Sam Meadows

London, Medellín, Oxford

Producer, Writer and Editor at Freelance

Freelance Assistant Foreign Editor at The Times

Journalist. Wildlife. Conservation. Environment. I write Wild Crimes, a newsletter about environmental crime. Link below. Also for the Times, Guardian, BBC etc

Articles

The blight of illegal mining in Peru

3 weeks ago | thespectator.com | Sam Meadows

It was gold that brought the Spanish conquistadors to Peru in the 1500s. More than 500 years on and the precious metal is still causing problems. Gold mining came into sharp focus at the end of April when 13 miners were found, naked, bound and gagged, at the bottom of a mine in Pataz which had been taken by an armed gang. Some bore signs of torture and there was evidence they had been executed. The main suspect behind the attacks was arrested last week.
Illegal gold mining is blighting Peru

3 weeks ago | spectator.com.au | Sam Meadows

It was gold that brought the Spanish conquistadors to Peru in the 1500s. More than 500 years on and the precious metal is still causing problems. Gold mining came into sharp focus at the end of April when 13 miners were found, naked, bound and gagged, at the bottom of a mine in Pataz which had been taken by an armed gang.
Illegal gold mining is blighting Peru

3 weeks ago | spectator.co.uk | Sam Meadows

It was gold that brought the Spanish conquistadors to Peru in the 1500s. More than 500 years on and the precious metal is still causing problems. Gold mining came into sharp focus at the end of April when 13 miners were found, naked, bound and gagged, at the bottom of a mine in Pataz which had been taken by an armed gang. Some bore signs of torture and there was evidence they had been executed. The main suspect behind the attacks was arrested last week.
Bolivia’s fuel crisis could cause a populist turn

1 month ago | spectator.com.au | Sam Meadows

‘Some of them will have been waiting for two days.’ My taxi driver was pointing at a queue of lorries, vans and cars stretching essentially the entire length of Villazon, a small town on Bolivia’s border with Argentina. At the front of the queue? A petrol station. Bolivia is in the grip of a severe fuel crisis.
How freeing the peso has impacted Argentina's economy

1 month ago | thespectator.com | Sam Meadows

It was Argentina’s “liberation day,” Javier Milei proclaimed last week after meeting US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in the Pink House, Argentina’s presidential palace. On Friday, he had shocked the country by lifting the cepo – “clamp” in Spanish – which has restricted currency trades in South America’s second-largest economy for so long. “After 15 years of capital controls, we have cast off the anvil to which we were chained,” Milei said.
Milei freed the peso. Argentina’s economy survived

1 month ago | spectator.co.uk | Sam Meadows

It was Argentina’s ‘liberation day’, Javier Milei proclaimed last week after meeting US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent in the Pink House, Argentina’s presidential palace. On Friday, he had shocked the country by lifting the cepo – ‘clamp’ in Spanish – which has restricted currency trades in South America’s second-largest economy for so long. ‘After 15 years of capital controls, we have cast off the anvil to which we were chained,’ Milei said.
Javier Milei is making ground in his war on poverty

2 months ago | thespectator.com | Sam Meadows

Javier Milei has reduced poverty in Argentina. This week brought the publication of a tranche of government poverty figures, covering the period from July to December last year. Much had been made of the immediate surge in poverty that occurred in Milei’s first six months in office. The fall – down to 38.1 percent from 41.7 percent in the same period last year, when the country was governed by the Perónists – would seem to be a vindication of the chainsaw-wielding libertarian and his policies.
Javier Milei has cut poverty

2 months ago | spectator.com.au | Sam Meadows

Javier Milei has reduced poverty in Argentina. This week brought the publication of a tranche of government poverty figures, covering the period from July to December last year. Much had been made of the immediate surge in poverty that occurred in Milei’s first six months in office.
Javier Milei has cut poverty. More challenges await

2 months ago | spectator.co.uk | Sam Meadows

Javier Milei has reduced poverty in Argentina. This week brought the publication of a tranche of government poverty figures, covering the period from July to December last year. Much had been made of the immediate surge in poverty that occurred in Milei’s first six months in office. The fall – down to 38.1 per cent from 41.7 per cent in the same period last year, when the country was governed by the Peronists – would seem to be a vindication of the chainsaw-wielding libertarian and his policies.
Price breakdown and feature comparison

Mar 11, 2025 | sg.finance.yahoo.com | Sam Meadows

In this article: Ride-hailing services have been in the UK for a number of years now, however, it’s not always clear which to go for. Two of the biggest in the UK are Bolt and Uber, and many of us face the dilemma of which to choose. Both Uber and Bolt are pre-booked taxi services (as opposed to taxis you hail down in the street), similar to other options such as Addison Lee or your local minicab firm.