Democracy is never a finished product. It has to be nurtured, questioned, and occasionally defended against forces that quietly erode it from within. That message ran through EU Ambassador to Kenya Andreas Peschke’s inaugural media engagement, where he chose to frame the relationship between Kenya and the European Union not as donor and recipient, or simply as partners in development, but as “partners in democracy.” It was a deliberate choice of words, and perhaps a necessary one at a time when democratic institutions are under strain in many parts of the world. Peschke said the challenges facing democratic systems can…

In Kansas City, Missouri, a single confirmed case of measles has stirred a familiar but urgent concern among local health officials—and it’s a concern that now stretches far beyond the metro area. As cases climb across the country, the Jackson County Health Department is dealing with a situation that feels both preventable and frustrating. Staff members were directly exposed to the patient, and while they are now watching themselves for symptoms, the department has stressed that everyone in the building is vaccinated. That, officials say, is the single best defense against a virus that can linger in the air and…