Waiting to be rescued from international waters
During the last weekend of March, at around 10:30am, the SOS-MSF search and rescue ship Aquarius along with the Libyan coast guard, was alerted by the Italian Rescue Maritime Coordination Centre...
View ArticleHow the Aquarius saved 27,000 people from a Mediterranean death
Operating in international waters between Italy and Libya the SOS Méditerranée NGO rescue ship Aquarius, in partnership with Médecins Sans Frontières, has saved more than 27,000 people over the past...
View ArticleAquarius volunteers explain what makes them tick
In this final report, Filip Warwick looks at what drives members of the Aquarius SOS-MSF (Médecins sans frontières) to do this kind of work.
View ArticleSearch restarts for area to bury nuclear UK waste
The British government has upped the ante in its attempt to find a suitable underground burial site for its nuclear waste. After the first attempt in 2013 was blocked by residents in a rural area of...
View ArticleOld Car City, US classic car junkyard
Just outside the small town of White, in the southern state of Georgia in the USA, there is a junkyard like no other. 'Old Car City' as it has become known, is an area of forest land which is now home...
View ArticleThe residents of Cairo's garbage city: innovative and self-sufficient
Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sissi was officially re-elected for a second term at the start of this month. During his first term, he initiated many infrastructure projects and economic reforms...
View ArticleWho will benefit from Egypt's economic reforms?
The revolution of 2011 in Egypt began with high hopes and a future full of democracy and economic prosperity. Fast forward seven years, and the enthusiasm for the future is not as palpable among...
View ArticleWhy elephants playing polo is not just a game in Thailand
Once a year in Bangkok elephants and their handlers retired from the now defunct logging industry are hired for a three day elephant-polo competition. Organizers say the event helps to raise money for...
View ArticleTurning waste into a tourist attraction in Thailand
Using the principle of "Nature cures nature", Thailand’s late King Bhumibol set up several initiatives to preserve natural resources, known as Royal Projects, up and down the country. Today one of...
View ArticleDiscover the taste of Thailand
Thai flavours are being exported around the world in many different packages. Whether it’s the thai restaurant in your city, or the packaged sauces or dried fruits at your local supermarket. Thailand...
View ArticleThailand discovers wine
Thailand is known for many things: beaches, Bangkok, streetfood but not wine. And yet it’s a market that’s been in effervescence over the last decade despite the fact the Thai beverage of choice is...
View ArticleInternational, local tourism booming in Thailand
The number of international tourist arrivals in Thailand last year reached a record 35.38 million, equivalent to more than half the Thai population. In 2018 the country is planning for even more… about...
View ArticleCan Salisbury ever recover from nerve agents and a poisoned Russian spy?
Although several cities have seen sharp falls in tourism following deadly terrorist attacks, the sleepy English city of Salisbury is attempting to repair its reputation for another reason. On 4 March,...
View ArticleWhat's in a Senegalese name?
In France, every day of the calendar year has a saint's name assigned to it. In the past, a child would be given the name of the saint on who shared their same birth day, either as a first or middle...
View ArticleRap and growing your own veg in Senegal
In Senegal social activism and hip hop go together. A centre in Dakar created by one of Senegal’s celebrity rappers provides workshops on music, graffiti and photography. But one workshop that’s been...
View Article10th anniversary of Polish WWII nurse Irena Sendler's death
This month of May represents the 10th anniversary of the death of Irena Sendler, a Polish Catholic nurse credited with having saved the lives of some 2,500 Jewish children from the Warsaw ghetto during...
View ArticleWhat Abiy Ahmed means for Ethiopia’s Oromo people: Ethiopia Pt. 1
Is Ethiopia's political landscape changing? There is no simple answer. But what is clear is that the appointment of a new prime minister in early April has spurred an era of hope, especially for the...
View ArticleAhmed begins public consultations on Ethiopia’s future: Ethiopia Pt 2
Since Ethiopia’s, 42 year-old Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed took office, he has begun holding public meetings in several regions. He also met opposition politicians and investors before appointing his...
View ArticleOromo put faith in Ethiopia's Ahmed, but what can he do for them? Ethiopia Pt.3
Many challenges lie ahead for Ethiopia’s newly appointed Prime Minister, Ahmed Abiy, particularly in his home region of Oromiya, where people have felt abandoned and marginalised by previous...
View ArticleColombian musician Cesar Lopez turns guns into instruments for peace
Colombian musician Cesar Lopez employs music as a weapon against war, by fashioning hybrid guitars out of guns. Last year the Colombian government and the FARC – the country’s oldest rebel army –...
View Article