BBC World Service
First Nations communities forced to evacuate as forest fires burn out of control in northwestern Ontario
(July 2021)
In the Canadian province of Ontario, forest fires are blazing out of control. In the
northwestern part of the province, more are discovered each day. Many of those caught up in the fires are Indigenous Peoples, forced to evacuate, or living with the effects of poor air quality and smoke. First Nation leaders are calling for a state of emergency to be declared. Victoria Stunt is in Ontario and has been speaking to some of those who have had to flee their homes.
BBC World Service
Colombia's 'accordion queens': women push for a place in the vallenato spotlight
(April 2021)
Vallenato is a traditional music genre from northern Colombia. Alongside the accordion and percussion instruments, vallenato lyrics tell stories of folklore - and now it's been recognized by UNESCO, the world heritage body. But women accordion players who interpret vallenato have had to work hard for recognition, as Victoria Stunt reports from Colombia.
Deutsche Welle
Colombian women access tele-abortions during pandemic
(January 2021)
In Colombia, the coronavirus pandemic has further cemented barriers to accessing abortion — especially for women in rural areas and those living in poverty. Now a national clinic has started a hotline to enable women to access safe abortions at home via telemedicine.
BBC World Service
Protecting Colombia's endangered White-footed Tamarin
(December 2020)
Colombia is home to nearly a dozen species of primates found nowhere else on earth. One of them is a small monkey with an impressive name: the White-footed Tamarin. But its survival is threatened by the effects of rapid deforestation as well as animal trafficking. Our correspondent Victoria Stunt has been to Colombia to find out what's being done to protect them.
BBC World Service
Colombia's Melcocho River: armed conflict, a new tourism industry, and the pandemic
(July 2020)
A corner of Colombia before the pandemic hit: tourists swimming in the clear waters of the Melcocho River. Twenty years ago, according to Jose Serna, this would not have happened.
(June 2020)
The coronavirus lockdown is having an impact on mental health around the world. Now a group of women in Colombia are using the power of literature to connect and provide people with some comfort - at least for a few minutes. They're called Caquetá Cuenta (or Caquetá narrates) from the region of that name in southeast Colombia, and are phoning people around the world to tell them short stories.
BBC World Service
Thirty years later, victims of Avianca Flight 203 search for the truth
(November 2019)
Wednesday marks the 30th anniversary of the downing in Colombia of Avianca Flight 203. The passenger plane was apparently bombed by the narcotics trafficker Pablo Escobar at the height of Colombia's drug war - killing all 107 people on board and three people on the ground. Decades later, the victim's families are still seeking answers.
BBC World Service
Kombilesa Mi: 'our language lives through music'
(September 2019)
There are 68 languages spoken in Colombia. In the small town of San Basilio de Palenque, it’s Palenquero. But it hasn’t been easy for residents to keep their language and cultural traditions alive. Here’s how one rap group is working to change that.
CBC Radio
This Bogota restaurant is run by women armed conflict victims
(June 2019)
The kitchen staff at this Bogota restaurant are getting ready for the lunch rush, chopping pumpkin, tripe and Andean arracacha into tiny bits to throw into the steaming pots behind. On today’s menu? Mute Santandereano and Cocido Boyacense, two colourful stews typical of the Santander and Boyaca regions of Colombia.
Deutsche Welle
Medellin's war on dengue carrying mosquitos
(May 2019)
Daniel Lopera Jimenez holds both hands out the van window, and waits for the
order. He’s gripping a tiny container capped with gauze. And once the vehicle moves further down the windy residential street, it’s go time.
BBC World Service
In Medellin, a collective of 2000 women is ready to run for office
(May 2019)
In many parts of the world, politics are often dominated by men. It’s no exception in Medellin, Colombia’s second largest city. But this year’s local elections might be different. A group of 2000 women there have joined together to collectively run for city council. So what are they hoping to achieve?
BBC World Service
Colombia conflict: 'If I keep quiet, I become an accomplice'
(March 2019)
Yolanda Perea Mosquera is standing on a podium before a crowd in central Bogotá talking passionately into a microphone."Colombia is ours," she says. "Peace is ours, and it depends on all of us."She is speaking in a convention centre packed with 1,400 victims of the armed conflict.
BBC World Service
Venezuelans "give away" Bolivares on Medellin buses
(September 2018)
Walter Casanova stands before passengers on a bus in Medellin - Colombia’s second largest city. He’s 21, and fled Venezuela a few months ago to escape the economic crisis. And like many young Venezuelans in Colombia, it’s been hard to find stable work. Instead, he sells snacks on the city bus.
BBC World Service
Live: Colombia mourning Chapecoense crash victims
(November 2016)
We go to Colombia where tens of thousands of people gathered in the football stadium in the Colombian city of Medellin. They had been showing solidarity with the Brazilian town of Chapecó and its football club which lost almost all its players in a plane crash in the mountains fifty kilometres away.