What in the World

Nearly 200 countries have agreed a new global deal on climate change at COP28 in Dubai. It’s the biggest step forward on climate since the Paris Agreement in 2015. For the first time, countries are calling for a move away from fossil fuels, but the language is far weaker than many wanted. Our Climate and Science reporter, Esme Stallard, walks us through the details of the deal. What could mean for...

On Monday, India’s Supreme Court upheld the government’s 2019 decision to revoke Article 370. That’s a law that previously gave the region of Jammu and Kashmir special status within India to make its own laws. Umang Poddar, a reporter in the BBC Delhi Bureau, explains why Prime Minister Narendra Modi revoked the law and what it means. Plus: Is it a good idea to take a social media detox? Luis from...

Pope Francis is not your standard pope. He’s talks about climate change, he has a more liberal stance on divorce and he’s even weighed in on hot-button political topics like migration. But it’s his softer stance on LGBTQ+ issues that has proved to be one of the most controversial parts of his papacy, even within the top levels of the Vatican. The BBC’s Sofia Bettiza and Reha Kansara give us some b...

Grammy award-winning rapper Young Thug is currently on trial for gang-related charges in Atlanta, US. Prosecutors claim that the rap label he founded, Young Stoner Life (YSL) Records, is a front for an organised crime syndicate responsible for ‘75-80% of violent crime’ in the city. His lyrics have been used as part of the evidence against him. But some argue that this raises concerns about freedom...

We’re back at COP28, discussing ways to help you cope with climate anxiety. The ever present threat of climate change can feel overwhelming and can have a negative impact on your mental health - it’s called climate-anxiety (some people call it eco-anxiety). So how can you deal with these feelings? BBC climate reporter Georgina Rannard sat down with three activists at COP28; Baliqees Salaudeen from...

Tanzania is coping with the aftermath of severe floods and landslides, which killed dozens of people in the northern Hanang region. Shem Otieno, a BBC reporter in Nairobi, explains how rescue workers and the Tanzanian government are responding. We also hear from hydrology expert Wouter Buytaert, who explains how droughts can make landslides more likely. Three survivors also recount their experienc...

Essequibo is part of Guyana in South America - it’s got lots of oil and dense rainforests. But last Sunday, Venezuela voted to claim it in a referendum. There’s been a dispute over the region for a really long time but it’s bubbled up more recently when oil was discovered in Essequibo's offshore waters. Rachelle Krygier, a BBC reporter from Venezuela, gives us the history behind this land dispute...

Russia’s Supreme Court has banned the “international LGBT movement" and declared it an “extremist organisation.” The ruling does not criminalise being gay. However, it will make the work of all LGBTQ+ organizations, as well as any related political activity, difficult. Sergei Goryashko from the BBC’s Russian service explains the reasons behind the Supreme Court ruling. We also get reactions from t...

41 men were working underground in a tunnel in India when a nearby landslide caused part of it to cave in, trapping them inside. They were rescued after 17 days. BBC South Asia Correspondent Samira Hussain explains why it took so long - and what questions the authorities are facing in the aftermath. Chelsea Coates from the What in the World team describes what being trapped underground for ages ca...

It’s that time of year again where world leaders, business execs and loads of lobbyists and activists gather for a few weeks to try to make concrete plans to reduce emissions globally and compensate countries worst affected by climate change - it’s COP28 and hopes are high. This year it’s taking place in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, one of the biggest oil producers in the world. And the Pres...

How often do you discover new music on TikTok? Chances are, quite a lot. That’s because TikTok is becoming a go-to app for finding and remixing music. Veneno is an example of this. It’s a song from the 1980s by Ronaldo Silva, which was sampled by Mari Merenda and Sophia Ardessore on TikTok, and then remixed by pop duo Sofi Tukker in Florida. We speak to Sofi Tukker (Sophie Hawley-Weld and Tucker H...

P Diddy, Russell Brand, Jamie Foxx. Those are just three of the male celebrities who’ve been hit with sexual assault lawsuits in recent weeks. All three deny the claims. Those lawsuits were all filed because of a New York law with a one-year time limit, called the Adult Survivors Act. It’s led to a huge rise in accusations. Plus, BBC investigative reporter Rianna Croxford explains how the people s...

By Monday morning, more than fifty hostages held in Gaza had been released as part of a deal between Israel and Hamas. The deal, which includes a four-day pause in fighting, came seven weeks after the 7 October attacks on Israel. In exchange, more than a hundred Palestinian women and teenagers have been released from Israeli jails. In this episode, the BBC’s Shaina Oppenheimer in Jerusalem and Jai...

Cement is said to be responsible for 8% of global carbon emissions. In the search for an alternative, more sustainable construction material, building companies in Ghana and other African countries are reviving an ancient technique called ‘rammed earth’. Daniel Dadzie, a BBC reporter from Ghana, explains how you make it and why it’s seen as a greener option. Architect and academic Kuukuwa Manful e...

There’s been serious drama in Silicon Valley this week. On Friday the board of OpenAI, the multi-billion-dollar company behind ChatGPT, fired its CEO Sam Altman. By Wednesday he was back in the job. But this isn’t just an internal dispute for tech journalists. It’s about the future of artificial intelligence; whether it should be used for profit and whether it should be constrained. BBC tech repor...

Brazil has recorded its hottest ever temperature - 44.8C (112.6F) - as parts of the country endure a stifling heatwave. You may have seen the video of Taylor Swift struggling to catch her breath while performing in Rio de Janeiro. She pushed back a performance on Saturday after it emerged a fan had died after going into cardiac arrest at the stadium. Climate change and El Niño are both impacting t...

Argentina has elected far-right outsider Javier Milei as its new president. He’s a pretty unconventional politician - from tantric sex to cloning dogs. But, how did he win and what could this mean for the Latin American country? The BBC’s Maria Clara Montoya explains. TikTok played an important role in his campaign. So, we also hear from Den Borg, an Argentinian marketing specialist, about how the...

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that’s fifty times more powerful than heroin. It’s also the biggest killer of 18-45 year olds in the United States. The death toll is so high that the sons of imprisoned drug lord El Chapo have said they aren’t going to sell it anymore - although experts say that’s probably just a publicity stunt. Dr Smitha Mundasad from the BBC’s Health team explains why fentanyl is...

Al-Shifa hospital has become a focal point of the Israel-Gaza war in the last few days. On Wednesday morning, Israeli tanks and troops entered the complex. Israel has claimed Hamas has a command centre under the hospital in a network of tunnels. Hamas, which is considered a terrorist organisation by many Western governments, including the US, has denied this. The BBC’s bureau chief in Jerusalem, J...

The Miss Universe pageant takes place on 18th November in El Salvador. Organisers have introduced new rules to make the contest more inclusive. Married women and mothers can compete for the first time. And the age rule has been abolished, allowing people over 28 to participate. This year’s line-up includes two married mothers, two transgender women and a plus-sized queen. We hear from the pageant’...

A BBC investigation has found that people smugglers in Pakistan are using social media sites to advertise their services, despite a government crackdown on their operations. Reha Kansara from BBC Trending joins us to explain what she discovered. Plus: TikTok is being banned in Nepal. A food influencer tells us how he feels about the ban. Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22...

The world of cryptocurrency can be confusing. There’s no tangible money and no clunky coins. Instead we hear about things like Ethereum, Bitcoin and Dogecoin. Crypto has been in the spotlight this month after Sam Bankman-Fried (the ‘Crypto King’) was found guilty of fraud and money laundering. But there are many people who believe crypto could be transformative, especially for young people and fai...

Gang members and victims of sex trafficking are often tattooed against their will. For those who escape, their tattoos become permanent reminders of the pain and suffering they endured. The Radiance Clinic in Boston removes tattoos from survivors for free. Dr. Shadi Kourosh, an assistant professor of dermatology at Harvard, tells us how this can help people cope with trauma. We also hear from nurs...

There’s so much stuff online about masculinity; guys telling you how to get buff, what to eat and how to talk to women. Sometimes a particular type of masculinity, known as toxic masculinity, seems dominant on some platforms. That’s where traits like being tough and not showing emotion are emphasised. With more awareness of this kind of content, young men are being warned off it. They’re increasin...

Ever since ‘Iron Man’ and ‘The Dark Knight’ impressed audiences in 2008, superhero movies have been a major player in the film industry. Marvel have been at the core of this wave, with the Marvel Cinematic Universe raking in billions of dollars at the box office. Characters like Iron Man, Captain America and Thor have become household names during the 2010s as the studio produced hit after hit aft...