The Conversation

Kim Chakanetsa talks to two women who’ve chosen a life not on the ocean wave, but under it.

Chief Petty Officer Sara Ryman is currently serving on board a submarine in the Swedish Navy as a sonar officer. She operates the kind of equipment that’s essential to a submarine’s ability to track other vessels underwater, while remaining undetected.

Lieutenant Commander Rochelle Egan leads a team of engineers and technicians who maintain the Royal Canadian Navy’s Atlantic submarine fleet in tip top condition. She joined the submarine service in 2015, where she became the first female Combat Systems Engineering Officer to serve on Canada’s Victoria Class submarines.

Produced by Fiona Clampin.

(Image: (L) Lieutenant Commander Rochelle Egan, credit Sailor First Class Bryan Underwood/Royal Canadian Navy (R) Chief Petty Officer Sara Ryman, credit Försvarsmakten/Swedish Armed Forces.)

Artificial intelligence is changing the way we live and work. Should we accept it, or push back? Kim Chakanetsa meets two women pioneers in the field of AI and ethics.

Produced by Alice Gioia

(Image: (L) Aleksandra Przegalińska, credit courtesy of Aleksandra Przegalińska. (R) Mia Shah-Dand, credit courtesy of Mia Shah-Dand.)

Kim Chakanetsa is in the heart of Los Angeles' comedy district to meet two stand-up comedians who recently opened their own venues.

Produced by Alice Gioia

(Image: (L) Nthenya Ndunda, credit Getty Images. (R) Jiaoying Summers, credit courtesy of Jiaoying Summers.)

Kim Chakanetsa hears about the awe-inspiring journeys of two white-water kayakers from the US and France, and the resilience that's kept them at the top of their discipline.

Produced by Fiona Clampin

(Image: (L) Nouria Newman, credit Getty Images. (R) Darcy Gaechter, credit Matt Power. Background image: East Fork Kaweah River, credit Don Beveridge.)

In many societies there are misconceptions about disability and sex. Beatriz de la Pava meets two activists from Pakistan and Nigeria who break taboos and help disabled women access family planning services.

Produced by Hetal Bapodra and Jane Thurlow

(Image: (L) Abia Akram, courtesy Sightsavers. (R) Lois Auta, credit Sejoro Ekundayo.)

Kim Chakanetsa talks to two women who help save cultural heritage in areas afflicted by conflict and natural disasters.

Kateryna Goncharova has a Ph.D. in Museum and Monuments Studies. She joined the World Monuments Fund in April 2022 as Ukraine Heritage Crisis Specialist and she works on the ground to safeguard the country’s cultural heritage. Some of the sites she’s currently working in are the Khanenko Museum in Kyiv, the Library of Youth in Chernihiv, and the Local History Museum in Okhtyrka, which have been severely damaged by missile attacks.

Aparna Tandon leads the First Aid to Cultural Heritage in Times of Crisis Programme at Iccrom, the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. She has worked in countries afflicted by conflict and natural disasters – like Haiti, Nepal, Japan, Italy, and more recently, in the areas of Turkey and Syria hit by the 2023 earthquake.

Produced by Alice Gioia

(Image: (L) Kateryna Goncharova, credit World Monument Fund. (R) Aparna Tandon, credit courtesy of Aparna Tandon.)

Kim Chakanetsa talks to two Paralympic wheelchair rugby players from UK and Denmark about competing at the top level in this mixed-gender, adrenaline-filled, high-impact sport – that used to be known as murderball.

Kylie Grimes is an Paralympic gold medallist, competing at three Paralympics for Great Britain. As a teenage athlete and show jumper, Kylie had a life-changing spinal injury in 2006 but her passion for sport remained. Within three years she was cycling 450 km, from Vietnam to Cambodia, to raise money for charity and was playing wheelchair rugby. In 2012 she qualified for her first Paralympics in London she helped Team GB win its first Paralympic gold in the sport at Tokyo 2020.

Sofie Skoubo helped the Danish wheelchair rugby team qualify for their first Paralympics in Tokyo. She has Muscular Dystrophy and has also fought off the court to focus on the special needs of para-athletes. Alongside her sports career she works for the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation on an initiative supporting disabled children access education.

Produced by Jane Thurlow

(Image: (L) Sofie Skoubo, credit D Echelard. (R) Kylie Grimes, credit Megum Masuda.)

Perfumers from Colombia and Sweden tell Kim Chakanetsa about inventing fragrances that evoke emotion and nostalgia.

Adriana Medina is a Vice President Perfumer at one of the world's biggest fragrance companies, Givaudan. She grew up in Colombia and after a Masters degree in Cosmetic Science, she attended the Givaudan Perfumery School in Paris. Her creations include 3121 for Prince and Meow for Katy Perry as well as Bombshell for Victoria's Secret – one of the most popular perfumes in US for more than a decade.

Born in Västerås Sweden, Maya Njie moved to the UK to study at the University of the Arts London. She started making her own fragrances as part of her art and as interest grew among friends and fellow artists she founded Maya Njie Perfumes in 2016. Her scents are deeply rooted in her Swedish and West African heritage.

Produced by Jane Thurlow

(Image: (L) Adriana Medina, courtesy Givaudan. (R) Maya Njie, courtesy Maya Njie.)

In a world that is dominated by news of destruction and disaster it seems as though we will never see any positive news. Amongst this bad news fatigue, media forums focusing purely on positive and uplifting stories have begun to seep through to mainstream media.

Anuradha Kedia is the co-founder of The Better India, the world's largest positive and solutions based media platform. Anuradha focuses on objective reporting and impact driven media to create a positive impact across India.

Geri Weis-Corby is the founder and editor-in-chief of the Good News Network, an online newspaper which solely publishes positive and uplifting news stories. Geri is also the author of ‘And Now, The Good News’ which highlights some of their best news stories from the past 25 years.

Produced by Abbie Bulbulian and Jane Thurlow

(Image: (L) Geri Weis-Corby, courtesy Geri Weis-Corby. (R) Anuradha Kedia, courtesy Anuradha Kedia.)

What does it take to become a world champion tree climber?

Josephine Hedger is a five-time World Champion and a Six Time European Champion tree climber. She lives in the New Forest, in the South of England, and when she's not competing or training she runs her own company, Arbor Venture Tree Care.

Jess Hamer is an arborist from Australia and the record holder for fastest 15 metres ascent in the Tree Climbing World Championships. She’s passionate about conservation and she uses social media to document the amazing trees she climbs and the animals she encounters - including scary looking spiders and hairy caterpillars.

Produced by Alice Gioia

(Image: (L) Jess Hamer, courtesy Jess Hamer. (R) Josephine Hedger, courtesy Josephine Hedger.)