Country Profiles
Encyclopedic resources about population, climate, geography, and history.
CIA World Factbook
- https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/
- From their site: “The World Factbook provides information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 266 world entities. Our Reference tab includes: maps of the major world regions, as well as Flags of the World, a Physical Map of the World, a Political Map of the World, and a Standard Time Zones of the World map.”
Library of Congress Country Studies
- http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html
- Has very detailed information about every country’s history, which is helpful since the World Factbook is lacking in historical information.
BBC News
- http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/country_profiles/default.stm
- Profiles each country and has basic facts, but has helpful information about political leaders and current events.
Development
Articles and statistics about the state of development in each country.
Eldis
- http://www.eldis.org/go/country-profiles
- Abstracts and full reports about the key issues in health policy and development. The academic and technical language makes for challenging reading but the in-depth information is useful.
UNICEF
- http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/index.html
- Specific information about issues facing children in each country.
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Cultural Tips
Advice on acceptable social rules, standard customs, and etiquette in different nations.
Cultural Crossing
- http://www.culturecrossing.net/index.php
- Short, very general tips for different countries
Kwitessential
- Detailed tips on customs and cultures
Religious Atmosphere
Information about unreached people groups, persecution, and religious freedom.
Joshua Project
- http://www.joshuaproject.net/index.php
- Interactive tools to inform you about unreached peoples in your country of choice.
Persecution.org
- http://www.persecution.org/suffering/country_info.php
- Lists countries where persecution is taking place and links to the State Department’s religious freedom reports.
Open Doors
- http://www.opendoorsusa.org/content/view/962/21/
- Lists short descriptions of the 50 countries where the most persecution is taking place and gives prayer points.
Voice of the Martyrs
- http://www.persecution.net/countryreports.htm
- Lists a short history of the presence of Christianity in each country, as well as prayer points.
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Health
Recommendations for vaccinations and information about general health concerns.
Center for Disease Control and Prevention
- http://wwwn.cdc.gov/travel/
- Comprehensive list of destinations and information about how to prepare for a visit to each one.
World Health Organization:
- http://www.who.int/ith/en/index.html
- Similar to the CDC travel page, this page provides info about vaccinations and such.
- http://www.who.int/countries/en/
- This page has links to each country’s health statistics…infant mortality, access to clean water, etc. Useful in educating your team about the overall state of the country, but not useful as to how to safeguard their own health while they’re there.
Travel
Advice about passports, visas, travel warnings, and things to watch out for in each country.
U.S. State Department
- http://www.state.gov/travel/
- The first place for U.S. citizens to seek information on passports, visas, travel advisories, and emergency information.
The Lonely Planet
- http://www.lonelyplanet.com/
- Tons of travel tips, even though the intended audience seems to be tourists.
