Global News Podcast - The Happy Pod: How kindness made a dream come true

Episode Date: July 6, 2024

Imagine bumping into a stranger who has the power and kindness to make your dreams come true. Listener Uta tells us how her chance meeting with Harry led to a place at the University she'd thought was out of reach -- and changed her life forever. They talk about why you should take a chance on strangers and always be willing to help others. Also: We hear from the inspiring young woman helping farmers boost their crops in Kenya using artificial intelligence. Why K-pop stars New Jeans are guiding people around a museum in Europe. The Indonesian women playing heavy metal in hijabs to break down stereotypes. Scientists find lifelong learning isn't reserved for humans -- chimps can do it too. And the world's first school exam in skateboarding.Our weekly collection of positive stories and happy news from around the world.

Hello, this is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service, with reports and analysis from across the world. The latest news seven days a week. BBC World Service podcasts are supported by advertising. If you're hearing this, you're probably already listening to BBC's award-winning news podcasts. But did you know that you can listen to them without ads? Get current affairs podcasts like Thank you. Amazon Music with a Prime membership. Spend less time on ads and more time with BBC Podcasts. This is The Happy Pod from the BBC World Service. I'm Chris Barrow, and in this edition uploaded on Saturday 6th July, listener Uta tells us how the kindness of a man she'd just met changed her life.

Everybody has something they can give to others. July, listener Uta tells us how the kindness of a man she'd just met changed her life. Everybody has something they can give to others. Everybody can make somebody else's life a little bit better. You just have to have the guts to go out and do it. Also, the Kenyan woman using artificial intelligence to help farming communities like the one she grew up in. When we see reduced crop losses, when we see improved livelihoods, lives changed, young girls like myself being able to access education, I don't think there's something that can be more encouraging than that.

And... I'm pleased to take you through the exhibition with this audio guide. We can explore the evolution of French fashion together. Why Chinese stars and K-pop bands are guiding tourists around European museums. Also in the podcast, a study finds that chimps keep learning new skills throughout their lives, a habit previously thought to be unique to humans.

And the school exam with a difference. You have to do a few tricks and then just knowledge about the sport as well. You might have a big dream that seems almost impossible to achieve, but you hope that one day it might just come true. Well, imagine bumping into a stranger who has the power and kindness to make that happen. Well, that's the story of one of our listeners, Uta Birkmeyer, who's originally from Germany. As a young woman, she wanted nothing more than to attend the Cornell Hotel School in New York

and was working at a beach resort in Corsica, trying to earn enough money for her tuition. Then in 1987, she saw an American tourist, Harry Petschski, and decided to wish him a happy 4th of July. Well, Harry revealed he'd attended the very university that Uta was working hard to get into, and he could help get her a scholarship from an anonymous donor. Well, the pair became lifelong friends and worked together to achieve Uta's goal. The Happy Pod's Holly Gibbs spoke to them on the anniversary of

their chance meeting. Everybody said, you will never get there. There is no way. I mean, you won't get accepted. You don't have the money. It's just so hard. You're not special enough. And I'm the kind of person, if you tell me you can't do something or something is impossible, that's exactly what I have to do. Harry, what made you want to help her? Why not? I mean, I try to help everybody I can. You know, it's my nature. I've had help in my life, and if I can help people, I'll do it. And this is one of the most gratifying experiences of my life.

This is a very, very talented young woman. Uta, talk me through the moment when you realised that Harry would be able to help you get into your ultimate dream school. I remember him saying, you know, every day he says, what are you doing here at this place? You know, I was doing like everyday resort work. And he said to me, and he was the first one to ever say this. He said, you're made to do great things. And, you know, I never had that before.

I never have. Harry, it's clear that you've had such a big impact on Uta's life. It's always felt great. It's always felt great. I don't go out of my way to look for things like that. But if people ask me for help, and it's within my capability and my power to help them, I'll do it. It was really a turning moment for me that I was not being told something is impossible or I can't do it or I'm not good enough. I kind of felt my world was broken open and the sun came in. You must be such a resilient person to keep fighting for your dream

when you are being told that you can't do it by other people. Well, my mother actually taught me this when I was about seven, eight years old. You always have to have a wish list in your life. Always have something on that list that you want, that you want to achieve. You should always keep a wish list. You should always want something. When those opportunities in life open up, like meeting Harry.

Has this experience of being helped made you want to pay it forward? Do you feel like you want to help people the way Harry helped you? Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. And I have a coaching business, but what I most passionately love to do is help people find their authenticity because people often don't know all the power they have. And that's what makes me happy. How has your decision to be kind all those years ago changed your life? I gained a dear friend, a dear friend for life. I'd like to say something about the quote-unquote anonymous donor. He didn't want anything in return for what he was doing. He was just helping people. We need more people like that in the world. Uta, what would you say to your younger self?

Follow your dream, always. Follow your dream. Don't let other people convince you your dream is not relevant. Don't give up. And when the opportunity comes your way, and it will, just grab it. You say that you speak to each other every July the 4th, which is the day you met. And as we are speaking, it is July the 4th. What would you like to say to each other? I think Uta is a shining example of put your shoulder to the grindstone, work, work, work, and use your talents to the best of your abilities and you will succeed.

Everybody has something they can give to others. Everybody can make somebody else's life a little bit better. You just have to have the guts to go out and do it. And if you start it once, you know, it's infectious. You just keep doing it. Now to an inspiring young Kenyan woman who's using technology to help traditional farming communities like the one she grew up in. Esther Kamani, whose invention uses artificial intelligence to improve crop yields, is the latest winner of Africa's biggest engineering prize. So on the basis of the technology, they're great prospects for becoming a very successful business with huge impact. The 10th winner of the Royal Academy of Engineering Africa Prize for Engineering Innovation, taking home £50,000, is the third woman to win the prize, Esa Kimani.

Well done, Esa. Now, she says she's hoping to use the prize money to bring the technology to a million farmers over the next five years. And she told Myra Anubi what motivated her. I was born in a farming community. Our livelihoods were really affected because at least a third of our crops were destroyed by pests and diseases. A third? I thought it was a lot, especially when you look at subsistence farming, where they depend 100% on the produce of those farms for the school fees, medical care. So that would really hurt me when I see that, because I had to go through that. And I was privileged to even make it through education to study a degree in computer science. And I knew I was leaving home to change home. How exactly does your innovation work? We assemble AI-enabled cameras so when they're

mounted on farms they're able to compare what is on the ground and what has been pre-trained and they can distinguish between a healthy and an infested crop. And that way they again leverage another AI algorithm to now pick out the specific pest, pick out the disease, and recommend what this farmer should apply and the exact quantities. Now, the most interesting part is how that is communicated to the farmer, because it can be very complex, you know, botanical names. So you have to break that down to a simple SMS and even in local language to recommend the pesticide that they need to apply and the exact quantities.

And there are also natural ways of controlling some of these pests. Maybe mixing just liquid soap and some water or ash could be used to control aphids. Without damaging the crops. Without damaging the crops and at the same time ensuring that the food being produced is healthy. How much does this cost the farmers? We only charge farmers $3 a month, a leasing fee.

They don't buy the devices. So the current cameras that we have the span of a farm that they can cover 600 meters it can serve at least three farmers so the three of them each pay the three dollars and you know you said serve farmers how many farmers are using your device currently we have over over 5,000 smallholder farmers in Kenya, 60% being women. And the reason why we also focused towards that is because they are quite marginalized. I can see you're very proud about that, yeah. Yes, I am. Actually, for this one who is not owning the farm and having to see losses,

and that's where they work all day, it's devastating. So it's just good that we also keep them in mind. Now, for these 5,000 farmers that you're working with, what kind of difference has this made so far? The change that we've seen has been incredible. We've seen increase in yields of over 40%. We've seen reduction in losses, at least 40%. For us, when we see increased yields, when we see reduced crop losses,

when we see improved livelihoods, lives changed, young girls like myself being able to access education and basic needs, I don't think there's something that can be more encouraging than that. And you can hear more about Esther and the other innovations that were shortlisted on People Fixing the World. That's wherever you get your podcasts. Next, some of the biggest museums in Europe have invited Asian celebrities to record audio guides for their exhibitions. Bonjour, this is Karen Mott. I'm pleased to take you through the exhibition with this audio guide.

We can explore the evolution of French fashion together. Yes, that canto pop singer is just one of a number of East Asian stars being used to attract tourists to major museums in Europe. Our China media analyst Kerry Allen explained who was involved and why. There's a Chinese actress and singer called Zhu Zhu. She's actually appeared in some international films like Cloud Atlas and the Netflix series Marco Polo. She's now going to be an audio guide in Mandarin for the Borghese Gallery in Italy. And she's an audio guide for an exhibition that's launched at the beginning of July,

which features the French-American artist Louise Bourgeois. And so you can hear her, if you're a speaker or listener of Mandarin, telling you about the various artworks and the emotions that they capture. So that's one artist. There's also a Hong Kong singer and actress called Karen Mock. She's lent her voice to English, Cantonese and Mandarin audio guides for an exhibition at the Hong Kong Palace Museum. And then, yeah, the big name that's attracted a lot of K-pop fans, so fans in China, also South Korea and all over the world. The band New Jeans have recorded an audio introduction for the Korean gallery at the British gallery. And even if you can't speak Korean, there have been people who are just so excited about this,

they've been downloading the audio app. Because there's money involved, isn't there? So for the actual galleries and museums, it's a very good way of actually making a little bit of extra profit. It is, absolutely. And I think long term, you know, there have been these perceptions from some people that museums, art galleries can be kind of dull. But these are exhibitions that feature artworks, fashion, and these are

stars that are very attractive to young audiences. So it's a way of more or less having a friend in your ears when you go around these exhibitions. And you almost feel like you're getting a voice from back home, being able to communicate a similar understanding of the kinds of things you're seeing. I get why people would be interested and fans of the big artists, but why do you think that the big artists are lending their voices to the museums? Because like you just said, they can't be being paid huge sums of money to record these audio guides. So I'm guessing it's more like a kudos thing for them. A lot has been written on how actually it's a big interest. And those that we know about who are doing this, New Jeans, Karen, Mark and Juju, they've all spoken previously of their interest in art in

particular. And so that's one of the reasons that for them it's interesting. I know it's quite early days, but do you sense that there is a real tangible boost in the numbers for the actual gallery? It's too early to say to speak about the Chinese and the Hong Kong artists that are doing this but certainly with New Jeans launching their Korean audio guide for the British Museum and the museum's app has skyrocketed tenfold in downloads since it was launched. Well, now to an extraordinary story about a little girl who saved her mother's life. When Leisha Davis passed out on her bedroom floor in South Wales, her five-year-old daughter Poppy stayed by her side all night.

Then in the morning she walked to school to tell her teacher that she couldn't wake her up. Nellie Bird spoke to them both. Oh I love you. You're my hero now. Yeah. Oh I love you. Poppy is a lively and typical five-year-old girl but earlier this year she did something completely remarkable. Dad Ryan was at work and she was home alone with her mum Leisha, who'd been feeling unwell for a few weeks after having an operation. I collapsed on the floor. She curled up beside me in the night and slept beside me. So in the morning then, she waited for the school to open. She got her wellies on and she got her little crown on and she was in her princess dress. My door key is distinctive. It's got flowers on it,

so she identified that she went out out of my door then and she went in through the school gates because i live right behind the school and she went into the classroom and told her teachers that mummy's on the floor and she can't i can't wake her up i was in mummy's room and then and then she's lying on the floor because i can't wake her up what was it like going to school by yourself? It's just so scary. You know you've got a lump in your throat and you think oh god what did she go through? I just can't categorically know what she went through but I did find selfies on my phone that she'd taken that morning so yeah I think she was okay. I think she was all right because I was still there.

So I think to her, because she is only five, I think, you know, with me being on the floor, I was still there anyway. Leisha was rushed to hospital. She was in septic shock and her body was shutting down. After a month fighting for her life, she woke up from her coma. She is my hero and she saved Mummy's life. We always underestimate children and I think, you know, I never thought that she would do anything like that, but she did and I'm really glad. Still to come in this podcast, Indonesia's hijab-wearing metalheads.

At first, it's hard. It's hard to get support from our parents. Like they say, it's shamanic music, evil music. Thank you. and the Global Story, plus other great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime, all ad-free. Simply subscribe to BBC Podcast Premium on Apple Podcasts or listen to Amazon Music with a Prime membership. Spend less time on ads and more time with BBC Podcasts. If someone told me I could take an exam in skateboarding when I was younger, I would have jumped at the chance or possibly tried to ollie at the chance. Now, though, teenagers in Northern Ireland are the first in the world to be offered the chance to pass the test in the sport.

Alex Ritson has been investigating. It's really easy from my perspective because I'd already been skating, but for someone who hasn't been skating, it might be a little bit harder. You have to do a few tricks and then just knowledge about the sport as well. That's Theo Hamilton. He goes to a boarding school in East Belfast. And when I say boarding school, I mean an ordinary school where one of the options for GCSE, the big set of UK exams you take at 16, to the envy of his friends, is now skateboarding.

They think it's pretty cool. They're a bit surprised that it's something that I could do in school as well. We have a skate school which they teach, the junior school of Campbell College. It's great. It's all the brainchild of teacher and skater Jared Purvis, who had the junior school of Campbell College. It's great. It's all the brainchild of teacher and skater Jared Purvis who had the idea during the Covid lockdown and managed to persuade the local exam board to let him put together an official course. Made loads of phone calls from the reception the whole way up till I found the right person that I could speak to about it. He sent me templates for similar sports with assessment criteria and stuff like that. And then I just sort of pretty much put my own knowledge to a template and sort of formulated and made the Skateboard GCSE curriculum from that.

You must have had to convince an awful lot of sceptical people along the way. Actually, believe it or not, no, actually. I don't know what happened. I just got the right man who was in charge at the right time and he was not sceptical at all. I think, to be honest, it probably helped that I think he had recently watched the Olympics where Sky Brown won the medal. And I think once he saw that, he just knew that this was a real sport and that any preconceived notions were null and void.

What's involved in this course? Pretty much all of the basic things that you would need to know to be classified as, you know, a skateboarder. Like you need to know how to take your skate, how to fix your own skateboard. Everyone knows, every skater, if you went to a skate park, would have an idea of how to do that. And then basic manoeuvres, not like really advanced tricks,

just sort of all the basic core essentials, the building blocks for taking it further. They can video themselves and make a videography of like sort of all these different tricks, you know, of them doing them. And that's also proof of them doing all the tricks. Tell me the names. I love the names. Well, there's a slasher, there's a drop-in,

there's a rock to fakie, there's Ollie. Where does this take you though? What's the career after this? It's hard to say because in my local skate park there's a load of people with different careers they could either follow their dreams

it's very hard you need to be very talented like any sort of sports individual but they could follow their dreams and go and try to make it and win competitions and get sponsors and become more sort of more of

a professional athlete in that sense and in the end this makes you happy yeah oh yeah literally last night i was teaching this girl in my advanced sort of children's class and she's been trying to ollie for a while and she can ollie but she can't it's a mental block of like trying to jump over something doing it like on a certain time constraint with something approaching, and you have to do it at the right time to clear it and do it nicely without falling off. And last night she did it, and you're there for those wee moments where you're just like,

and I sort of get the hype again, like it feels like when I did it for the first time. And if skateboarding isn't your thing, other options are increasingly available around the world. Chess is a mandatory school subject in Armenia for all children over the age of six, and teenagers in the US state of Hawaii can spend their school hours learning to surf. Well, you're never too old to learn something new, maybe skateboarding or surfing for me,

sounds good. But it's not just humans who like to learn. A study published in the journal PLOS Biology suggests that chimpanzees may also like to constantly improve their skills. Terry Egan has this report. Of all the non-human animals, chimpanzees are some of the most adept at using tools. The researchers here looked at 70 wild chimps of various ages, using sticks to retrieve food at Thai National Park in Ivory Coast. They analysed video recordings of the primates collected from the site over several years, focusing on how the animals became more skilled at using the sticks to extract foods

such as larvae and nut kernels. They examined the way the chimps inserted the sticks, used them to prod cavities, employed them to stir or pound, or deployed them in a spoon-like way. Mathieu Malherbe led the study. Humans, we are able to learn new things, but with technical abilities, using technologies, using tools, this is something that was thought to be very unique to humans. And what we bring here with our study is to show that chimpanzees are also able to learn when they are adults and to be flexible with their to-do's behaviour. The researchers said the motor skills of the chimps were well developed by the age of six, and they were easily able to grip the tools in different ways but they also noticed they were skilled at compensating for the limitations in their hand movements by using alternative grips so as to apply pressure and precision. Perfecting these skills, say the

researchers, involves far more than just physical development And the chimps continue to learn over a long period, constantly adapting and improving their techniques, just as we strive to do. Well, earlier we heard how Harry's kindness changed Uta's life, but even small actions can make a huge difference, as we heard from one of our team. Hi, HappyPod. It's your colleague Tracey at home in South West London, and I have a story that made me smile this week. I was shopping in a supermarket, and when I went to the till, the cashier asked me

a question, but when I went to reply, I struggled to find my words. It's one of my unpredictable multiple sclerosis symptoms. I paid and was walking away when she called me back and was waving a posy of white friezes. I automatically said they aren't mine. With a huge smile, she said they are yours. I'm giving them to you. I left the shop with a beaming smile. It made my day, my week, my month. Our friend and colleague, Tracy Gordon. And if you have a small act of kindness that you'd like to share with us,

do send us a voice note or an email. The address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. And now to a heavy metal band with a difference, Voice of Batchaprot. They're a female trio who wear hijabs and come from Indonesia. And they found success after overcoming hostility in their home village, where people said they were making music for the devil. They've just become the first Indonesian band to play at Europe's largest music festival,

Glastonbury, in Western England. Stephanie Prentice has been finding out more about them. Hello, we are P.O Voice of Bachebrot. Known for their heavy metal style, Islamic headscarves and socially conscious lyrics, Voice of Bachebrot are an all-female trio who formed in a village in Indonesia where their music caused concern. They come from West Java, which is among the more conservative provinces and includes denominations that forbid music and singing.

At first, it's hard to get support from our parents especially because they didn't know anything about the mental music. Like they say, it's shamanic music, evil music. But we proved that we are okay to play music and still be a good girl. They kept making music through high school, ignoring the suggestion of one of their families that they undergo an Islamic healing ritual. And now they've made history, performing at Glastonbury Music Festival in England alongside global stars like Coldplay and Dua Lipa. The band say they want to tackle topical issues like female empowerment,

but performing wearing a traditional hijab has made them a target. They said it's not acceptable for a Muslim like us to play heavy metal music. They only see metal as a symbol of the darkness. As well as advocating for their right to express themselves, the band said they want to challenge the stereotypes that Muslim women are demure or weak, or that Muslims in general are militants, something that hecklers shouted at them when they sang in the United States. And now, as well as taking their music all around the world, the band have another goal, back where they started. We built a studio in our hometown now.

That's one of our biggest dreams. A dream she hopes will inspire Indonesia's next generation of musicians. The music of Voice of Bacha Prat, ending that report by Stephanie Prentice. And that's all from the Happy Pod for now. We would love to hear from you, though, if you have any stories to share with us that will make us all smile. Our email address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. This edition was mixed by James Piper. The producers were Holly Gibbs and Rachel Bulkley. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Chris to go. Great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime, all ad-free.

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