Carol Hills

Senior Producer and Host

Carol Hills was part of the original team that created and launched "The World" in 1996. Currently, she is a producer, occasional reporter and host who proudly calls herself a generalist. Carol is interested in everything from US policy options in Afghanistan to the rise in pet ownership in the Middle East. She also has an interest in global humor (yes, sometimes it actually does translate) and produces a weekly narrated slideshow of political cartoons from around the globe. 

Over the years, Carol has reported from Cuba, Nigeria, and Vietnam. She was a Knight Fellow at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology during 2001-2002 and has a master's degree from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy. Carol got her journalistic start in Boston on "The Ten O’Clock News" with Christopher Lydon.

tablescape of assorted Nigerian foods

A food writer celebrates the tastes of her hometown: Lagos, Nigeria

New York Times food writer Yewande Komolafe grew up in Lagos, Nigeria. When she moved to the US in her late teens, she recreated her favorite dishes by memory. Now she celebrates her home town's cuisine in her new book: "My Everyday Lagos: Nigerian Cooking at Home and in the Diaspora." Host Marco Werman speaks to Komolafe about what inspired her book.

A food writer celebrates the tastes of her hometown: Lagos, Nigeria
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, left, shake hands with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, in Amman, Jordan, Oct. 13, 2023.

The Palestinian political system needs to be rebuilt on ‘national consensus,’ says political activist

The Palestinian political system needs to be rebuilt on ‘national consensus,’ says political activist
Two robotic guns sit atop a guard tower bristling with surveillance cameras pointed at the Aroub refugee camp in the West Bank, Oct. 6, 2022.

Lapses in Israeli intelligence amid Hamas attack come as 'a complete shock,' says analyst

Lapses in Israeli intelligence amid Hamas attack come as 'a complete shock,' says analyst
Supporters of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Imran Khan throw stones toward police during a protest against the arrest of Khan, in Karachi, Pakistan, May 9, 2023.

A shaky political situation in Pakistan could get worse with arrest of former PM Imran Khan

A shaky political situation in Pakistan could get worse with arrest of former PM Imran Khan
Artwork by Nelli Isupova, who lives in Kyiv, Ukraine.

A family of artists expresses how the war in Ukraine impacts their creative work

A family of artists expresses how the war in Ukraine impacts their creative work
A member of auction house staff poses for a picture with a 19-carat pink diamond at Christie's auction house, in London, Oct. 18, 2017.

Belgium faces pressure to support sanctions on Russian diamonds

Belgium has to decide how to proceed amid calls for sanctions against Russia's diamond industry. The Belgian city of Antwerp plays a big role in the global diamond trade, and would have much to lose. Hans Merket, of the International Peace Information Service (IPIS), joined the World's host Marco Werman from Antwerp to discuss the situation.

Belgium faces pressure to support sanctions on Russian diamonds
The exterior of the newly opened Dikan Center for photography in Accra, Ghana.

The new Dikan Center in Ghana displays a collection of photography from across Africa

Paul Ninson joins The World's host Marco Werman to discuss the opening of the new photography library that he created, called the Dikan Center in Accra, Ghana, to showcase work by Africans and African Americans.

The new Dikan Center in Ghana displays a collection of photography from across Africa
building with barbed wire

Disappeared Uyghur author's novel translated into English for the first time

Darren Byler, a Uyghur scholar, joined The World's host Carol Hills from Vancouver to discuss the book, "The Backstreets: A Novel from Xinjiang."

Disappeared Uyghur author's novel translated into English for the first time
A male African Cheetah named Dark is released at his enclosure at the Nehru Zoological Park in Hyderabad, India, May 12, 2012.

Cheetahs are being reintroduced to India after their extinction there 70 years ago

It is the first time a large carnivore is being moved from one continent to another and reintroduced into the wild.

Cheetahs are being reintroduced to India after their extinction there 70 years ago
The hind legs or 'pollen basket' of a pollinating bee clings to a Salvia 'Mystic Spires Blue' sage flower at the United States Botanic Garden in Washington

Alberta's diminishing bee colonies could have severe economic, environmental implications, expert says

Canada's Alberta province has seen a 50% loss in its bee colonies this year alone. Experts fear this could have a major impact on crops and honey production. Rod Scarlett, executive director of the Canadian Honey Council, spoke to The World's host Marco Werman about the situation.

Alberta's diminishing bee colonies could have severe economic, environmental implications, expert says
A man holds a child as they watch a dance performance at the International Grand Bazaar in Urumqi in western China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Leaked Xinjiang police files are a 'devastating' glimpse of abuses against Uyghur detainees in China, expert says

Darren Byler, who specializes in China's treatment of Uyghurs at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, discussed insights from the leaked data with The World's host Marco Werman.

Leaked Xinjiang police files are a 'devastating' glimpse of abuses against Uyghur detainees in China, expert says
Ugandan author Kakwenza Rukirabashaija is seen in an undated photo posted to his Twitter Dec. 25, 2021.

'The torture of political prisoners is real' in Uganda, says poet and free speech activist

Ugandan poet Stella Nyanzi talks about her friend, the satirist Kakwenza Rukirabashaija, and his torture while recently under military detention. His crime? Calling Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni's son "obese" in a series of tweets last December.

'The torture of political prisoners is real' in Uganda, says poet and free speech activist
This image made available by NASA shows an artist's rendering of the Parker Solar Probe approaching the sun.

'Once in a lifetime': NASA makes historic trip through the sun's corona, solar physicist explains

NASA has announced that its Parker Solar Probe has flown through the sun's corona. Kelly Korreck, a solar physicist at NASA's headquarters, joined The World's host Marco Werman to discuss this remarkable feat that took 60 years to accomplish.

'Once in a lifetime': NASA makes historic trip through the sun's corona, solar physicist explains
Soldiers patrol along the Malecón seawall in Havana, Cuba

Cuban govt supporters resorted to tactics they haven't used in decades to suppress political dissidents, professor says

Lillian Guerra, a professor of Cuban history and the director of the Cuba Program at the University of Florida, described the culture of repudiation in the country to The World's host Marco Werman.

Cuban govt supporters resorted to tactics they haven't used in decades to suppress political dissidents, professor says
An image of a professional tree planter hard at work in British Colombia.

Professional tree planting: 'It's a combination between industrial labor and high-intensity sport'

Filmmaker and photographer Rita Leistner, who started planting trees professionally over 20 years ago, says the work is "brutal." Her new film, "Forest for the Trees," documents the hard labor and sense of community fostered among Canada's professional tree planters.

Professional tree planting: 'It's a combination between industrial labor and high-intensity sport'