Tibet was struck by a powerful 7.1 magnitude earthquake on Tuesday. It’s been reported by Chinese state media that at least 126 people have died, making the quake one of the deadliest in recent years. The epicentre of the earthquake is near the Nepal-Tibet border, some hundred miles away from the holy city of Shigatse. More than 14,000 rescue workers are working to find survivors.

Much of what we know about the quake is from Chinese state media, as Tibet, which is considered an autonomous region of China, is highly restricted, and access by foreign media is tightly controlled. Shawn Yuan from the BBC’s Global China Unit, tells us what we know so far about the rescue efforts and why there’s limited information.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Iqra Farooq Producers: Emily Horler and Benita Barden Editor: Verity Wilde

Over the last few days the richest man in the world, Elon Musk, has turned his attention to European politics.

The billionaire owner of X has been relentlessly tweeting his criticism of UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. He’s also endorsed the far-right AfD party ahead of next month’s snap elections in Germany. These actions have been criticised by both the French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

Musk is known for being outspoken on political issues across the world. He endorsed incoming President Donald Trump during the US election, is close friends with the Prime Minister of Italy and has gotten into public disagreements with political figures in Brazil and Venezuela.

We discuss Musk's recent takes with the BBC’s Berlin correspondent Jessica Parker and Maria Clara Montoya from the WITW team takes a look at some of the feuds and friendships Musk has in Latin America.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Iqra Farooq Producers: Josh Jenkins and Maria Clara Montoya Editor: Rosanna La-Falce

A silent asthma epidemic could be affecting millions of people in Africa. It’s estimated almost half of all the asthma sufferers in the world live on the continent, but many face barriers to diagnosis and treatment. Dorcas Wangira, the BBC’s Africa Health Correspondent in Nairobi, Kenya talks us through the growing body of research looking into how asthma is affecting children and teens in Africa. We also hear from Doyin Ogunye, a campaigner for better air quality in Lagos, Nigeria, about the links between asthma and air pollution. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Josh Jenkins, Mora Morrison, Carolyne Kiambo and Maria Clara Montoya Editor: Rosanna La-Falce

Bollywood films are known for their epic love stories, energetic dance numbers and huge stars like Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra. However, the industry - like Hollywood - has faced a slump since the Covid pandemic.

But 2024 marked a new trend; the box office success of horror. Shaitaan, for example, earned over $25m worldwide. We speak to film critic and journalist Yasser Usman and Bollywood influencer Aaina Mehta to hear whether they think witches, zombies and evil spirits could pull more people back to the cinema.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Mora Morrison and Benita Barden Editor: Julia Ross-Roy

In the middle of the Karakum desert in Turkmenistan, there’s a massive fiery pit officially called the Darvaza Crater - but also known as the “gates of hell”. The fire - which is man made - has been burning for over 50 years. But now satellite images suggest that the brightness of the crater has started to dim. Turkmenistan is trying to finally put out the fire.

Alex from the What in the World team tells us all about how the fire started and why it’s taken so long to put it out. We hear from explorer George Kourounis who is (as far as we know) the only person to go down into the pit.

And BBC journalist Alistair Coleman gives us some facts about Turkmenistan and its leaders.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Julia Ross-Roy and Alex Rhodes Editor: Verity Wilde

The Rights of Nature movement wants to give inherent rights to nature - so forests, animals and rivers would have the right to protection. More and more countries are starting to adopt this kind of legislation. Ecuador became the first country in the world to codify Rights of Nature in its constitution in 2008. In New Zealand, legislation has recognised the mountainous region Te Urewera and the Whanganui River as legal persons. In 2022, the Spanish lagoon Mar Menor became the first natural entity to be granted legal status as a person within Europe. BBC Climate and science reporter Georgina Rannard explains how it works and whether the approach is helping to protect the environment.

Another part of the movement wants to see nature recognised for the role it plays in music too. The people behind a track called The Song of the Cedars are petitioning Ecuador’s copyright office to recognise Los Cedros forest as a co-creator, given it was composed there.

Sounds Right is a global music initiative which encourages artists who use sounds from nature - like rain or animal noises - in their tracks to redirect some of the royalties they collect to help conserve and protect nature. Bill Sellanga, aka Blinky Bill, a musician and DJ based in Nairobi, tells us why he signed up, for his track OH WAH feat. NATURE.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: [email protected] Presenter: Nathalia Jimenez Producers: Julia Ross-Roy and Mora Morrison Editor: Verity Wilde

After its deadliest plane crash in decades, South Korea is looking for answers. 179 people died after a Jeju Air plane flying from Bangkok crashed and burst into flames at Muan International Airport. Authorities are carrying out an emergency safety inspection of the country's entire airline operation system and investigators are still working to identify all the victims. We speak to Rachel Lee, a BBC journalist based in Seoul, about what we know so far, and what the country’s next steps are.

Many of the passengers on board were families, including children returning home after holidays. Across South Korea people are paying their respects and preparing memorials. We hear briefly from Song Jong Hoon, who lost two family members on the flight.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Mimi Swaby Producers: Mora Morrison and Benita Barden Editor: Verity Wilde

Jimmy Carter — the 39th president of the United States — has died at the age of 100. A former peanut farmer in Georgia, he rose to the very top of American politics by portraying himself as an outsider. Once in office, he pardoned Vietnam War draft evaders, became the first U.S. president to take climate change seriously and brokered the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel. But his presidency was tarnished by a series of challenges and failures, from high inflation to a botched hostage rescue in Iran.

Following his one-term presidency, Carter went on to establish the Carter Center to promote human rights around the world. Among other things, he helped broker a truce in Sudan’s decades-long civil war, and his organisation’s work has helped nearly eradicate the parasitic infection Guinea worm. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work to find peaceful solutions for international conflicts.

William Lee Adams, a BBC reporter who grew up in Georgia, discusses Carter’s life, legacy and how he’ll be remembered.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart with William Lee Adams Producers: Benita Barden Editor: Verity Wilde

A campaign on TikTok recently started a fresh conversation about cultural appropriation of food. It started when content creator Yen Bui, who now lives in London, highlighted that a British-owned restaurant chain called Pho had trademarked the name of the Vietnamese national dish a while ago, which limited the rights of other restaurant owners to use the word in their names because they could have faced legal action. Yen Bui tells us why she started the campaign, and why it matters to so many.

What is cultural appropriation of food? US-based content creator Kim Pham explains. And the BBC’s Charlotte Edwards talks us through how and why trade marks are used in food in the first place.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producers: Mora Morrison and Hayley Clarke Editor: Verity Wilde

South Africa has the largest population of canned lions in the world - these are lions born in captivity and bred for trophy hunting. People can pay (usually tens of thousands of dollars) to hunt and shoot the animals. Now the government has said it will ban it, but hasn’t said when, or what will happen to the lions.

Breeders argue it is better that hunters shoot a captive-bred lion than further endanger the wild populations, but conservationists and animal welfare groups dispute this, saying wild populations of lions are in decline and that the lion farms are creating a market for canned lion hunts and encouraging the hunting of wild lions too.

BBC Africa’s Danai Nesta Kupemba explains what canned hunting is and why campaigners want to end the practice. We discuss the ethical considerations and why lion bones are sought after. Stephanie Klarmann, from Blood Lions, which campaigns to bring an end to the commercial captive breeding of lions, tells us why they disagree with it.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: [email protected] Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Julia Ross-Roy, William Lee Adams and Benita Barden Video journalist: Beatrice Guzzardi Editor: Rosanna La Falce

We all disagree on some things. For some people disagreeing is natural and, in some instances, even enjoyable. While for others it’s super uncomfortable, and something they want to avoid at all costs. Social media is alive with angry keyboard warriors at each other’s throats, but it is possible to disagree without hurting someone’s feelings.

Bo Seo is an expert at this. He’s a world debate champion, author, and a former coach of the Australian national debating team. He shares the art of having a good debate, and therefore a good conversation. Plus, we speak to Jason Lee, the founder of Jubilee, about why his YouTube and TikTok videos, which bring people together despite their differences, are gaining billions of views.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producer: Mora Morrison Editor: Verity Wilde

Nearly half the world's population had elections this year, but for the first time in at least 20 years, progress for women's representation has slowed. In 60% of countries that voted this year, the number of women in parliament fell.

Stephanie Hegarty, the BBC’s population correspondent, discusses some of the countries where fewer women were elected and explains some of the factors behind the drop. She also looks at the regions — from Latin America to Africa — where female politicians made gains.

We also hear from Puakena Boreham, a former member of parliament in the Pacific island of Tuvalu, and Indira Kempis, a former member of the Senate in Mexico. They discuss the importance of female representation and the challenges that female politicians face.

Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: William Lee Adams Producers: Benita Barden and Maria Clara Montoya Editor: Verity Wilde