The number of foreign orphans -- usually from developing countries -- adopted by families in wealthy countries has plummeted in recent years. In 2010, only 30,000 of the world's nearly 18 million orphans were adopted by parents from other countries. Nations such as South Korea, Brazil, China and Russia -- which traditionally allowed thousands of children to be adopted overseas -- have drastically restricted or shut down their foreign adoption programs, in part because of fears that the huge amounts of money spent by prospective parents and adoption agencies -- up to $100 million a year -- have led to bribery, fraud, trafficking and kidnapping. The Hague Convention, an international treaty to regulate international adoptions, has been endorsed by many countries, with mixed results. Adoption advocates say the crackdowns mean that up to 2 million children still languish in sometimes squalid institutions, many of whom will end up living on the street after leaving their orphanages.

Alan Greenblatt has been writing about politics and government in Washington and the states for nearly two decades. As a reporter for Congressional Quarterly, he won the National Press Club’s Sandy Hume award for political journalism. While on staff at Governing magazine, he covered many issues of concern to state and local governments, such as budgets,taxes, and higher education. Along the way, he has written about politics and culture for numerous other outlets, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, and NPR.org.