🇰🇵🦦When you think of places with outstanding biodiversity, the Korean Demilitarised Zone probably doesn’t come to mind.
Established at the end of the Korean War in 1953, this 250-km-long, 4-km-wide buffer between North and South Korea is one of the most heavily militarised places on Earth.
Scattered with millions of landmines, it’s incredibly dangerous for humans, but for nature, it’s a different story.
After more than 70 years without human interference, it has become an accidental ecological haven, showing just how quickly nature can rebound when left alone.
🎧 Click the link in our bio for more great science stories from Unexplained Elements.
#bbcworldservice #biodiversity #nature #environment #climate #goodnews
"For the first time, I truly felt seen, understood and spiritually included.”
Zahid @deafakhi , 18, was born deaf and uses a cochlear implant. He recently joined a group of British Muslims on a pilgrimage to Mecca.
He wanted to connect more deeply with his faith, and was supported by by a deaf-led charity, which provided BSL interpreters for this journey.
Zahid says being able to experience Umrah through sign language has touched his heart in ways words can't explain.
“This journey strengthened my faith and reminded me that Islam is for everyone, including deaf Muslims like me”, he says.
🎧 Click the link in our bio to join Zahid and his fellow pilgrims on Heart and Soul.
#bbcworldservice #signlanguage #deaf #deafawareness @deafakhi
When Ify Adenuga became a parent, she made one clear decision - she wasn’t going to raise her children the way she was raised.
Growing up during the Biafran War in Nigeria meant discipline and survival came first. But in her own home in London, she wanted something different.
So she chose conversation over control. No hitting. No fear. Just talking, questioning, and listening.
The sitting room became the heart of it all, a space where her kids could stay all day, not disappear behind closed doors. A place to play, be loud, be curious… and eventually, be creative.
That’s where the ideas started and how music entered the house.
She remembers driving her sons to recording studios across the city - waiting for hours in the car while they worked, then driving them home and sneaking in quietly so their dad wouldn’t catch on.
Those early sessions would shape two future artists: @skepta and JME.
Today, when she listens to her son’s music, she can hear it all — the house, the freedom, the upbringing.
Tap the link in our bio to watch @ifyadenuga on our YouTube channel.
#bbcworldservice #parenting #skepta #family #music
After a spiked drink left her friend unconscious in a college bar, Shirah Benarde turned shock into action - and came up with a business idea.
@shirahbenarde dreamt about a hair scrunchie that could double as a cover for your drink so no one can slip anything into it.
“It's actually a scrunchie that you can wear in your hair or on your wrist.”
Developing the invention became a true family project. Shirah filed the patent; her brother Michael raised $12,000; her mum supplied the stockings; and her dad named it Nightcap, @nightcapit .
Shirah thought her invention would stop people trying to spike drinks, but users still found pills and powders on the covers, proving the danger is real.
“When we go into these environments and these incidents happen, nobody wants to take responsibility.”
Some say Nightcap shifts the responsibility onto victims but Shirah disagrees.
"We want every single person to go out feeling protected and empowered, at a bar, restaurant, party, wherever you go.”
Shirah’s invention now brings in about $2 million a year and has even helped drive new anti–drink‑spiking laws in California.
🎧 Click the link in our bio to hear Shirah on Business Daily.
#BBCWorldService #WomenEntrepreneurs #FemaleFounders #InventedByWomen
In 1980, millions of people tuned in for @eurovision and heard something they'd never heard before - a traditional Sami joik.
The song was Norway's entry into the singing competition, created by Mattis Haetta. He wrote it in protest against the building of a dam in Finnmark in the north of the country.
The dam would have flooded traditional Sami reindeer herding routes and villages in northern Norway.
The Sami are an indigenous people which live across a region spanning Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia.
The BBC's Surya Elango speaks to Inga Haetta, the sister of Mattis.
🎧 Click the link in our bio to hear more on Witness History.
#BBCWorldService #EurovisionHistory #SamiCulture #Joik #IndigenousVoices #NordicHeritage
In November 2024, Keira Kronvold’s third child Zammi was taken from her by Danish social services, just two hours after birth.
But last week the Danish high court found that the removal of Zammi was illegal, a landmark ruling that could have consequences for other cases.
The issue of Greenlandic child removals in Denmark spans decades and has affected hundreds of Inuit families living in Denmark who claim to have experienced racism and discrimination, particularly in relation to so-called ‘parenting competency tests’.
In May 2025, the tests were banned for use on Greenlandic people as they were deemed to be culturally and linguistically inappropriate. This has led to Danish authorities officially reviewing hundreds of cases.
Despite the high court decision, Zammi won’t be returning to Keira for now because of another legal ruling. Keira and her lawyer plan to appeal this.
#BBCGlobalWomen #Denmark #Greenland
Julia and Cassandra felt a connection the moment they met. What they didn't know was that they were sisters...
Julia Tinetti and Cassandra Madison, from the US, met working in the same bar. They bonded over their tattoos of the Dominican Republic flag. Co-workers and customers commented on how much they looked alike.
The pair would jokingly refer to themselves as sisters because of their shared Dominican heritage. They’d grown up in Connecticut, about 15 minutes away from each other.
“I said something like, I'm adopted from there," Julia says. "And she was like, well, hold on, because I'm adopted from there too.”
Years later, Cassandra was reunited with her birth father in the Dominican Republic after doing a test she was given as a present. She asked him if he’d had another daughter.
“He was like, 'Yes, I did'. And I was like, ‘Oh my God.'"
Back in the US, Cassandra told Julia she needed to do her own test urgently... and then the truth was revealed.
“This is crazy," says Julia. "This whole time we've been sisters and we didn't even know.
The sisters then went to the Dominican Republic and Julia met her birth father for the first time.
“He gave me this big, big, big hug,” she says. “And he just said, ‘Mi hija.’ My daughter.”
Julia and Cassandra were finally together with their extended family. Their trip was filled with joyful celebrations, music and dancing.
Cassandra and Julia’s dad says reuniting with his daughters has been the greatest gift.
“It's a beautiful story. Not everyone gets to tell a story like this."
🎧 Click on the link in our bio to hear the sisters tell their story on Outlook
#bbcworldservice #familyhistory #dnatests #siblings
👩🏿🎤🎤As the fierce frontwoman of The Selecter - the British two tone band that fused ska, punk and reggae - Pauline Black didn’t just define an era; she shattered racial and musical boundaries.
But while she was breaking barriers in public, she was battling a hidden past in private.
A black little girl adopted by a white family, she grew up hearing harmful stereotypes and knowing nothing of her Nigerian roots.
It took years of searching to piece together who she really was.
Click the link in our bio to watch Pauline tell her story on YouTube.
#BBCWorldService #TwoTone #SkaMusic #WomenInMusic #CulturalIdentity
This is Bumpy, an orphaned baby hippo rescued in Kenya. 🦛❤️
Bumpy was rescued on 2 May by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) after they were told about an orphaned baby hippo at Oloiden Resort in Naivasha, Kenya.
He was found nestling against his dead mother’s body. The charity believes she died trying to protect him during a territorial fight, where dominant males sometimes kill rival calves.
Bumpy is now being looked after by Sheldrick Wildlife Trust.
"He was calling out to his mother and nudging her with his blunt little nose, desperately hoping for a response,” says one of @sheldricktrust 's keepers.
The charity are experts in looking after hippos, elephants and rhinos.
Bumpy was flown by helicopter to a sanctuary near Tsavo East National Park in Southern Kenya.
"He is a very snuggly creature and is happiest when nestled on or against someone.”
Kaluku sits on the Athi River which is home to several resident hippo pods.
The charity hopes Bumpy will one day join them, but at only a few weeks old, that milestone is still a long way off.
For now, he’s getting lots of warm milk, plenty of splashes in the pool, and
regular naps curled up in his keepers’ laps.
Click the link in our bio to watch more animal videos in our YouTube playlist.
#BBCWorldService #WildlifeRescue #BabyHippo #ConservationStories #KenyaWildlife @kenyawildlifetrust
Ube - a vibrant purple yam indigenous to the Philippines - has been a staple of Filipino cuisine for thousands of years.
But only recently has it surged in popularity abroad. It is now appearing as an ingredient and flavouring in desserts, pastries and coffees, from small independent cafés to global chains.
Social media appears to be helping drive the trend and turning ube into the new matcha, as people rush to snap photos of their purple beverages.
But while some cafes may be enjoying the ube boom, some Filipinos are worried this could have negative consequences for farmers in the Philippines and lead to the trivilisation of an important symbol of Filipino culture.
#BBCGlobalWomen #Ube
🏴 Elvis Presley only set foot in Britain once - and it was in Scotland.
In 1960, the King of Rock ’n’ Roll made an unexpected pit stop at Prestwick Airport - believed to be the only time he ever set foot on British soil.
Elvis was returning home after 18 months serving in the US Army in Germany when his plane stopped to refuel. The visit may only have lasted around 90 minutes but for 16‑year‑old Anne Murphy, watching him walk down the aircraft steps became a moment she would never forgot.
"I couldn't believe it. You're screaming your head off at this young, handsome young man."
🎧 Click the link in our bio to hear more on Witness History.
#BBCWorldService #DidYouKnow #ElvisPresley #MusicHistory #ScotlandStories
☕🧠Have you ever seen a face in a cup of tea?
It's a phenomenon called pareidolia. The BBC's Ella Hubber finds out what's going in our brains to cause it.
🎧 Click the link in our bio to hear more on Unexpected Elements.
#BBCWorldService #Pareidolia #BrainScience #ScienceExplained #DidYouKnow
