Business Daily

Alle afleveringen

2.000 afleveringen, van nieuw naar oud

1. Get a job?

   25 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   Is unemployment in the developed world so low because people have simply given up on finding work? Ed Butler speaks to economist Danny Blanchflower of Dartmouth College, who says that a decade after the global financial crisis, workers in the US and Europe continue tp face a terrible jobs market that is not reflected in the official statistics. Lees meer

   Is the problem that all the well paid jobs are being created in a few rich, expensive cities that are simply inaccessible to the underemployed? That's the contention of Enrico Moretti, professor of economics at the University of California, Berkeley. And according to Christina Stacy of the Urban Institute in Washington DC, even within these cities, service sector workers are finding themselves priced out of the property markets where the job opportunities exist.

   (Photo: A homeless man sleeping on a sidewalk in San Francisco, California. Credit: Robert Alexander/Getty Images)

2. Life in an unrecognised state

   24 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   How do you do business with the rest of the world when nobody officially accepts that your nation state even exists? Rob Young looks at the struggles facing unrecognised breakaway states such as Abkhazia, Transnistria and Nagorno Karabakh. Lees meer

   Thomas de Waal of think tank Carnegie Europe explains how many of them have turned to smuggling and even Bitcoin mining as a way of making ends meet. Meanwhile the BBC's Ivana Davidovic reports from Nicosia in Cyprus where the city's main thoroughfare is still physically divided between the prosperous Greek south and the unrecognised Turkish north.

   Plus how can these nations compete international football? Sascha Duerkop has the answer. He is general secretary of Conifa, the international football league for teams that Fifa refuses to recognise.

   (Picture: Children wave the North Cypriot flag; Credit: STR/AFP/Getty Images)

3. The Facebook currency

   21 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   Why Facebook's Libra project will attract the attention of regulators. Rob Young hears from the BBC's technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones about why Facebook is launching its own currency. Charles Cascarilla, founder of the digital currency company Paxos explains why the Libra project is so ambitious. Rebecca Harding, chief executive of the data and analytics group Coriolis Trade Technologies and former chief economist at the British Bankers’ Association, explains why regulators will be paying attention. Lees meer

   (Photo: Illustration of Facebook and digital currency, Credit: Getty Images)

4. The next agricultural revolution

   19 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   We need to transform the way we grow food if we are to head off disaster - so say leading agronomists. But can it be done? Lees meer

   The modern agricultural industry, borne out of the Green Revolution that has multiplied crop yields since the 1960s, has contributed to multiple new crises - obesity, soil degradation, collapsing biodiversity and climate change. To address this "paradox of productivity" a whole new revolution is needed, according to Professor Tim Benton of the University of Leeds and think tank Chatham House.

   The BBC's Justin Rowlatt travels to the world's longest running scientific experiment, a collection of wheat fields dating back to the 1840s at the Rothamsted agricultural research centre just outside London, to ask resident scientist John Crawford whether our past success in staving off global hunger can be sustained in the coming decades.

   Plus what role should the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation play, especially as that body prepares to appoint new leadership? Justin speaks to the former UN Rapporteur for the Right to Food, Olivier de Schutter.

   Producer: Laurence Knight

   (Picture: The Broadbalk research wheat fields at Rothamsted; Credit: BBC)

5. Istanbul's vexed elections

   19 juni 2019 · 17 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   The Turkish commercial capital must vote again for a new mayor after March's election result was overturned by the government. Lees meer

   Ed Butler visits the city and meets Ekrem Imamoglu, who narrowly won in March but spent just 17 days in office before the decision was made to re-run the election. Mr Imamoglu says he saw overspending and waste, and that around 10% of the city's budget could be saved.

   The country is also experiencing an economic slowdown, and Ed speaks to Deniz Gider of the Turkish construction workers' union, about how it's affecting his members. Plus economist and political scientist Atilla Yesilada explains how Turkey finds itself in this current economic crisis.

   (Picture: Supporters of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu protest against the re-run of the mayoral election in Istanbul; Credit: Yasin Akgul/AFP/Getty Images)

6. Hostile environment for immigrants

   17 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   The attitude towards immigration in Europe and America is hardening under a wave of populist politics, and businesses are finding that despite labour shortages in many sectors, bringing workers in from abroad is becoming harder. Lees meer

   The BBC's Frey Lindsay reports from Stockholm on a phenomenon dubbed "talent expulsions" - highly skilled workers being ordered to leave the country because their paperwork is not perfectly in order.

   A similarly bureaucratic approach has been taken in the UK, where it is dubbed the "hostile environment" for immigrants. Since the 2016 Brexit referendum some three million EU citizens suddenly find themselves subject to it. Dutch campaigner Monique Hawkins tells how she was told to leave the UK despite having lived there more than three decades. Meanwhile Danny Brooks of international recruitment firm Virtual Human Resources says UK businesses are already finding it much tougher to attract the talented employees they need.

   We also get the view from Singapore. About half the city-state's residents are immigrants, after several decades of a successful pro-business immigration policy. We ask former diplomat Kishore Mahbubani what is the secret of his country's success.

   Producer: Laurence Knight

   (Picture: "Denied" rubber stamp; Credit: bankrx/Getty Images)

7. The next financial crisis

   13 juni 2019 · 19 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   It's more than a decade since the global financial crisis. Central banks have pumped trillions of dollars into the financial system to support markets and the broader economy. But there are warning signs that major risks may be re-emerging in the financial markets. Lees meer

   This month, fund manager Neil Woodford suspended trading in his largest fund after rising numbers of investors asked for their money back. Could this highlight a vulnerability in the financial system that runs right through the investment management business?

   The BBC's Manuela Saragosa and Laurence Knight speak to two veterans of the investment community: Mohamed El-Erian, chief economic adviser at Allianz and former head of Pimco in California; and Lord Paul Myners, the former head of Gartmore in the UK. Both worry that investors are unaware of the risk they are running that they won't be able to access their money when they most need it, and warn that regulators could be blindsided by the next big crisis.

   Producer: Laurence Knight

   (Picture: A trading screen flashes red; Credit: Getty Images)

8. The global trade in trash

   10 juni 2019 · 18 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   Asian countries have told the West to stop dumping its plastic waste on them - and it could spell the end of the recycling industry. China imposed a ban on imports last year, and now Malaysia and others are returning the stuff back its senders. Lees meer

   Manuela Saragosa speaks to Jim Puckett, founder of the Basel Action Network, who has successfully lobbied for the international trade in recyclable waste to be curtailed, because he believes it is actually bad for the environment. Arnaud Brunet, director of the Bureau of International Recycling, explains why he thinks that's an unfair depiction of his industry.

   (Picture: A man scavenges for plastic for recycling at a garbage dump site in Bachok, Malaysia; Credit: Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

9. Oil, guns and pollution

   5 juni 2019 · 18 min

   Beluister deze aflevering
   The Niger Delta is Africa's biggest oil producing region. It has also become a security and environmental nightmare thanks to dozens of spills and theft by armed rebels. Lees meer

   Oil and gas giant Shell has long been criticised for its operations in the region. Igo Weli, one of the company's directors in Nigeria, tells Manuela Saragosa how the threat of violence makes it hard for them to clean up their act.

   But while Shell claims it is trying its best in challenging circumstances, Mark Dummett of Amnesty International says the company could be doing a lot more and is still under-reporting the extent of the problem. Manuela also speaks to Jumoke Ajayi of Nigerian oil conglomerate Sahara Group, and Erabanabari Kobah, who acts as a spokesperson for one of the Niger Delta communities.

   Producer: Laurence Knight

   (Picture: A member of the Nigerian navy forces patrols on an abandoned site of an illegal oil refinery in the Niger Delta region; Credit: Stefan Heunis/AFP/Getty Images)

10. Is it time to tax robots?

    4 juni 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    With ever more jobs at risk of automation, should the automatons be taxed the same as humans? Lees meer

    Ed Butler speaks to Dr Carl Frey of the Oxford Martin School, who co-authored a report five years ago claiming that almost half of US jobs could made redundant by emerging technology in the next 30 years. His new book, The Technology Trap, looks to the history of the Industrial Revolution as a guide to current developments. He worries that millions of workers could soon find their careers devastated, while the ultimate benefits of technology may only felt decades in the future.

    It is perhaps then not surprising that many politicians, academics and businessmen - including Microsoft founder Bill Gates - now advocate a tax on automation to level the playing field with humans. We pit an advocate of such a tax - Ryan Abbott of the University of Surrey - against critic Janet Bastiman, chief scientist at StoryStream, which provides AI services to the automotive sector.

    (Picture: Robot call centre; Credit: PhonlamaiPhoto/Getty Images)

11. Jobs for prisoners

    31 mei 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    The challenge of getting ex-offenders back into work. Vivienne Nunis hears from Lester Young Jr, an ex-offender in the US where low-paid work for prisoners is commonplace, while Daniel Gallas reports from Brazil where female prisoners are allowed to operate businesses from their cells. Keith Rosser from the recruitment company Reed describes the challenge of persuading employers to take on convicts in the UK. Elizabeth Hotson meets Max Dubiel, founder of Redemption Roasters, a coffee company that makes a virtue of hiring former prisoners. Lees meer

12. Is Google too big?

    29 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Is the search engine's share of our attention and our data too dominant, and should regulators step in and break their business up? Ed Butler gets to pitch these and other questions to Google's former chairman Eric Schmidt. Lees meer

    Google, along with other Silicon Valley leviathans such as Facebook, Amazon and Apple, faces increasing criticism from commentators, regulators and politicians for its monopolistic power. Among them is the tech journalist Franklin Foer of The Atlantic magazine, who tells Ed that the political tide is now turning against big tech in the US.

    (Picture: The Google logo is reflected in the eye of a girl; Credit: Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

13. Romantic fraud

    28 mei 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    The cruel multi-million-dollar business of scamming lonely hearts out of their money by posing online as the perfect lover. Lees meer

    Vishala Sri-Pathma speaks to victim David in the UK, who gave almost $20,000 to a woman he met online and hoped to marry and start a family with, before discovering "she" was actually a fraudster. Meanwhile Australian Eliza tells of her amazement at the amount of homework the con artist she encountered must have done researching her background before attempting to swindle her.

    Such cases are becoming ever more common thanks to the internet, which enables scammers to mine would-be victims' social media sites for valuable information, while concealing their own identity on dating apps. David Clarke, chair of the UK fraud advisory panel, says it has made romantic fraud a valuable international criminal enterprise.

    (Picture: Woman looks at smartphone while biting lip; Credit: DeanDrobot/Getty Images)

14. Europe votes for uncertainty

    27 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Election results leave the European parliament more fragmented than ever. The greens, liberals and far right are up. The traditional left and right, which have dominated European politics for decade, declined further. How will this affect business sentiment on the continent, as well as the EU's economic reform agenda? Lees meer

    Ed Butler hosts a live discussion with Ben Butters of the European Association of Chambers of Commerce and Industry; Allie Renison, head of Europe and Trade Policy at the UK's Institute of Directors; and the BBC's economics correspondent Andrew Walker.

    (Picture: Young supporters of the European Green party react to exit poll results; Credit: Adam Berry/Getty Images)

15. India election: Modi's report card

    24 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured another five-year term after winning a landslide general election victory. His Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) looks set to win about 300 of the 543 seats in parliament, in what Mr Modi hailed as "a historic mandate".
    Fergus Nicoll has travelled to Mr Modi’s constituency at Varanasi on the River Ganges in Uttar Pradesh. Prime Minister Modi promised to clean up the river after decades of pollution. Professor VN Mishra has strong words for the Prime Minister on what needs to be done to save the river and modernise an outdated sewerage system.
    Outside the city, we meet the farmers for whom Modi has created a model village, complete with solar-powered street lights - and the farmers who are about to lose their fields to a big truck park.
    There are hundreds of thousands of workers who have concluded that their best prospects lie abroad, most often in the Gulf. It is a mixed prospect, with the promise of money to send back home, but prolonged absences can bring great strain to families
    Stephen Ryan speaks to Professor Irudaya Rajan, Centre for Development Studies in Trivandrum, the lawyer and writer Smitha Girish whose husband has lived in Dubai for the last 15 years, and VK Mathews, who set up his own business when he returned to India.
    (Picture: Voters lined up at a polling station in Varanasi, India. Picture credit: Madanmohan Sharma) Lees meer

16. The plastic in the ocean

    23 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Why plastic ends up there and how to stop it. Stephen Ryan reports from the Ganges - a major source of plastic that ends up in the oceans. Manuela Saragosa speaks to Dr Hannah Ritchie of the Oxford University Martin School about the importance of plastic disposal. Professor Tony Ryan, a polymer chemist and sustainability leader at the University of Sheffield, explains why recycling is still the answer. Lees meer

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Photo: A plastic bottle floating in the Pacific ocean, Credit: Getty Images)

17. The trillion dollar coach

    22 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    What Silicon Valley titans learned from an American football coach. Despite a fairly unspectacular career with the Columbia University college football team, Bill Campbell found himself guiding the leadership at the top of both Apple and Google simultaneously. Lees meer

    One of his mentees was the former Google chairman Eric Schmidt, who speaks about the surprising contribution that someone with a background in sports and no knowledge of programming was able to make to the tech firm's spectacular rise, and why he thinks all companies should have a coach sit in on their board meetings.

    The nexus between sports and business has a long history, and another individual who embodied that was Niki Lauda, the Formula 1 driver who survived a horrific crash and went on to found a string of pioneering budget airlines in Europe. Manuela Saragosa speaks to Oliver Clark of the aviation news and analytics company Flight Global about the business legacy of Lauda, who died earlier this week at the age of 70.

    (Picture: Columbia Lions quarterback Anders Hill; Credit: Williams Paul/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

18. Education for all

    21 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    How can educators ensure that every child in the world - and particularly every girl - has access to a decent school? And how should the curriculum prepare young people for a workplace about to be transformed by artificial intelligence? Lees meer

    Tanya Beckett hosts a debate in Dubai with Vikas Pota, chairman of the Varkey Foundation; Elizabeth Bintliff, chief executive of youth NGO Junior Achievement Africa; and Dr Amy Ogan, professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Plus Tanya speaks to Peter Kabichi, a Kenyan monk and science teacher, who was the winner of this year's Global Teacher Prize awarded by the Varkey Foundation.

    (Picture: Girl learning English in Lalibela, Ethiopia; Credit: hadynyah/Getty Images)

19. The meat-free burger

    20 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Can a burger help save the planet? The Business Daily team try out the plant-based burger designed to convert meat eaters. Dr Marco Springmann from Oxford University explains why eating less meat can help slow climate change. Simeon Van Der Molen, founder and CEO of food technology company Moving Mountains outlines the future for the meat-free food industry. Lees meer

    (Photo: a burger made by Beyond Meat, Credit: Beyond Meat)

20. A new port in India

    17 mei 2019 · 19 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    India's bid to capture a slice of global shipping. The east-west shipping line off the southern coast of India carries around 30% of the world's cargo. As container ships get bigger, the Kerala state government wants to build a deep-water container port at Vizhinjam. But the $1.2bn project has been badly delayed by Cyclone Ockhi in 2017 and by last year’s torrential rains and flooding in the region. Fergus Nicoll speaks to Karan Adani, CEO of Adani Ports and hears the concerns from a boat owner and fish vendors concerned for their livelihoods. Lees meer

    Plus Stephen Ryan speaks to transgender workers on the Kochi metro in Kerala.

    (Photo: A container ship off the coast of Kerala, Credit: Getty Images)

21. The magic money tree

    16 mei 2019 · 19 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Should governments spend more money? 'Modern monetary theory' or MMT is gaining traction, particularly in the US. It says governments should worry less about balancing the books. Its detractors call it the 'magic money tree'. Manuela Saragosa speaks to hedge fund founder Warren Mosler - the man who first proposed MMT - and economist Frances Coppola about the criticisms facing the theory. Lees meer

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Photo: a magic money tree, Credit: Getty Images)

22. Climbing the student debt mountain

    15 mei 2019 · 19 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Could a new scheme alleviate the crippling cost of university fees for young Americans, who have already accumulated a trillion and a half dollars in student debts? Lees meer

    Dr Courtney McBeth tells Ed Butler how under the "income sharing agreement" scheme that she is piloting at the University of Utah, the amount that students repay depends on how much money they manage to earn in their future careers. This new approach frees graduates up to start a family or risk starting their own company, according to Charles Trafton, who runs a student loan marketplace called Edly.

    But the financing is provided by investors looking to make a profit, in contrast to similar government-run schemes in the UK and Australia. And according to David Robinson of British think tank the Education Policy Institute, this means that the US scheme may not do much to improve social mobility or meet the needs of the jobs market.

    (Picture: Coins stacks stepping up towards a money jar topped by a university mortar board; Credit: marchmeena29/Getty Images)

23. The cyber arms race

    14 mei 2019 · 20 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Was the NotPetya attack, that struck Ukraine and then the world in 2016, a portend of potentially devastating cyber-wars in the future? Lees meer

    Ed Butler goes back to ground zero of that sophisticated cyber attack to speak to Oleh Derevianko of the Ukrainian cybersecurity firm ISSP, and Valentyn Petrov who heads Ukraine's information security service. How did a piece of malware allegedly designed by Russia to devastate the Ukrainian economy go on to infect the computers of multinational corporations such as shipping firm Maersk and pharmaceutical Merck?

    Are such state sponsored attacks becoming more commonplace? And why has Russia - widely accused of being one of the worst perpetrators of such attacks - just passed new legislation to defend itself from a cyber attack in the future? We hear from Bryan Sartin, head of global security at US telecoms conglomerate Verizon, and Emily Taylor of the international relations think tank Chatham House.

    (Picture: Malicious computer programming code in the shape of a skull; Credit: solarseven/Getty Images)

24. The coming floods

    13 mei 2019 · 19 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    With the sea level rising and storms strengthening thanks to climate change, will much of the world's most valuable real estate find itself underwater? Lees meer

    Justin Rowlatt visits London's main line of defence against the sea - the Thames Barrier - a hugely expensive piece of engineering that will need to be replaced by an even larger barrier later this century, according to its operator Steve East, and coastal risk manager Cantor Mocke.

    The oceans will eventually rise by two metres at the very least, says climatologist Ben Strauss of US think tank Climate Central, putting many of the world's great cities at severe risk of inundation. The giant global real estate investment firm Heitman has been looking at which properties in its portfolio are most at risk. Company strategist Brian Klinksiek tells of his fear that the market has yet to price in the cost of the giant storms of the future.

    The biggest city in the world vulnerable to the rising waters is Shanghai in China, and flood risk researcher Qian Ke of the Delft University of Technology explains the work she is already doing with the Shanghai city authorities to prepare for the coming storm.

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Picture: People are taken ashore in a boat after being rescued from their homes in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina in 2005; Credit: Mario Tama/Getty Images)

25. Disabled on Wall Street

    10 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Getting more disabled people into the workforce. Manuela Saragosa speaks to Rich Donovan, a trader who forged a successful career on Wall Street with cerebral palsy. Alice Maynard, a business advisor on inclusion in the UK explains the challenges still facing disabled people at work. And blind skateboarder Dan Mancina talks about his career. Lees meer

    (Photo: Wheelchair user at work, Credit: Getty Images)

26. Rebuilding an economy after two cyclones

    9 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    In Mozambique, Cyclones Idai and Kenneth did tremendous damage to the lives and livelihoods of millions of people in March and April. The country is still trying to get the crisis under control, as flooding, cholera and poor food and aid provision continue to threaten lives. Lees meer

    Dorothy Sang is Humanitarian Advocacy and Campaigns Manager for Oxfam, and gives Ed Butler the view from the ground in Mozambique. Thoughts are turning as well to the future, as the economy based largely on subsistence farming and tourism attempts to rebuild. Rebecca Nadin of the Overseas Development Institute speaks to Ed about whether, and how much, reconstruction is actually possible, given that climate change is expected to cause more natural disasters to occur.

    (Picture: A flooded street of the Paquite district of Pemba, Mozambique on April 29, 2019; Credit: Emidio Jozine/AFP/Getty Images)

27. India's caste quota controversy

    8 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Is Prime Minister Narendra Modi's tinkering with the reservation system nothing more than a bid to grab votes in the general election? Lees meer

    India has long had a system of positive discrimination to enable people from lower castes to get political representation, government jobs and university places. But as Rahul Tandon reports, the Prime Minister's decision to broaden the quotas to include anyone from an economically deprived background, irrespective of caste, has proved divisive among voters.

    Ed Butler speaks to Ashwini Deshpande, economics professor at Ashoka University, who claims that Modi's move won't even help the underprivileged group it purports to. Plus former governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Raghuram Rajan, gives his considered opinion of the successes and failures of five years of economic policy under Modi.

    (Picture: An Indian voter queues to cast her vote; Credit: Money Sharma/AFP/Getty Images)

28. Netflix moves into Africa

    7 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    The video streaming service Netflix has announced a major push into Africa, with original series commissioned from around the continent. Lees meer

    Netflix had already commissioned its first Nigerian original movie with 2018’s Lionheart, and a number of new projects have been announced, including the Zimbabwean musical animation Tunga. Ed Butler speaks to screenwriter Godwin Jabangwe about how he based it on the legends he heard as a child. Meanwhile Mahmoud Ali Balogun, a veteran Nollywood filmmaker, explains why he thinks Netflix will be good for the country's content creators.

    It won’t necessarily be smooth sailing for Netflix, however, as high data costs and poor connectivity mean many African viewers won’t get the same experience as those in more developed regions. Ed speaks to South African media analyst Arthur Goldstuck, and Hassana, a young Netflix user in north-western Nigeria.

    (Picture: the Netflix logo; Credit: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images)

29. The price of bread

    6 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    This global food staple used to account for half of some people's income. Dr Kaori O’Connor a food anthropologist at University College, London, explains how it became central to so many of our diets. Plus we’ll hear from Dominique Anract, President of the National Confederation of French Bakers who explains some of the rules of the bread industry. Renowned chef, Francisco Migoya tells us about recreating Roman loaves, and we hear from James Slater from Puratos who uses ancient grains to develop modern flours. Kevan Roberts spills the secrets of gluten-free baking and consultant Azmina Govindji tells us that carbs are not an evil that needs to be avoided. Lees meer

30. The value of domestic work

    3 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Housework and caring - is technology about to transform this essential but overlooked part of the economy? Lees meer

    Manuela Saragosa speaks to Ai-Jen Poo, director of the National Domestic Workers Alliance in the US about why workers in the home still aren't valued, and to Megan Stack, author of Woman's Work, about the power employers have over domestic help. Professor Diane Coyle from the University of Cambridge explains why domestic work often isn't included in GDP figures.

    (Photo credit: Getty Images)

31. A four-day week?

    2 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    The campaign for a four-day working week is gaining traction, particularly in the UK. Manuela Saragosa hears from Lorraine Gray, operations director at Pursuit Marketing, a company that has already made the switch from five to four days. But Ed Whiting, policy director at the charity Wellcome Trust, explains why they decided against the change after a major consultation. Asheem Singh, director of economy at the Royal Society of Arts, warns that a shift to a four-day week could result in a two-tier economy. Lees meer

    (Photo: A pin placed in a calendar, Credit: Getty Images)

32. The mega factory that never was

    1 mei 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Foxconn is causing a political headache for President Trump, as the Taiwanese manufacturer fails to deliver on a promise to build a 13,000-employee factory in Wisconsin. Lees meer

    The LCD screen plant - which was intended to hire 13,000 local blue collar workers - was heralded by the US president as a win in his struggle to return manufacturing jobs to America. But while the Wisconsin authorities have spent millions of dollars preparing the ground, Foxconn itself has obfuscated.

    Ed Butler investigates what went wrong, and what it says more broadly about President's Trump's ambition to revitalise the US manufacturing sector. The programme includes journalist Josh Dzieza of The Verge, Harvard Business School professor Willy Shih, and chief economist Megan Greene of Manulife Asset Management.

    (Foxconn CEO Terry Gou (L) at the groundbreaking for the Foxconn computer screen plant in Mt Pleasant, Wisconsin, in June 2018; Credit: Andy Manis/Getty Images)

33. What young Indians want

    30 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    As India holds elections, getting decent jobs is top of the agenda for most young voters, as the BBC's Rahul Tandon discovers. Lees meer

    Most Indians still live in rural areas, and on a trip to the village of Burul just outside Kolkata, Rahul hears the fears of students at a local high school at their lack of meaningful career prospects. Employment could be a key factor in deciding whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi holds onto power when the election results are announced on 23 May.

    One reason for the paucity of jobs could be the difficulty entrepreneurs face creating them in the first place - that's the view of Srikumar Mishra, who founded the dairy business Milk Mantra in Odisha in southeast India. Meanwhile 16-year-old Taneesha Dutta expresses her frustration at the lack of autonomy people her age are permitted, both by their government and by their parents.

    (Picture: Students in Burul high school interviewed by Rahul Tandon)

34. Youtube: Cracking down on crackpots

    29 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    What does the video-sharing site needs to do in order to stop inadvertently promoting dangerous conspiracy theories and extremist content? Lees meer

    Alex Jones's InfoWars channel (pictured) - which among other things propagated the lie that the Sandy Hook school shooting in the US was faked - has already been banned from YouTube, although his videos still find their way onto the site. Meanwhile the social media platform has also been clamping down on the vaccination conspiracists blamed for causing the current measles epidemic, as well as the far right extremists said to have inspired terrorists such as the New Zealand mosque shooter.

    But is the tougher curating of content enough? Or does YouTube's very business model depend on the promotion of sensationalism and extremism by its algorithms? Ed Butler speaks to Mike Caulfield of the American Democracy Project, former Youtube engineer Guillaume Chaslot, and Joan Donovan, who researches the Alt Right at Harvard.

    (Picture: Screenshot of an Alex Jones InfoWars video on YouTube, taken on 29 April 2019, despite the banning of his channel by YouTube)

35. When computer glitches ruin lives

    26 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Imagine losing your home, your job or your reputation, all because of a computer error. We speak to people who say that's exactly what happened to them. Lees meer

    Kim Duncan and her children lost their family home in the US after Kim's bank Wells Fargo mistakenly said she didn't qualify for a loan modification she needed to keep up with her repayments. Meanwhile in the UK, the Post Office is being litigated by former employees who were fired and in some cases went to prison after being accused of fraud - they claim because of a bug in the Post Office's accounting software.

    Manuela Saragosa asks computer science expert Lindsay Marshall of Newcastle University whether glitches like these are unavoidable. Do they have to be so damaging, and are they likely to become an ever more common bane of our lives?

    (Photo: Businessman sitting in a data centre looking frustrated. Credit: AKodisinghe/Getty Images)

36. The global affordable housing crisis

    25 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Do rent controls and the expropriation of apartment blocks provide an answer to the increasing cost of housing in the rich world? Lees meer

    Such radical measures are being considered in many of the world's biggest metropolises, as more and more residents find themselves being priced out of their home cities.

    Manuela Saragosa speaks to Tom McGath of the Berlin-based campaign group Deutsche Wohnen Enteignen, who wants the city authorities to seize ownership of housing from the German capital's biggest landlords. But leading urbanist Richard Florida of the University of Toronto says there are better ways of tackling the shortage, not least taking on the "not in my back yard" brigade.

    (Picture: A banner put up by tenants in Berlin protesting against the sale of apartments; John Macdougall/AFP/Getty Images)

37. Pricing in climate change

    24 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Are markets and companies beginning to grasp the threat of global warming? Ed Butler speaks to Meryam Omi, head of sustainability and responsible investment strategy at Legal and General, a major investor, about divesting from companies that contribute to climate change. And Jeff Colgan, director of security studies at the Watson Institute, Brown University, in the US, tells us why he thinks sectors like insurance, property and oil and gas are overpriced given the threat of climate change. Bjorn Otto Sverdrup, senior vice president for sustainability at Equinor, Norway's state-back oil company, outlines what changes his company is making. Lees meer

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Photo: Climate change protesters in London, Credit: Getty Images)

38. The true cost of periods

    23 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Periods. We rarely talk about them but half the world's population will have to manage menstruation for a good chunk of their lives. Lees meer

    For some women, their monthly period brings shame and stigmatisation, as they are forced out of their communities. Others simply can't afford the products they need to carry on with their lives.

    Ruth Evans reports from Nepal on some of the challenges and the solutions being developed, to help improve the lives of millions.

    We also hear from Janie Hampton, of World Menstrual Network, who's calling for drastic change in the way periods are managed, not just in poor communities but in the developed world, too.

    (Photo: A Nepalese woman steps out from a 'chhaupadi house' in the village of Achham, Nepal. Isolation is part of a centuries-old Hindu ritual where women are prohibited from participating in normal family activities during menstruation and after childbirth. Credit: Getty Images)

39. TED2019: Facebook, Twitter and democracy

    22 april 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Jane Wakefield reports from the Ted conference in Vancouver. Lees meer

    (Photo: Social media app icons, Credit: Getty Images)

40. TED2019: Space junk, rockets and aliens

    19 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Jane Wakefield reports from the TED conference in Vancouver, Canada, on the businesses shooting for the stars. Chief Executive of Rocket Lab Peter Beck shares his concerns about the amount of space junk being left in orbit. Former astronaut Nicole Stott explains why an ill-fitting space suit can be a big problem. And Assistant Professor of Astrophysics at University of Arizona, Erika Hamden, tells us why space exploration is suddenly cool again. Lees meer

    (Photo: An astronaut in space, Credit: Getty Images)

41. Should prostitution be a normal profession?

    18 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    What's the best way to help sex workers? We hear the cases for full decriminalisation, versus abolition of what's often dubbed the world's oldest profession. Lees meer

    In the Netherlands - a country with some of the most liberal laws on prostitution - a petition is due to be debated in parliament that calls for it to be made illegal to pay for sex. The initiative, spearheaded by young Christians and feminists, has sparked an outcry with many claiming it would actually make life harder for the sex workers it is intended to help, as the BBC's Anna Holligan reports.

    It's a controversy we bring back into the BBC studio. Ed Butler hosts a fiery dispute between the British feminist and journalist Julie Bindel, and the Nevadan sex worker-turned-PhD student Christina Parreira, who wants her profession to be treated in law just the same way as any other. Plus Professor Prabha Kotiswaran of Kings College London explains why it doesn't make much difference what the law says, if it is arbitrarily enforced by the police.

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Picture: A group of sex workers and supporters are seen holding a banner during a demonstration in Amsterdam, Netherlands; Credit: Ana Fernandez/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

42. Pakistan's young entrepreneurs

    17 april 2019 · 20 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    How the country’s young businesses are making a mark in fashion, beauty, music and tech. Lees meer

    Vivienne Nunis speaks to Humayun Haroon, co-founder of digital music platform Patari; Shameelah Ismail, chief executive of GharPar, a start-up that offers beauty services in the home; Myra Qureshi head of Conatural Beauty, Pakistan's first organic skin and haircare range; and fashion designer Umair Sajid.

    (Picture: Humayon Haroon, co-founder of Patari at the company headquarters in Lahore, Pakistan)

43. The death of the local newspaper

    16 april 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    How the decline of the local newspaper industry is affecting democracy. Manuela Saragosa speaks to Ken Doctor, former newspaper man and now analyst at his own company Newsanomics, about the scale of decline in local news, particularly in the United States. Researcher Meg Rubado explains how the lack of a local news source is affecting local elections, and Penny Abernathy, professor in journalism and digital media economics at the University of North Carolina, explains why deep cuts are down to a new breed of newspaper owner. What's the solution? In the UK, we hear from Megan Lucero, director of Bureau Local, a project part funded by Google to help local journalists collaborate on stories and share resources. Lees meer

    (Photo: a newspaper press in San Francisco, Credit: Getty Images)

44. WhatsApp in India

    15 april 2019 · 17 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Are fake news and rumours still proliferating on Whatsapp in India? And is this being exploited by candidates as the country prepares to go to the polls? Lees meer

    Pratik Sinha, director of AltNews.in, is fighting an uphill struggle trying to debunk the misinformation and outright deceit they claim can still spread like wildfire among India's 200 million Whatsapp users.

    But is fact-checking even the right way to tackle the problem? Or is it just closing the barn door after the fake horse has already bolted? Manuela Saragosa speaks to one sceptic, Rinu Agal of the Indian online news site thePrint.

    Meanwhile, Dr Sander van der Linden of the Social Decision-Making Lab at Cambridge University is working with Whatsapp on a possible solution that he believes will inoculate users against viral propaganda.

    (Picture: Boys use mobile phones in Delhi; Credit: Nasir Kachroo/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

45. Disney goes to war with Netflix

    11 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    With Disney and Apple launching their streaming services to rival Netflix, will they struggle to get subscribers, when the market is getting increasingly saturated? Or will people just keep switching and cancelling subscriptions depending what shows are on offer? Presenter Regan Morris is also looking into whether the likes of Netflix have encouraged more diversity among writers and programme-makers who actually secure commissions.
    We hear from Connie Guglielmo, editor in chief of CNET News; Piya Sinha-Roy, senior writer Entertainment Weekly; Franklin Leonard, film executive who founded the Black List, a networking platform for screenwriters and film and TV professionals and Luke Bouma, founder of Cord Cutters News Lees meer

    PHOTO: Disney sign, COPYRIGHT: Getty Images

46. An expensive democracy

    10 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    India will spend billions of dollars on its general election this year, much of it illegally. Rahul Tandon visits a political rally in Kolkata where many participants have been paid to attend, while Ed Butler speaks to an 'election agent' tasked with recruiting those crowds, often for different political parties at the same time. James Crabtree, author of the book The Billionaire Raj, describes the extent of illegal election funding in India, and what can be done about it. Lees meer

    (Photo: BJP supporters at an election rally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Dehradun, India. Credit: Getty Images)

47. When big business sponsors the arts

    9 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Should galleries take money from the likes of big oil? Ed Butler speaks to Jess Worth of the UK pressure group Culture Unstained, and Claire Fox, director of the UK's Academy of Ideas. And British novelist, art critic and broadcaster Sarah Dunant explains the well-established history of cash and corruption in the arts. Hong Kong billionaire philanthropist James Chen says donors need to engage with the issues. Lees meer

    (Photo: Protesters outside the National Portrait Gallery in London, Credit: Getty Images)

48. Millennial burnout

    8 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Are millennials working too hard? Ed Butler explores the cult of modern professional success and how it's affecting millennial workers. We hear from millennial business owner Lucy, author and entrepreneur Margaret Heffernan, researcher at the University of Bath in the UK Thomas Curran, and Ryan Harwood, head of the media company One37pm. Lees meer

    (Photo: Young people work on laptops, Credit: Getty Images)

49. The listening device in your pocket

    5 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Does the proliferation of microphones in our mobile phones and home smart speakers mean that anyone can eavesdrop on us? Lees meer

    Manuela Saragosa hears from the BBC's own technology correspondent Zoe Kleinman about a creepy experience she had when her phone appeared to listen in on a conversation with her mother, and how it led her to discover how easy it is to hack someone's microphone and spy on them.

    That's exactly what Dutch documentary film maker Anthony van der Meer did, when he purposely let his phone get stolen so he could use it secretly to record the thief. Cyber-security expert Lisa Forte says these stories may be the tip of the iceberg, with everyone from governments to big tech firms to hackers and cyber-criminals potentially listening in on our private conversations.

    Producer: Laurence Knight

    (Picture: Outline of a mobile phone visible in the back pocket of a woman's jeans; Credit: Yuri Arcurs/Getty Images)

50. Bitcoin bounces back

    4 april 2019 · 18 min

    Beluister deze aflevering
    Cryptocurrencies are on the rebound, but does the case for investing in them make any more sense? Lees meer

    Manuela Saragosa hears both sides of the argument. Jay Smith is a long-time player in the markets for these digital tokens, and is a popular player on the electronic trading site eToro. He explains why he believes Bitcoin and its ilk have a long-term future, even though he doesn't personally subscribe to the libertarian ideology that most of his fellow investors share.

    However, cold water is poured on this vision by sceptic David Gerard, author of a book called Attack of the 50ft Blockchain. Plus Angela Walch, a research fellow at the Centre for Blockchain Technologies at University College London, says she thinks the crypto craze is a symptom of the broader rise of populism since the 2008 financial crash.

    (Picture: A visual representation of the digital Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin; Credit: Chesnot/Getty Images)