Interactive Narratives

As the debate about Afghanistan persists, one set of voices is rarely heard: that of Afghan women. In its multifaceted project, "Behind The Veil", the Toronto Globe and Mail offers an unprecedented, honest look at life behind the veil for women from all walks of life in Kandahar, one of Afghanistan's most dangerous cities. On Saturday, September 19th, the Globe and Mail began to publish a six-part series of multimedia presentations online, in-paper features, web photo galleries, live online discussions and more. More…

Taking off your clothes in a bowling alley invites some questions about etiquette. Do you use the bathroom to undress? Will there be hangers available? All becomes abundantly clear on a rainy Sunday afternoon in New Westminster when the Skinnydipper Recreation Club takes over the five-pin section of Lucky Strike Bowling Lanes. More…

TJ Walker's raspy voice is difficult to make out over the sounds of the SkyTrain passing overhead and the constant traffic maneuvering around him. But as the slight man shuffles from his makeshift flower display at the corner of Expo Boulevard and Carrall Street to the curb, extending a dozen roses out to anyone who glances his way, his message is clear. "Flowers for food?" TJ, as he prefers to be called, asks a pedestrian obviously trying to get out of the rain. More…

Years after the Guatemalan Civil war indigenous native are still looking for Justice for war crimes. More…

Three years after hurricane Katrina residents of this small coastal town are still trying to put their lives back together. More…

Celebrating a bumpy, thrilling 50 years on Canada's oldest roller coaster. More…

Just don't call Aaron Wong an impersonator. While an illustrator and graphic designer by day, by night Mr. Wong channels Elvis Aaron Presley as an Elvis tribute artist. "I've been an Elvis fan since I was three years old," he recalls, "and in high school I even had a bad pompadour … its amazing I didn't get beaten up." The worst part about being an ETA, Mr. Wong says, is "unless you [use] a wig, you have to have the long Elvis hair." He can spend up to 45 minutes before a show getting his hair ready. But the best part of the show? The fans, and "seeing them from the stage and seeing the excitement in the their eyes." More…

The cliques, the gossip, the hot guy with a car: A retirement home is Grade 10 all over again, but here the new kids are pushing 90. Globe reporter Rebecca Dube and photographer Kevin Van Paassen spent three weeks with the residents of Toronto's Terraces of Baycrest. They explore life in 'the fishbowl. More…

The Globe and Mail’s landmark series, Breakdown: Canada’s Mental Health Crisis. The series aims to sweep away the myths and stigma around mental illness. It includes the stories of several Canadians who live with a mental illness and looks at public policy and how it is failing. It also invites readers to tell their stories and offer recommendations for ways to bring about change, which we invite you to do here as well. More…

Understanding the insurgents is a basic part of reporting on the Afghan war, but it's a remarkably difficult task. I've had several meetings with individual Taliban since I started covering Afghanistan, but personal contacts with the insurgents are growing more dangerous because they have started kidnapping journalists. So we decided to try an unscientific survey. I’ve been working with a researcher in Kandahar since September of 2006, meeting with him regularly for long sessions of tea and talk. He’s a close friend of The Globe and Mail translators in the city. I often send him on fact-finding trips to places that would be off-limits for anybody without strong connections to the insurgency, and over many months he has learned basic journalism skills. This project involved tasks at which he’s already proven reliable: Find a specific person, point a camera at them, ask questions from a list and, most challengingly, listen to the answers and formulate further questions. More…