Perspective

From being jumped on by a polar bear while camping in the Northwest Passage to diving in Antarctica, Paul Rose has collected innumerable stories throughout his diverse career. He is currently Expedition Leader for National Geographic's Pristine Seas expeditions. Last year, his team discovered what they say is the largest coral colony on the planet during an expedition in the Solomon Islands in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. "It shows us how much there is to discover in the ocean," he tells FRANCE 24. He explains that the colony is in excellent health, giving hope about the power of protection measures at a time when most of the world's coral could be at risk of bleaching. 

According to its chief editor Hinda Abdi Mohamoud, Bilan Media gives Somali women "a space to work" and "real editorial power". Somalia's first female-only media outlet covers topics including climate change, people living with albinism and HIV/AIDS, while also encouranging period education for young girls. However, it's not an easy industry for Somali women to work in. "You can get trapped [...] you can be attacked," our guest explains. But this seems to make her even more determined: "It's the thing that we want to change [...] that people believe that women cannot do the hard work." She spoke to us in Perspective.

As France marks 10 years since the terror attack on the satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, we speak to journalist and filmmaker Paul Moreira, who witnessed the immediate aftermath of the massacre. Moreira's production company had offices next door to those of Charlie Hebdo, and upon arriving at the building on January 7, 2015, he compared the scene to a war zone that he had witnessed in Iraq. Later, in a bid to better understand what goes on in the minds of jihadists more generally, he produced a documentary entitled "ISIS: Birth of a Monster". It also focused on recruitment methods used by the Islamic State group. "I wanted to expose the tricks and the lies and the way they were manipulating young kids," Moreira tells us.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine nearly three years ago, at least 50,000 Ukrainians have lost limbs, according to the health ministry; a figure that includes both soldiers and civilians. The number is constantly rising, with complications like long evacuation times from the battlefield and infection risks. Our Perspective guest is helping amputees heal and re-integrate into society. Olga Rudnieva is the CEO and co-founder of the Superhumans Center – a clinic for psychological assistance, prosthetics, reconstructive surgery and rehabilitation for people affected by the war.

A mental health worker who is working to give psychological first aid in the south of Gaza has spoken to FRANCE 24 from there about the horrors of what is happening in the region, and how she and her colleagues go about trying to help. Zahra Legris is Mental Health Activity Manager for Médecins Sans Frontières or MSF, based around Khan Younis. She speaks daily to people, often children, who have been deeply traumatised by the war. Many are suffering from grief, displacement and the destruction of their quality of life. She spoke to us in Perspective.

A Franco-Palestinian chef from Bethlehem has spoken to FRANCE 24 about how his love for cooking has helped him get through the region's current problems. Fadi Kattan's book "Bethlehem" is a love letter to his hometown and is said to conjure the colours and smells of Bethlehem's market and spice shops. The book has been named as one of the cookbooks of the year by the Los Angeles Times. Kattan joined us on Perspective.

A German political expert has told FRANCE 24 that the country is undergoing a period of tremendous political change. That as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is almost certain to lose a confidence vote in parliament later this Monday. The probable defeat paves the way for the European Union's most populous member and biggest economy to hold an early election in February. We spoke to Matthias Dilling, an assistant professor in political science at Trinity College in Dublin. He is also co-convenor of the German Politics Specialist Group.

After the visit Joe Biden paid to Angola last week, the author of a new book has spoken to FRANCE 24 about hope and optimism in Angola and South Sudan. In “Insurgent Nations: Rebel Rule in Angola and South Sudan”, Paula Cristina Roque looks at two of Africa’s longest civil wars: one in Angola involving UNITA rebels in the 80’s, and the other in Sudan involving SPLM rebels in the 90’s. She spoke to us in Perspective about the ideologies driving the conflicts and the scars they left on Angolan and South Sudanese societies.

A world-renowned news photographer has spoken to FRANCE 24 about her efforts to document the conflict in Yemen. Asmaa Waguih has been to numerous countries, including Afghanistan and Libya – and won last year the Reuters Photographer of the Year for her coverage of the Arab Spring. Her latest book of pictures from Yemen, called Unfinished War, as the country remains all but impossible for journalists to report from since the conflict broke out there ten years ago. She spoke to us in Perspective.

New research shows that people are using private jets more and more as taxis to travel increasingly short distances with statistics showing that many journeys cover distances of less than 50 kilometres. Such trips by private jets are up to 14 times more polluting per head than commercial flights and more than 50 times more polluting than trains. In Perspective, we spoke to Stefan Gössling, professor at Linnaeus University in Sweden.