What in the World

Jimmy Carter — the 39th president of the United States — has died at the age of 100. A former peanut farmer in Georgia, he rose to the very top of American politics by portraying himself as an outsider. Once in office, he pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders, became the first U.S. president to take climate change seriously and brokered the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel. But his preside...

A campaign on TikTok recently started a fresh conversation about cultural appropriation of food. It started when content creator Yen Bui, who now lives in London, highlighted that a British-owned restaurant chain called Pho had trademarked the name of the Vietnamese national dish a while ago, which limited the rights of other restaurant owners to use the word in their names because they could have...

South Africa has the largest population of canned lions in the world - these are lions born in captivity and bred for trophy hunting. People can pay (usually tens of thousands of dollars) to hunt and shoot the animals. Now the government has said it will ban it, but hasn’t said when, or what will happen to the lions. Breeders argue it is better that hunters shoot a captive-bred lion than further e...

We all disagree on some things. For some people disagreeing is natural and, in some instances, even enjoyable. While for others it’s super uncomfortable, and something they want to avoid at all costs. Social media is alive with angry keyboard warriors at each other’s throats, but it is possible to disagree without hurting someone’s feelings. Bo Seo is an expert at this. He’s a world debate champio...

Nearly half the world's population had elections this year, but for the first time in at least 20 years, progress for women's representation has slowed. In 60% of countries that voted this year, the number of women in parliament fell. Stephanie Hegarty, the BBC’s population correspondent, discusses some of the countries where fewer women were elected and explains some of the factors behind the dro...

Cyclone Chido has wreaked havoc in Mozambique and Mayotte. In Mozambique, 120 people have been confirmed dead and hundreds of thousands more impacted by the storm. It’s further strained a country where protests and civil unrest have been ongoing since disputed elections in October. Mozambique’s constitutional council has confirmed the ruling party won the election. Our reporter, Evelin Uachave, ex...

BMX Freestyle is one of the events at the 2024 Urban Cycling World Championships which are being held in Abu Dhabi. It features fearless BMX riders jumping, spinning and hurling themselves around the course on a small bike, pulling off mind-blowing tricks that get you gasping. Think acrobatic gymnastics but on a bike. What does it take to become a BMX rider though? Tom Clemens from Germany, who si...

Even if you haven’t seen them in person, you might be familiar with images of the Northern Lights - dark skies with moving ribbons of green and purple. But what actually are they? And why do we seem to be seeing more of them in 2024? BBC science presenter Caroline Steele answers loads of questions about the Northern Lights, like why are they different colours and when and where are the best times...

A law passed earlier this year means TikTok will be banned in the US unless it is sold by its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, before 19 January 2025. On Monday US President-elect Donald Trump met the company’s CEO, Shou Zi Chew, and now people are questioning if he will try and stop this ban, and save the app. Rhiannon Williams, a UK-based tech journalist, talks us through how Trump’s relations...

Since Syria’s civil war began, six million people have left the country and seven million more have been internally displaced. Now Bashar al-Assad’s regime has been overthrown by rebels, many refugees are wondering if they can return to their home. According to the UN, it’s the world’s largest refugee crisis. BBC journalist, Lina Shaikhouni, explains what caused this crisis and we hear from three...

Gukesh Dommaraju — an 18-year-old from India — has become the youngest-ever world chess champion. That’s after beating defending champion Ding Liren, a 32-year-old from China. Dommaraju comes from Chennai, in the state of Tamil Nadu. Saradha V, a BBC reporter in Chennai, explains how the city became India’s chess capital and how schools there are producing an impressive generation of young players...

Game of Thrones. Twilight. Little Red Riding Hood. The wolf is an animal that appears more than most creatures across popular culture. They’re known for being fierce, dangerous and scary. Is this what they are like in real life though? Abby Keller, who works at the International Wolf Centre in the US, tells us everything we need to know about wolves. For 45 years in Europe, grey wolves were under...

The reasons women donate their eggs vary significantly. Some people say they feel a sense of pride knowing they may help other women conceive children. Others say they want to earn a bit of extra cash, since many clinics are willing to pay donors for their eggs. Charlotte Edwards, BBC Business reporter, explains how the process of egg donation works — and how it differs by country. Plus: Elaine Ch...

There’s nothing quite like going to see a new film in the cinema; the big screen, surround sound, buckets of popcorn and collective gasps from the audience. But the film industry has experienced a number of setbacks in recent years, including the pandemic, competition from streaming, and Hollywood strikes. Annabel Rackham, a BBC culture reporter, talks us though whether cinema in the United States...

Brazil is known for it's top-tier football and stars like Vinicius Junior or Neymar. The enthusiasm for football has now a new layer, with millions of people turning to online betting when watching their national game. Brazil is now considered the third-biggest market globally for sports betting, and authorities are trying to tackle this issue as lots of people are struggling with debt and gamblin...

The world was stunned over the weekend as rebel forces in Syria captured the capital of Damascus, forcing President Bashar al-Assad to flee and ending the final chapter of his violent regime. Assad is reported to have fled to Russia whilst opposition forces now loot his empty palace and people celebrate on the streets. But who are the Syrian rebels who toppled Assad’s rule? And why has it happened...

K-pop girl group NewJeans announced they were leaving their record label during an emergency press conference last week. This follows months of public disagreements between the label, the band, and fans. But the group is tied into a contract until 2029. So, what happens now? Our reporter, Fan Wang, breaks it all down and the BBC’s Music Correspondent, Mark Savage, helps us with the question on eve...

Phones have become an essential part of most people’s everyday lives, and debates about them in schools - as well as teenagers’ access to social media - are internationally hot topics. BBC journalist Hayley Clarke joins us in the studio to talk through different approaches to social media and phone bans in schools around the world. We also hear from students in France and the US about how they wou...

South Korea's president Yoon Suk Yeol shocked the country on Tuesday night when, out of the blue, he declared martial law in the country. It’s the first time such an order has been passed there in nearly 50 years. Yoon cited "anti-state forces" and the threat from North Korea. But it soon became clear that the move may have been politically motivated. Within hours thousands of people gathered in p...

For the past few nights, thousands of Georgians have been out protesting the government in Tbilisi. It’s because the ruling party, Georgian Dream, says it’s pausing negotiations to join the European Union until 2028. Many Georgians see the move as a betrayal of achieving the long-standing ambition of joining the EU, and some fear the country is inching closer to Russia’s influence. The BBC’s Rayha...

Rage bait is social media content that's designed to elicit anger and frustration. Those feelings can encourage people to engage with the content, often by replying. It’s a process that helps content creators earn a lot of money. BBC reporter Megan Lawton discusses the reasons that social media users engage with this type of content and offers tips to identify it. And BBC tech reporter Tom Gerken...

The world’s most expensive banana has been sold at an auction for more than $6 million. It’s Maurizio Cattelan's 2019 work Comedian and it’s literally just a banana duct-taped to a wall. The new owner bought the right to display the installation along with a guide on how to replace the fruit (it doesn’t stay fresh for long!). But what makes it art? And why would someone eat a multi-million dollar...

Intra-continental travel is huge, and borderless agreements between countries make trips easier. For instance, Europe has the Schengen Zone and South East Asia has ASEAN. But for Africa, it’s still a work in progress. The UN tourism boss Natalya Bayona says she wants to make borderless travel for tourism in Africa a reality within ten years. Daniel Dadzie, from the BBC Focus on Africa podcast, exp...

There has been intense fighting between Israel and Hezbollah for over a year. More than 3,500 people have been killed in Lebanon, over a million people displaced, and many homes destroyed by Israeli airstrikes. Israel says 60,000 of its citizens will now be able to go back to their communities along its northern border, safe from Hezbollah rocket fire from Hezbollah. In this episode, we speak to C...

The town of Van Vieng in Laos is a popular stop for backpackers traveling through Southeast Asia. But after six tourists died earlier this month following suspected methanol poisoning, many tourists are re-thinking their itineraries and how they drink. We hear from some of them. Also: William from the What in the World team tells us about the victims in Laos and looks at alcohol poisoning around t...