Perspective

A pioneering British sportswoman who broke her neck in a car crash when she was 16 says that after the accident, she decided to make the most of what she'd got. Nathalie McGloin became the world's first and only female tetraplegic racing driver, racing against both able-bodied men and women. Her story is proof that both gender and disability are completely irrelevant when it comes to racing cars. She spoke to us about her life and her charity Spinal Track. 

One of the world's leading climate scientists has spoken to FRANCE 24 about the extreme heat events of this summer, and in the wake of the catastrophic flooding in Nepal, how other similar events are all but inevitable. Diana Ürge-Vorsatz is professor of environmental studies at the Central European University and vice-chair of the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

As FRANCE 24 kicks off its new season of programmes, we've been looking ahead to perhaps the two most anticipated events to come in the year ahead. In two months' time the US will vote in midterm elections, and in just over six months' time France will vote in presidential elections. In Perspective, we spoke to geopolitical analyst, entrepreneur and international speaker Hind Ziane. She says the midterms will be a real test for US President Donald Trump, while in France it is the parties with clear presidential candidates in place that are currently dominating the opinion polls.

In this edition, British photographer Mark Neville, who is based in Kyiv, talks about his passion for the future of Ukraine and his belief that the country will win the war with Russia that started after Moscow’s full-scale invasion in 2022. He has spoken with FRANCE 24 multiple times to share some of the still photographs he has taken in Ukraine – both in major cities like Kyiv and from the frontline. This time, he showed us some of the footage he filmed as he went about taking his pictures.

In this edition, a climatologist talks to FRANCE 24 about our changing weather patterns and their effects on wildfires currently raging across Europe. Dr. Alan Kennedy-Asser, Senior researcher at the University of Bristol, sheds light on the issue against a backdrop of hundreds of French firefighters just managing to contain two fires that have raged across parts of the famous Fontainebleau forest near Paris.

A leading environmentalist is warning that the destruction of the world's biodiversity is one of the defining challenges of our time – and one that deserves far greater public attention. Marc-André Selosse, a professor at the French National Museum of Natural History and the University of Gdańsk, and author of the new book "De la biodiversité comme un humanisme" (Biodiversity as a Form of Humanism), argues that nature should be protected not only for its own sake, but because it is essential to humanity's future. He has also criticised politicians, pointing out that biodiversity accounted for just one percent of the debate during France's 2022 presidential election campaign. He spoke to us on Perspective.

One of the world's leading, multi-award-winning environmentalists has told FRANCE 24 how a childhood passion became a lifelong commitment. Krithi Karanth explained how her father nurtured her love of nature over 17 years, taking her into the jungle from the age of just one. She is now a conservation biologist and CEO of the Centre for Wildlife Studies in India, where she and her team work to protect a wide range of species, from Asian elephants and tigers to honey bees. She spoke to us on Perspective.

The Danish Refugee Council has warned that the latest Ebola outbreak in DR Congo is complicating an already strained humanitarian situation. In a recent report, the NGO stressed the response to the health emergency "must not hollow out the aid programming that is holding communities together". Speaking to FRANCE 24, Secretary-General Charlotte Slente lamented a "funding crisis" that had already begun before the Ebola outbreak, adding that with the arrival of the virus, "there's a risk these resources are now turned into a response to Ebola".

For Acantha Lang, soul music is "honest" and "moving". The Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter told FRANCE 24 that she believes "when people really connect with soul music, there's a kind of magic that happens". Born in New Orleans, Lang says she was "always around" the sounds of soul, jazz and blues, adding: "no matter where I am, I carry New Orleans in my spirit and in my music".

Independent UN investigators are calling for action after releasing a report detailing what they call “deliberate killing of Palestinian children” by Israel. The Independent International Commission of Inquiry says that since October 7, 2023, the "essence of childhood" has been "destroyed" in Gaza and the West Bank. Speaking with FRANCE 24, Commission Chair Srinivasan Muralidhar said that among the vast evidence collected were testimonies from doctors who said children were admitted to their care with "gunshot wounds specifically targeted at the head and the neck to cause maximum damage".