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After a colleague鈥檚 arrest last week, Russian journalists did something very unexpected: They pushed back. It could be a pivotal challenge to Vladimir Putin鈥檚 repressive political culture.

Should tariffs be deployed to achieve political or diplomatic ends? Our reporters examine the host of questions that President Trump's threat against Mexico has raised.

Can sexual assault victims seek both justice and privacy? This story looks at two universities' requests that go to the heart of balancing compassion and fairness in court.聽

The words 鈥渃ity鈥� and 鈥渇orest鈥� don鈥檛 usually go together. But trees are enormously important to livable and safe urban environments. Just ask Eric Dihle, arborist for the city of Baltimore.

If you are looking for a few good books to curl up with this June, our reviewers have curated a list of 10 good reads, from 鈥渁 gorgeous, deeply affecting story鈥� about family and forgiveness to a kaleidoscopic journey through the Ottoman Empire.

Is a booming economy the only measure of the quality of life in a country?

That question has been under intense discussion in recent years. Critics have found financial measurements such as gross domestic product (GDP) inadequate. Attempts have been made to find other ways of measuring the well-being of a nation鈥檚 people, such as the annual World Happiness Report and the United Nations鈥� Millennium Development Goals.

In late May, New Zealand became the first country to design its budget around a specific set of measures of national 鈥渨ell-being.鈥� Government spending must show it contributes to at least one of five national goals: better mental health (including fewer suicides), less child poverty, help for minorities (Maoris and Pacific Islanders), moving to a low-carbon economy, or adapting successfully to the digital age.

Growth in GDP is often used to measure the well-being in a country. And growing wealth and human well-being has been found to go hand in hand in some ways.

But GDP, for example, can鈥檛 reflect the widening income inequality that is troubling the United States and other countries. Is a rising GDP representing a better life for everyone 鈥� or only a privileged few? GDP can paint an incomplete picture.聽

New Zealand鈥檚 new well-being budget doesn鈥檛 ignore economic growth, notes Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. But 鈥済rowth alone does not lead to a great country,鈥� she says. Despite its strong economy her country still faces daunting social problems, including suicide, homelessness, family violence, and child poverty.

The goal of the well-being budget, adds Finance Minister Grant Robertson, is to make New Zealand 鈥渂oth a great place to make a living, and a great place to make a life.鈥�

The budget is being criticized from both left and right. For those on the left, it fails to be radical enough; specifically, it fails to hike the capital gains tax, seen as a means to address income inequality. A member of the opposition center-right National Party has dismissed the budget as nothing more than a 鈥渕arketing campaign鈥� that will divert attention from facing future economic risks.

How do you measure happiness or well-being? Views differ on what Thomas Jefferson meant when he included the phrase 鈥渢he pursuit of Happiness鈥� in the Declaration of Independence as a natural right. Was the phrase merely a euphemism for the pursuit of wealth, as some suggest? Or did he see a natural yearning for other, deeper satisfactions that government must recognize?聽

Whether New Zealand has made the right choices for how to measure improvement in well-being remains to be seen. But its experiment can hold lessons for others. New Zealand may be a small, remote island nation of fewer than 5 million, but it is also a vibrant democracy that must mix a majority population that has European roots with a significant number of ethnic minorities, a challenge it shares with many other nations.

That鈥檚 why this tiny country鈥檚 big experiment with a well-being budget will likely get a close look in capitals around the world.