – in recent years. New data on housing construction this week suggest neither country is making enough progress to solve the shortfalls. Here’s a snapshot of the situation on both sides of the border.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford speaks during a meeting of northeastern U.S. Governors and Canadian Premiers, in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., June 16, 2025.
REUTERS/Sophie Park

While the national level drama played out between Donald Trump and Mark Carney at the G7 in Kananaskis, a lot of important US-Canada work was going on with far less fanfare in Boston, where five Canadian premiers met with governors and delegations from seven US states.

- YouTube

What’s next for Iran’s regime? Ian Bremmer says, “It’s much more likely that the supreme leader ends up out, but the military… continues to run the country.”