Haiti and Afghanistan. If you wanted to pick two places on earth that convey chronic hopelessness and dysfunction, you’d be hard-pressed to find better examples. Yet here we are, with articles about them in today’s issue.

Most often, these countries are ignored, cast in terminal woe, or looked at through the distant lens of geopolitics. In short, they easily recede from our attention. That’s understandable. For most of us, their stories will not affect our morning commute. By most definitions of “relevance,” they are not high on our list.

But the Monitor has a different view. Our common humanity is relevant. Progress for every corner of the world is relevant. The values we share and hope to uphold are relevant. Not just for historians or foreign-policy buffs. For everyone. Our global story teaches us, deepens us, enriches us.

What does the manner of the United States’ departure from Afghanistan say about its sense of responsibility? We examine three key perspectives. And must we view the assassination of Haiti’s president as another chapter in a story of unrelenting despair? There are seeds of hope buried deep, says writer Kathie Klarreich. Can they flourish? That is relevant to all of us.

“When I heard about the assassination, I had a list of people I wanted to call to see how they were doing, but I didn’t because I knew they’d be busy figuring out next steps about how to make their country better,” Kathie tells me. “Everyone in their own way is trying to figure this out, and because they haven’t lost hope, I haven’t lost hope.”