Can Denmark's mink industry rise again? Denmark was the world's top producer of mink for the luxury market. Last year a coronavirus variant was found in the animals, and transmitted to people. There was a fear the variant - Cluster 5 - might interfere with the efficacy of any vaccine developed for humans. So in November, the Danish government ordered a cull of all 17 million farmed mink. But questions have continued to be asked about the decision to effectively end production. Was it driven by an anti-fur, political agenda? Was the science reliable? For Assignment Linda Pressly and Danish journalist, Rikke Bolander, meet some of those with skin in the game. What are the chances of a revival of Denmark's mink business? Producers/presenters: Linda Pressly and Rikke Bolander
Editor, Bridget Harney (Image: A mink in a cage on a Danish fur farm. Credit: Mads Claus Rasmussen/Ritzau Scanpix/AFP via Getty Images)

Denmark: Goodbye to mink

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On the southern shores of Vietnam, whales are revered as gods of the oceans. Eliza Lomas visits whale temples and a whale cemetery, hearing about the roots and rituals of the belief. We learn how worshippers’ lives are entwined with the sea, joining a festival where whales are honoured with a ceremonial journey. With lives at sea full of risk, we hear how these sacred creatures ensure fishermen a safe return to land.

Heart and Soul: The whale worshippers of Vietnam

Sweden has a global reputation for championing high taxes and social equality, but it has more dollar billionaires, relative to its population size, than almost anywhere else on the planet. Stockholm-based journalist Maddy Savage untangles the rise of the super rich, from the country’s booming tech sector to wealth and taxation policy shifts. She also delves into the deep-rooted cultural norms which can discourage Swedes from celebrating money, and investigates the rise in impact investing, as some of Sweden’s richest business leaders plough their cash into new startups prioritizing social and environmental sustainability. A Podlit AB production.

Super-rich Swedes

From deepfakes to the fear of AI taking jobs, to the social media giants making money from abusive content, our technology dominated world is in a crisis – what are the solutions? AI researcher Kerry McInerney applies a feminist perspective to data, algorithms and intelligent machines. AI-powered tech, and generative AI in particular, pose new challenges for cybersecurity. Kerry proposes a new take on AI, looking at how it can be used on a small scale, acknowledging culture and gender, tailoring the technology for local applications rather than trying to push for global, one size fits all strategies. And in addressing corporate responsibility for Big Tech, Kerry discusses how tackling harassment online requires an understanding of the social, political and psychological dimensions of harassment, particularly of women in the wider world, as opposed to seeing this as a technical problem. Dr Kerry McInerney is a research fellow at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, University of Cambridge, and the AI Now Institute. This is the last of four programmes from the Oxford Literary Festival, presented by Nuala McGovern, produced by Julian Siddle. Recorded in front of an audience at Worcester College Oxford.

Forward Thinking: Can feminism fix the internet?

For three decades Armenians ruled Karabakh – literally “Black Garden” – an unrecognised statelet inside neighbouring Azerbaijan. Many saw it as the cradle of their civilisation. But as Azerbaijan retook control last autumn, the entire population fled in just a few days. It was a historic catastrophe for Armenia. But the world barely noticed. How is Armenia coping with its loss? Can 100,000 refugees rebuild their lives? And will the cycle of hatred that caused the conflict ever be broken? Grigor Atanesian reports.

Assignment: Armenia's lost garden

Philip K. Dick's novella The Minority Report was famously adapted into a science fiction blockbuster by director Steven Spielberg in 2002. More than 20 years later, it is now being adapted for the stage by writer David Haig and director Max Webster. Mark Burman goes behind the scenes of this bold adaptation, as the clock ticks down to opening night.

Denmark: Goodbye to mink

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