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The Inquiry

BBC World Service

The Inquiry gets beyond the headlines to explore the trends, forces and ideas shaping the world.

news news commentary

All Episodes

23:43

Can China and India fix their relationship?

The Inquiry ·

2023/09/28

At the recent BRICS economic summit in South Africa, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping had a rare face-to-face meeting. For years these two world powers have been in dispute over their ill-defined border in the Himalayan region. A military escalation of this dispute in 1962 led to the creation of the ‘line of actual control’ or the LAC, the de facto border between the two countries. Down the years there have been a number of clashes along the LAC and its commonly

23:44

Why is life expectancy falling in America?

The Inquiry ·

2023/09/21

The life expectancy of Americans has fallen in recent years after a long period when it had been increasing. There are a number of factors which contribute to the fall. The Covid pandemic, with over 1m deaths, made a significant impact on lowering the average life expectancy. In comparison with other peer countries, the USA also did not return to pre-Covid levels at the same rate. However there are also other important factors driving this, namely gun deaths and drug deaths as a result of

23:45

What’s next for Palestinian leadership?

The Inquiry ·

2023/09/14

The Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas is ageing and his ruling Fatah party is deeply unpopular. There have been protests against him and the Palestinian Authority. Many Palestinians feel the PA has lost legitimacy. There’s no plan for how to choose a successor to Mahmoud Abbas and any candidate is likely to be controversial. There’s a risk that an unpopular replacement may throw the occupied territories into chaos, even violence, and have major implications for the future goals of Palestinian

23:17

What’s wrong with our guts?

The Inquiry ·

2023/09/07

How much do you think about your gut? Are you taking a probiotic or prebiotic? If so, you’re not alone as globally we spend billions of dollars on soothing our stomachs. Our guts do so much more than just digest our food and there’s a very special connection to our brain. So how exactly does our gut work? And what do we need to do in order to keep it healthy?Presenter: Tanya Beckett Producer: Louise Clarke Researcher: Matt Toulson Sound engineer: Nicky EdwardsContributors: Geoff Preidis, a

23:46

Are we alone in the universe?

The Inquiry ·

2023/08/31

In July 2023 a group of lawmakers in the US held a session to explore evidence of extra-terrestrial life. The evidence included the famous Tic Tac videos of mysterious objects flying through the sky. Pilots described encounters with Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon – or UAPs. Congress also heard of a secret US government programme that retrieves and reverse engineers materials made by non-humans, including crashed and intact craft – and possibly the remains of the entities that piloted them. So

23:54

Is work from home working?

The Inquiry ·

2023/08/24

Working from home became the norm for millions of us around the globe during the Covid-19 pandemic, but now three years on some major employers are insisting on their employees returning to the office, for at least some part of the working week.The levels of working from home currently vary, depending on the country and its culture. The Netherlands are looking at legislation to allow employees the ability to work remotely, whilst in Japanese culture the preference for employees tends to be going

23:52

Can Brazil’s indigenous population save the Amazon?

The Inquiry ·

2023/08/17

About 60 percent of the Amazon rainforest is in Brazil and it is home to more than 300 indigenous groups. But for centuries both the rainforest and its indigenous inhabitants have been under threat, from deforestation, agri-business, mining and politics. Brazil’s current president, Luis Ignácio de Silva, has made the future security of the Amazon and its peoples a key policy pledge. So far, the president has appointed a new minister for indigenous peoples and according to government figures, the

23:47

Can we stop oil?

The Inquiry ·

2023/08/10

Environmental activists in the UK have disrupted high profile sporting events in an effort to persuade the government to stop oil development. How would stopping oil production impact those countries around the world with economies dependent on oil? Tanya Beckett explores the history of oil, the implications of the Ukraine war for its price, how countries like Nigeria and Norway are dependent on oil revenues, and the challenges facing new oil producers in the global south as they face

23:45

Why is South Africa collapsing?

The Inquiry ·

2023/08/03

South Africa once had the most abundant and cheap electricity on the continent. Now, it is experiencing power blackouts. It’s called loadshedding, the process by which the power company Eskom occasionally reduces the demand for electricity on the national grid.For many South Africans this means no electricity for up to ten hours a day, almost every day. The result is disruption to everyday life, impacting on work, education, sanitation, food and heating. In 1994 Nelson Mandela’s African National

23:44

Are weight loss drugs the answer to obesity?

The Inquiry ·

2023/07/27

In June 2023 the British government announced a £40 million pound pilot scheme to increase access to specialist weight management services in England -It reads “Using the latest drugs to support people to lose weight will be a game-changer.”The scheme will use prescription drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic, a once weekly injection that slows down the emptying of the stomach and suppresses the hunger hormone in our brains. Both these medications are made of the same of the same drug called

23:47

Is Venezuela a failed state?

The Inquiry ·

2023/07/20

Venezuela is the country with the largest oil deposits, yet 3 in every 4 Venezuelan lives in extreme poverty. More than 7 million people are recorded as having left the country since 2015 in search of a better life, causing the largest ever displacement of people in Latin American history. And it’s only surpassed in numbers by those people leaving Ukraine. But Venezuela is not at war, its current humanitarian crisis is the result of years of political and economic turbulence. International

23:43

How can we stop wildfires?

The Inquiry ·

2023/07/13

Canada is in the grip of the worst wildfires in recorded history. Blazes are devouring millions of acres of forest, forcing more than a hundred thousand people from their homes. Toxic smoke has blanketed cities across North America. Why are wildfires getting more frequent and intense across the world?Part of the reason is climate change, but part of it is also population growth and land management. The question is, what should we do about it? How can we stop wildfires?Contributors: Mike Norton,

23:51

Is the global nuclear threat level rising?

The Inquiry ·

2023/07/06

Following the Wagner mutiny in Russia, and with fighting intensifying as Ukraine presses on with its counter-offensive, there’s concern about increasing instability around potential use of nuclear weapons. President Putin has threatened to use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine. Gary O’Donoghue asks how likely this is, and if the nuclear threat level is rising across the world. Are countries around the world looking at what is happening in Ukraine and adjusting their nuclear thinking? As China

23:47

Can seawater save Venice from flooding?

The Inquiry ·

2023/06/29

The medieval city of Venice is situated in the heart of a lagoon on the coast of northeast Italy. It was built on a large area of low-lying marshland. A system of wooden poles driven into the soft mud created an underwater forest. It still forms the foundations of the city we see today. For centuries the City has had to battle with ‘aqua alta’ or high tides from the Adriatic sea. And the gradual combination of water erosion and rising sea levels means the City is now facing a more urgent battle

24:25

Who will be the next Prime Minister of Thailand?

The Inquiry ·

2023/06/22

Thailand’s recent elections produced a shock result. A popular progressive party called Move Forward won the most seats. But the leader of the government has not yet been named as the country moves through its procedures for verifying the election results. If the head of the party, Pita Limjaroenrat, is successful, it will mean civilian rule for the first time in over a decade. But the path to that role is far from smooth. There are many challenges as military coups and court rulings have cut

24:21

Is it Endgame for the Marvel Cinematic Universe?

The Inquiry ·

2023/06/15

In 2009 Disney bought Marvel studios and helped transform the company into a movie making powerhouse that brought a new world of superhero stories to the silver screen, called The Marvel Cinematic Universe. Since then the franchise has generated over $30 billion dollars in profit, released 32 films and has even made its way onto the small screen… And it’s not slowing down any time soon. Before the end of next year we can expect Captain America, Thunderbolts, The Marvels and Blade in cinema’s and

24:01

Will hydrogen solve our energy needs?

The Inquiry ·

2023/06/08

A fifteen minute test flight of a plane fuelled only by hydrogen was successfully completed over recent months. Trucks are already running on the fuel in the US, as are trains in Canada and the UK. Both Toyota and Hyundai have expressed a desire to explore the gas as an option for their smaller vehicles. The UK has announced plans to use hydrogen as a replacement for natural gas in two trial villages, Whitby and Redcar, having already completed tests at Keele University. Several glass and tiling

24:21

Can Ron DeSantis win the White House?

The Inquiry ·

2023/06/01

Ron DeSantis, the governor of the US State of Florida has now declared his republican nomination for the 2024 Presidential Election. He’s the latest in a line of republican contenders keen to take on President Joe Biden for the White House.Since his appointment as Florida’s governor in 2018, Ron DeSantis has been busy stamping his own brand of cultural conservatism on the ‘Sunshine State’, including limits on abortions and restricting sex and gender identity education in schools. The latter,

24:00

Why are there millions of empty houses in Japan?

The Inquiry ·

2023/05/25

Official figures report that there are more than eight million houses standing empty across Japan, the reality could be even higher. One of the highest concentrations of empty houses or ‘Akiya’ as they are known, is in the Prefecture of Akita, in Northern Japan, where in the past five years, houses have been abandoned at a rate of 13.6 percent. The problem is being put down to a number of factors. The lack of employment or education opportunities in rural economies means more migration into the

24:16

Is Africa’s Great Green Wall failing?

The Inquiry ·

2023/05/18

The Great Green Wall is one of the most ambitious environmental projects ever conceived, creating a vast belt of vegetation spanning Africa by 2030; from Senegal on the Atlantic to Djibouti on the Red Sea. It was heralded as Africa’s contribution to the fight against climate change, reversing damage caused by drought, overgrazing and poor farming techniques. The regreening of 11 Sahel countries on the edge of the Sahara Desert would create millions of jobs, boost food security, and reduce conflict

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