Gerry Hadden
Reporter
The WorldGerry Hadden reports for PRI'sThe World. His assignments have sent him to the northernmost village in Norway to the southern tip of Italy, and just about everywhere else in between.
Gerry Hadden is an author and journalist who began his public radio career in 1995 at public radio KPLU in Seattle. In 2000 NPR sent him to Los Angeles. Later that year, he went to Mexico City. From 2000 to 2004, he served as NPR's Mexico, Central America and Caribbean correspondent and covered presidential elections in Mexico, Guatemala, Haiti and Nicaragua. He reported extensively on immigration, drug trafficking and the varied cultures and characters of Latin America. He also traveled frequently to Cuba where he reported on U.S.-Cuba relations, the economy and the arts, as well as on daily life under Fidel Castro. Four years after watching Jean Bertrande Aristide be sworn in as Haiti's first democratically elected president, Hadden in 2004 covered Aristide's flight from power amidst an armed rebellion. That same year, Hadden moved with his family back to Spain, his second home. From Barcelona, he covers Spain and Europe for "The World," although his stories have taken him as far as Cape Verde, Istanbul and Kiev. He says that besides driving a taxi in New York, reporting for public radio is the most interesting job he's ever had. When he's not reporting he spends time with his partner, Anne, and their two children, Lula and Nino.
Lungs of stone: How Silica has sickened a generation of quartz cutters
Quartz is used for countertops in millions of homes around the world — the manmade stone is popular for its beauty and durability. But for workers who make, cut and install quartz counters, it can be deadly. The World reported from Turkey, Spain and Australia — three stops along the quartz countertop supply chain — to learn more about silicosis, an incurable and often fatal lung disease caused by inhaling dust laden with excessive amounts of a mineral called silica.
Residents of lush La Gomera Island aim to protect it from over-tourism
In the Canary archipelago, the Laurel forest of La Gomera island looks like something from the age of the dinosaurs. Because it is from the age of the dinosaurs. It’s lush and eerie, with “trees” that grow horizontally along the ground like enormous vines. In recent times, the UNESCO-protected forest has been threatened by building, forestry and tourists. Locals are figuring out ways to protect this special place.
In Spain, the price for power? Forgiving separatists.
Spain’s socialist party seems ready to form a coalition government after inconclusive elections in July. But to do so, they’ve had to promise to grant amnesty to fugitive Catalan separatists for their attempt to break away from Spain in 2017. The Catalan separatists’ party has become kingmaker, but folks on the right say the deal threatens Spain’s democracy.
Cow plague threatening ranches in southern Europe
Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease, or EHD, is typically found in the tropics and affects cattle, deer and other animals. But due to abnormally high temperatures in Europe, cases are now spreading quickly across Spain, Italy and France. The virus causes internal bleeding, miscarriages and sterility. It’s rarely fatal, but ranchers are concerned for their animals and livelihoods.