CLIMATE CRISIS — There was a time when rural Guatemalans and others living in agrarian areas would never have dreamed of leaving their home countries. But "back-to-back hurricanes, failed crops and extreme poverty are driving them to make the dangerous trek north to the U.S. border," Sabrina Rodriguez writes for Politico. The region’s climate change-related challenges are compounded by food insecurity, malnutrition, and poverty: "On any given day, [Guatemalans are] suffering various shocks — whether it’s droughts, floods, natural disasters, volcano eruptions, fluctuations in coffee prices," said Anu Rajaraman, the U.S. Agency for International Development’s mission director in Guatemala. "All of these incidents are exacerbating loss of income, loss of jobs, infrastructure damage … And then you have things like the pandemic that just exacerbate the situation." According to World Bank estimates, climate-related factors could displace as many as 143 million people in sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America and South Asia by 2050.    

DETENTION’S ROOTS — In a powerful visual explainer for Bloomberg CityLab, Tanvi Misra and Ariel Aberg-Riger break down the origins of immigration detention in the U.S. "The evolution of America’s immigration system originates in a quest to sort desirables from undesirables," they write. Photos and art help explain restrictive immigration laws’ xenophobic roots, as well as the lesser-told stories of Ellis Island and other entry points: Although many immigrants were allowed in, many others were denied entry and detained for years. The history leads to the present, when indefinite mass detention of immigrants has been normalized. The visual journey ends with a note of color: art by children and adults whom detention has affected. 

EMPLOYMENT TRAINING — Over at Forbes, Stuart Anderson explains how Optional Practical Training (OPT) — a program that authorizes up to 36 months of work in specialty fields for foreign students in the U.S. — is beneficial for the American economy. "There is no evidence that foreign students participating in the OPT program reduce job opportunities for U.S. workers," economist Madeline Zavodny found in a study for the National Foundation for American Policy (of which Anderson is the executive director). OPT is lawful and continues to attract highly educated individuals, making the U.S. more competitive. And without it, "America would almost certainly lose more international students to Canada and elsewhere," where programs for graduating international students are more generous.