Afleveringen
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In our time of looming ecological disaster, radical minds are needed to rethink the way we live. In Saudi Arabia, NEOM are building a futuristic new city: The Line. The Line will consist of two gigantic, unbroken rows of skyscrapers, with living space in-between. Nicknamed 'the groundscraper', The Line is planned to be taller than any building in Europe, Africa or Latin America - and 10 times denser than Manhattan, with nine million people expected to live inside. We meet the architects behind The Line, and take a journey to the city of the future.
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European leaders have had cause to rethink their roles within Nato recently, in light of statements coming from the US Government. The Trump administration’s dealings with Russia to try and broker a peace deal in Ukraine, have called into question America’s support for the alliance. But whilst the Trump administration say they are not pulling out of Nato and remain committed to the defence partnership with Europe, they have warned that they will "no longer tolerate an imbalanced relationship which encourages dependency". Nato currently asks member states to spend at least 2% on defence, but US President Donald Trump has consistently told European allies to spend much more than that target.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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Georgia finds itself in political turmoil. For decades many Georgians have longed to be a part of the EU, feeling that their values align more closely than they do with neighbours such as Russia and Turkey. But the goverment, led by the conservative Georgian Dream party, has suspended talks to join the EU, in a move that critics say is kowtowing to Russia. Protests have been going on every day since November 2024. Journalists are left to navigate this complex picture as the country finds itself at a crucial moment, reckoning with its past relationship with Russia and its potential future relationship with Europe. BBC's Nina Akhmeteli, Rayhan Demytrie and Maka Dzneladze all live and work in Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. They discuss the current political situation and its cultural and historical backdrop.
Presented by Feranak Amidi. Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Hannah Dean.
(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)
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For the first time in three years, there’s talk of a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine. Negotiations are ongoing, but at the time of recording this programme, the conflict continues. We’ve heard many times from Ukrainians expressing their thoughts on the war – most recently in February in our episode Ukraine: Three Years of War. It’s been harder to find Russians who are happy to speak to Western journalists. But we’ve brought together three groups of ordinary Russian citizens to share their views and experiences.
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In Bangladesh, hijras - once a revered community - have long lived on the margins. Also known as the third gender, hijras form a diverse group, including those born intersex - meaning their physical traits don’t fit neatly into ‘male’ or ‘female’ categories - and transgender individuals. Traditionally seen as spiritual figures with the power to bless or curse, they are now outcasts, denied homes, jobs, and opportunities. But in a quiet village in Mymensingh, a spiritual revolution is taking place.
Reporter Sahar Zand has gained rare access to this community, spending time with its leader, Tanu - a transgender woman and practising Muslim - who has built a sanctuary where hijras can reconnect with faith. At the heart of this transformation is a Quran study group, offering hijras the religious education they were long denied, and a newly built mosque - the first in Bangladesh to welcome them as equals, after they were expelled from others. With the help of an imam who risked everything to stand by them, they are reclaiming their right to Islam.
But as religious conservatism rises, so do the threats against them. Their village is no longer just a refuge; it is the frontline of a battle for acceptance. Can faith be the key to breaking barriers, or will they be forced back into the shadows?
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In November 2024, six people died after visiting a bar in Vang Vieng, Laos. Authorities in the country said it was a suspected mass poisoning - the culprit, methanol. It made headlines around the world, but it was not an isolated incident. It is happening across South East Asia, Central America and the Middle East, often in countries where drinking alcohol is frowned upon, taboo, or even illegal. Matthew Hill investigates a devastating story of a rising death-toll, and travels to Bangladesh to meet the people on the ground urgently working to treat those affected.
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Daily protests across the country have continued in Georgia since disputed elections in October, particularly since the ruling Georgian Dream party announced it would suspend discussions about joining the EU. Outside election observers identified a number of shortcomings and violations in the voting process. Critics of Georgian Dream say it is cosying up to Moscow and using underhand and increasingly authoritarian tactics, mimicking Russia, to stay in power. New laws against protesting have been introduced by the government and the number of arrests of protestors, opposition political figures and journalists has been rising. Some are asking is this a piece-by-piece dismantling of Georgia’s democracy? And how, with little sign of the government backing down, can the protests be maintained?
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Artists Himali Singh Soin and David Soin Tappeser explore the complex weave of histories and myths around Britain’s imperial salt monopoly in India. Paul Waters joins them as they create an open-air installation at the Somerset House gallery in London, paired with a poignant indoor exhibition occupying spaces formerly used to administer Britain’s colonial-era salt tax. The 80 metre long fabric installation is to replicate the Inland Customs Line, a monumental 2,500 mile long hedge across India, created by Britain in the 1800s, to enforce salt taxation. This reinterpretation draws on cotton printed with botanical dyes from the hedge's original plants, to highlight the human and ecological cost of colonial extraction. Himali and David aren’t just creating one exhibition in one location. They are also creating a parallel installation further along the river Thames, at the Tate Britain art gallery and we’ll be following them as they work across both sites.
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BBC health correspondent James Gallagher investigates how our noisy world is damaging our health. He finds out why noise increases our risk of health problems, like heart attacks, sleep problems and anxiety, and can even affect how long we live. James spends two days in Barcelona – one of the noisiest cities in Europe – to meet the people whose health is being ruined by noise and the scientists and doctors trying to solve the problem. He also visits London to be experimented on in a lab to find out how noise changes the body, and hears from Dhaka, capital of Bangladesh, one of the loudest places on the planet.
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According to Kenya’s Health Ministry, between 2020 and 2023, about 16,000 women in Kenya decided to undergo a sterilisation procedure known as tubal ligation. While some of them already had children and didn’t want any more, others were saying no to motherhood altogether: they’re women who define themselves as child-free, meaning they have consciously decided never to have children. BBC Africa's Danai Nesta Kupemba has been looking into the this movement and has spoken to two Kenyan women who have recently committed to a child-free life.
Also on the show: stories about people celebrating Ramadan around the world, with BBC Urdu's Aliya Nazki, BBC Indonesia's Silvano Hajid and BBC Arabic's Khitam Amer; cricket enthusiast Janhavee Moole reporting for BBC Marathi on India's recent success at the ICC Champions Trophy; and the ship fixing Africa's internet blackouts with Daniel Dadzie in Ghana.
Presented by Faranak Amidi. Produced by Hannah Dean, Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson.
(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)
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On his first day in office, Donald Trump froze foreign aid funding, ordering an immediate review into USAID, the government agency which was running programmes in around 120 countries. The review was swift and the cuts severe. President Trump’s team concluded that tens of billions of dollars were being spent in ways which “did not serve” or “harmed" US interests. We hear from USAID employees who describe the shock of suddenly losing their own jobs, and the grim anticipation of the impact the cuts will have on people around the world. We also hear from people running treatment centres around the world, and about the impact on HIV provision in Africa.
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For centuries, ayahuasca has been a sacred plant for the Shipibo-Konibo peoples of the Peruvian Amazon. Part medicine, part spiritual ceremony, ayahuasca and other plant medicines are revered practices. But in recent years, a boom in Western interest in psychedelics has started to reshape ayahuasca ceremonies and practise. Fuelled by celebrity endorsements, a new wave of tourists are heading to purpose-built resorts in the Peruvian jungle to take ayahuasca, guided by shamans from the Shipibo-Konibo tribes.
In this episode of Heart and Soul, reporter Janak Rogers travels to the Peruvian Amazon to explore this so-called ‘psychedelic renaissance’. From candlelit jungle ceremonies to bustling tourist strips, Rogers uncovers the allure of ayahuasca for Westerners seeking help and healing. But as the ayahuasca boom transforms local communities, challenges arise: the rise of unscrupulous shamans, the commercialisation of Indigenous knowledge, and risks faced by vulnerable travellers.
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Set among endless sugar-cane fields in a remote part of southern Florida, Restoration Destination is a community made up of registered sex offenders. Created by a Christian ministry as a response to state laws which ban them from living close to where children gather, it is now home to more than 100 men who have been placed on Florida’s sex offenders register for life. Through therapy, counselling and support, Restoration Destination aims to reduce their likelihood of reoffending and help them reintegrate into society. Journalist Conor Garrett goes to Restoration Destination to ask if the men who live there deserve a second chance.***This programme contains interviews with convicted sex offenders, references to sex crimes and other scenes which listeners may find upsetting***
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Guatemala’s been going through huge political upheavals. Protestors brought the country to a standstill with roadblocks and national strikes which lasted more than one hundred days, until they got the government they had voted for.
Many of the protestors came from different indigenous communities, descended from the Mayans, who have their own language and culture and make up more than half of the 18 million population.
Now there’s talk of an ‘Indigenous Spring’ after years of racism and discrimination. But is life really improving for these communities and is it possible to turn the Central American country around after years of corruption?
Jane Chambers travels around the highlands and lowlands of Guatemala talking to the people who are trying to make changes and hearing from others whether they think it’s really working.
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Ghanaian fashion innovator Kwaku Bediako is redefining luxury with sustainability at its heart. We step inside his world as he transforms second-hand garments into bold, high-fashion pieces, worn by global stars such as Stevie Wonder and Ian Wright. It was when he noticed how much material was being thrown away, that he decided to create a new brand, Cacao, where discarded fabrics can become the material for garments worn to red carpet events across the world. Kwaku has been commissioned by music producer GuiltyBeatz to make him a bespoke outfit ahead of this year's Grammy awards in LA and Daniel Dadzie goes with Kwaku as he hunts for second hand clothes at Kantamanto, Accra's largest thrift market. It's a place where the past fashions of Europe meet their future in Africa.
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Extraordinary stories from global women's history, as told by the people who were there. We hear about the Jewish feminists who demanded to pray as freely as men, the fight for transgender women rights in Indonesia, and the career of legendary American painter Georgia O'Keeffe.
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The head of the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation has recently fallen from glory. Irina Viner has been the most powerful person in the sport for nearly 20 years, and has produced multiple world champions. But her reign is finally over, as the Ministry of Sport recently dissolved the Russian Rhythmic Gymnastics Federation to create a new gymnastics body in which Irina Viner has no part. Meanwhile, another name in Russian rhythmic gymnastics is back in the spotlight. A previous student of Irina Viner, Alina Kabaeva won the Olympic gold for rhythmic gymnastics in 2004. She is one of the most successful gymnasts in Russia but has always avoided the media gaze. This seems to have changed since creating her own rhythmic gymnastics school, ‘Heavenly Grace’. Alina Kabaeva has long been reported to be the partner of Vladimir Putin and it seems her gymnastics school enjoys a special status. Plus, there's a natural fire in Indonesia that is said to have been burning for over 500 years, and people are hoping to harness its power to help solve the country’s energy crisis. Ayomi Amindoni from BBC Indonesian has the story.
Presented by Faranak Amidi. Produced by Caroline Ferguson, Hannah Dean and Alice Gioia.
(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)
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After 13 years of civil war, a transitional government is now in charge in Syria, led by interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa, the leader of the Islamist rebel group – Hayat Tahrir al-Sham or HTS. Syria is home to many different religious and ethnic groups and some fear that more conservative members of HTS could influence government policy. Nor is the fighting over. Forces linked to the new government have been battling Assad loyalists in in the port cities of Latakia and Tartous, where dozens of people are reported to have been killed. In our conversations, two women discuss new freedoms but also share fears about safety and women’s rights. We bring together three tour guides to share what the country has to offer visitors. We also hear from two refugees, who have returned to the country to reunite with their families.
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Amie Liebowitz interviews matchmaker and dating coach Aleeza Ben Shalom from the Netflix show Jewish Matchmaker. She then goes on her own quest to learn about the traditional and religious values of matchmaking. From a mass dating event to going through her own matchmaking experience, Amie asks herself the question: Is she being open enough to exploring new connections and can tradition save her love life in this modern world?
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In Northern Iraq, Yazidi women and girls who have been the victims of brutal sexual enslavement and lost swathes of their family and community to genocide at the hands of IS, are finding an unusual way to heal - boxing. Since 2014, when ISIS began targeting Yazidis because of their religious identity, those who survived the genocide have been confined to internally displaced persons camps in the Kurdish region of Iraq. Here conditions are difficult and the women and girls still struggle to process all that has happened to them. So, in 2018, in the face of limited mental health support, Taban Shoresh and her team took a radical approach by offering boxing training to help the women and girls channel their emotions and anger.
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