Global News Podcast - The Happy Pod: South Korea's Samba diplomat

Episode Date: July 20, 2024

Ambassador Lim Ki-mo started singing Brazilian songs at public events to raise spirits during the covid pandemic. Videos posted online went viral and he was invited to perform at a famous Samba club in Rio. He tells us it's an expression of his joy and love for Brazil but he never expected to become so popular.Also: With the Paris Olympics and Paralympics approaching, we meet some of the athletes representing the Refugee Team after having to flee their home countries.Has Dublin experienced the biggest earthquake of Taylor Swift's Eras tour? Experts detected seismic waves from Shake It Off more than a hundred kilometers away.We hear how a new type of tourism is bringing money to local communities across Thailand. There's good news for a critically endangered crocodile in Cambodia -- with a record breaking hatching of babies. And why a man left unable to talk or move after a stroke aged just 16 is mentoring children and writing his life story.Our weekly collection of happy stories and positive 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 Valerie Sanderson and in this edition, uploaded on Saturday the 20th of July,

a diplomat with a difference. I enjoyed singing songs from the countries where I served. But in Brazil, I suddenly become popular more than I expected. Videos of the South Korean ambassador singing samba have gone viral. As the Paralympics approach, we'll hear about the athletes competing after fleeing their own home countries. When I participated and became a part of the Refuge Olympic team, I understood that it's actually way bigger than just a medal. There's good news for a critically endangered crocodile in Cambodia. This is the most significant boost to saving the species through natural reproduction that we have witnessed in the country. Also in this podcast, has Dublin seen the biggest

swift quake so far? We think we can see Shake It Off at a seismometer which is located about 113 kilometres away. That is obviously very impressive. And... I love cultivating hope, happiness and joy. I want to broaden the reach of hope and positivity through my own experiences. Why a man who can't speak or move after a stroke at the age of 16 is now working to mentor children.

We start with an unusual music sensation in Brazil. This is no ordinary samba star. In fact, this singer is also South Korea's ambassador in Brasilia. Lim Gimou, who's 59, has been winning over the Brazilian people with a series of viral videos and has even performed at one of Rio's most illustrious samba spots. He told J. Seung Lee he started singing publicly to try to lift people's spirits during the pandemic. The society was rather gloomy. So at the outdoor events, I sang Brazilian songs rather than giving boring speeches. After that, people kept asking me to sing, and it has been like this until today. People posted videos of my songs on their social media,

some of them garnering millions of views and likes. Still, I'm receiving likes and beautiful comments. So I'm very happy and grateful. You performed at a renowned samba club in Rio de Janeiro this April. How was that experience? Before that, I happened to meet a singer named Gabriel at a reception organized by the mayor of Rio de Janeiro. After a few cheers, Gabriel invited me to sing together in his bar.

I guess it was a small bar and we didn't prepare. It was a spontaneous show. Actually, I enjoyed samba with the famous group, Samba de Travalhadores, and with the large, large audience. It was such a good moment in my life. What's your response to all the positive reactions you've been getting? I'm not so good at social media, as I said. There are some times when I feel guilty for not being able to respond properly. Recently, people who were hospitalized called the embassy and thanked for me because they become cheerful

after watching my singing video. I was also invited to sing for patients at a cancer hospital. I was happy that the patients liked my singing. What makes Brazilian music so special to you? But the time I spent singing in karaoke bar in Seoul helped me a lot in successfully singing Brazilian songs. Anyway, Brazilian music makes me happy. And Brazilian people seem to accept it as an expression of my joy, a love for Brazil. So I advise you, sing Brazilian songs in Brazil and you will belong. Have you always enjoyed singing even before taking up Brazilian music? As a career diplomat, I enjoyed singing songs from the countries where I served. I used to sing not only English pop songs, but also Spanish and Chinese.

The songs contain the language, culture and emotions of the country. But in Brazil, I think I sang a little too much. Why do you say you sing too much in Brazil? I suddenly become popular more than I expected. What's sort of next for you with samba and in your singing journey? Next? I don't have a specific plan, but I will continue to love samba and Brazilian music. So I will continue to sing samba and Brazilian songs makes me feel happy. Samba sensation and diplomat, Lim Guimaud.

The Olympic Games in Paris are right round the corner and this year there are 36 athletes representing the world's displaced population of more than 100 million people, forming the Refugee Olympic Team. In our special episode of the Happy Pod at the Global Refugee Forum back in December, we met the team's chef de mission, an Afghan woman who fled her country and then went on to represent refugees at the Tokyo Games in 2021. Harry Bly has been hearing the stories of those taking part. It wasn't our choice to leave our countries, but we are passionate about sport. This is Massama Ali Zada, an Olympic cyclist at the Tokyo Games and this year's chef de mission of the refugee Olympic team. This is her in December, speaking to the International Olympic Committee shortly after being selected. Personally, I think every refugee in the world should have the right to do this, because it's important to have a team that allows refugees

who've been forced to leave their country to participate in the Olympics. And this was the moment last week when the refugee Olympic team arrived at the training camp in Bayeux in northwestern France. One of the 36 athletes representing the team is the Cuban weightlifter Ramiro Mora Romero. He's fulfilling a long-time promise of competing at the Olympics to his parents, who died when he was young. Unusually, Romero began his career in the circus in Cuba, performing as an aerialist, a career he continued in the UK after moving there as part of a circus group in 2019.

In 2023, Ramiro was granted asylum in the UK and is now the British weightlifting record holder in the 89, 96 and 102kg categories. Now he's been selected to represent the Olympic refugee team. I received one email and they say we're telling the team to go to the Olympic Games. I mean, say, oh my God, it's amazing. I go to the church, put the flower for my mum because that is the promise. I'm so happy and now training for the Olympic Games. Here are the athletes of the IOC Refugee Olympic Team Paris 2024. Manisha Talash, breaking.

Manisha Talash is the only female breakdancer or breaker representing Afghanistan. She fled the country when the Taliban seized power in August 2021 and now lives in Madrid, where she's also been selected to be part of this year's team. By going to the Olympics, I want to show that Afghan girls will never surrender. They will win despite any challenge or obstacle. For Yusra Mardini, this year's Olympics are special. In 2016, she competed in swimming for the first ever refugee team at the Rio Olympics. But this year, Yusra is taking up a different role. She's a UN Goodwill ambassador and will

be working as a reporter telling the stories of current refugee athletes. When I participated and became a part of the refugee Olympic team, I understood that it's actually way bigger than just a medal. Originally from Damascus, she fled the Syrian civil war when she was 17 alongside her sister. Their story was made into a film, The Swimmers, in 2022. In 2020, she swam again for the refugee Olympic team in the women's 100 metre butterfly and carried the refugee team flag in the opening ceremony. We are saying anyone and everyone can do this sport and when you're here at the Olympics it doesn't matter where you come from, it matters that you put in the hard work, you're here to live

your dream which is sport, which is participating, which is competing and this is the beauty of the Olympics whether you're a refugee or not. Former Olympic swimmer and UN Goodwill ambassador Yassra Mardini, ending that report by Harry Bly. Now, in 2002, a group of Italian gamers got together to chase a dream. They wanted to release a video game for the cutting-edge technology of the time, the Game Boy Advance. They had no experience, but a lot of enthusiasm.

That didn't last long, though, and one by one, the group disbanded. But now, 22 years later, the only remaining original member, Fabio Balsanti, has finally managed to get his game, called Kien, published. It holds the record for most delayed release in video game history. So, what took so long? Fabio has been speaking to Chris Barrow. We were the first Italian company to develop for Game Boy Advance, but we were really crazy people. No one of the founders was a programmer. That's a funny thing. But with a lot of will we go on and and after two years we reached the the final game but the problems was that the game could get released? The game was in our archive from 2008, 2009. We tried here and there to see if we can port it to mobile, to the phones,

but each time it was not possible because we had to make other projects to survive because we are a very, very indie company. So we have always the hell on our heels. But after so many years, the retro gaming market became a reality. And so from there, new opportunities arise to publish Kian. Kian could see the light after so many years. So how easy is it for someone like me to play Kian? Do I have to go and dig out my Game Boy Advance from the attic? Yes, you must have the Game Boy Advance to play it,

or you can emulate it on the PC. It's a piece of archaeology, so it's an object, an artifact. You have to relate with it, not like any other game, but like a piece of history. Dare I ask, are there plans for a Key N2? I know it's just been released in that sense, because it may take another 20-something years to come out. I don't know. Now that I'm not very young, I hope. Key N2 depends what will happen with this release.

We started to build a demo that is named Astral Equilibrium. And we hope to finish and release it in less years, because now we have this record, and it's okay to have just one record in this field, no more than this. Fabio Belsanti speaking there to Chris Berro. And Kian is out now for the Game Boy Advance, if you still have one that works, that is.

And now to our remarkable comeback in Cambodia that's boosted hopes for one of the world's rarest reptiles. After years of conservation efforts, a record number of a critically endangered type of crocodile has been born. Stephanie Zachrisson has the details. In a nest in Cambodia's remote Cardamom Mountains, hidden away in the forest, the newly hatched baby crocodiles are crawling over the eggs that just a short while ago were their home. This is a key natural habitat for the endangered Siamese crocodile,

but deforestation and poaching have devastated the population. Researchers say there are now only around a thousand of them worldwide and only a few hundred in the wild. So it was a joyous discovery when a couple of locals came across five nests in the forest. They reported their finding to the conservation team at the Fauna and Flora Cambodia programme, which is run by Pablo Sinovas. This is the most significant boost to saving the species through natural reproduction that we have witnessed in the country this century, certainly. The team quickly mobilised to ensure the nests were protected around the clock, with rangers watching out for poachers who supply eggs and adult reptiles to crocodile farms

where their skins are turned into luxury belts, shoes and humbugs. Their efforts proved successful when 60 out of the 66 fertilised eggs hatched. It's incredibly encouraging because it shows that conservation work that has been taking place over the past two decades is having the results that we would hope. And as these hatchlings reach maturity over the next decade or so, then we would expect the breeding in the wild to grow densely exponentially. And that's where we want to get to. The olive green freshwater crocodile has a distinct bony clast at the back of its head and can grow up to three metres.

In the conservation programme, the Siamese crocodiles are bred in captivity and then released into suitable habitats across the national park. The birth of these new baby crocs is believed to be a record in the wild, a moment of hope for a species that was listed as virtually extinct three decades ago.

The crocodiles and Stephanie Zachrisson. Coming up in this podcast. When tourists come to our village, they bring another source of income. This allows us to teach our traditions to our children, giving them the opportunity to work here and stay close to bed. 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. A few weeks ago here on The Happy Pod, we heard how Taylor Swift fans around the world

have been dancing and clapping so much they've literally been making the earth move. And nowhere more, it seems, than in the Irish capital Dublin, where the joy of the audience for her era's tour show could be felt more than 100km away. Eleanor Dunn has been studying the seismic impact of the tour as a way to break down barriers between science and pop culture. Eleanor, a geophysics PhD student at the Dublin

Institute for Advanced Studies, told the Happy Pod's Holly Gibbs about the results. After looking at the data, we've actually managed to pick up what we think is Shake It Off in the Dublin mountains, which is about 14 kilometres away. And then also, we think we can see Shake It Off in Atta Seismometer, which is located about 113 kilometres away in Wexford. So that is obviously very impressive to see the concert being picked up that far away. The concert was definitely very energetic and the Swifties were definitely causing a lot of seismic activity. I have no doubt about that. That's slightly different, isn't it, to the other shows, the song Shake It Off? Yes. So in comparison to Edinburgh, we actually think that Love Story was the song that generated the highest seismic amplitude, which was very different. We look at the data and then we see where was this really high energy that was created. And we think we can actually narrow it down to one of the lines in Love Story. So when she says, and he knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said marry me Juliet and everyone kind of screams that line and goes crazy for it so we actually think that that was

the point when there was this really high seismic amplitude and we think because everyone kind of starts jumping at that particular point that's why it had such a big impact it would be great to look at all the different tales with concerts around Europe as she's currently moving around and seeing if these songs do change based on the location and if I mean Dublin Swifties really just have a unique music taste compared to the rest you said when you set out that you wanted to use this to help better communicate science. Do you think you've achieved that? And how do you think that you're going to use these results to break down the barriers between pop culture and science?

The response has been really great. And I think we have definitely started to break down that barrier. So obviously, it's still a long way to go. I definitely want to work on perhaps more concerts that are happening around Dublin, maybe even look at football matches or rugby matches and see what sort of methods we can use to talk to those particular fans and what really works for them for getting interested in and becoming citizen seismologists. Do you think this is the way to make science relatable by breaking it down and putting it in the fans terms, if you will. Combining pop culture with science is always a great way to go because it is something that people are so passionate about. If you communicate with them in the right way and they are interested, then that's definitely the way to go with future science projects.

And on a personal level, how has it been carrying out this experiment? It's been amazing. I never thought I would be able to incorporate Taylor Swift into my geophysics-based PhD. Eleanor Dunn speaking there to reporter and Swifty, Holly Gibbs. Tourism is worth a staggering 10 trillion US dollars to the global economy, but most of the money goes to big international travel firms. So how can the people living in the areas visited reap the benefits? Well, a few weeks ago, we heard how indigenous tribes in Colombia were using tourism to regain and protect their ancestral lands. Now another scheme in Thailand is also aiming to benefit local communities,

kick-starting their economies by organising people into small companies that can borrow money to create experiences for tourists. The social enterprise called Local Alike then runs tours to those areas. William Kremer has been to the village of Pon Thai, which managed to secure a loan of $100,000. He found out more. So I'm just coming to this little area here where there's a couple of ladies with a loom. Long has always woven mats for herself,

but now she's starting to teach visitors. Long is going to show me how to make a key ring. I've taught tourists to make them, and they're always happy to take their finished products home with them. They seem to really enjoy the experience. Local Like has been working here in Pontai for a year and a half. I take a walk through the village with Somzak Boonkam, whose nickname is Pie. He's the founder of the organisation. The silk factory is another local attraction for curious tourists.

I actually enjoy it when they come and look around. It gives me a chance to share my knowledge and it's rewarding. 62-year-old Tong Shui. When tourists come to our village, they bring another source of income. This allows us to teach our traditions to our children, giving them the opportunity to work here and stay close to home instead of having to leave and find work elsewhere. Phon Thai is located a seven-hour drive northeast of Bangkok. Pai has honed in on the region's unique cuisine to draw people in. So some ladies have just brought in round

circular trays and they're all full of dishes with beautiful looking salads. This is very, very Instagrammable. Normally we have a chef, like a young generation chef in Bangkok to come and teach and train them how to do the decoration. This one is a chicken, grilled chicken, so they mix with the red ant. With what red ants? Red ant. OK, let's try it.

In the old days, people in this village ate this dish when they were feeling under the weather. It's said that the ants release a liquid which wets the appetite. To be honest, the ants don't really have a strong flavour, but they do make for a great traveller's tale. Something to remember and maybe boast about in a hostel back in Bangkok. There is also another advantage to having a really strong structure in place. They've had a well for years, but the water from it wasn't clean. The villagers had to go to the next village to buy their water and then they had to bring it back.

The bank was willing to give them that big loan and the village has used that money to dig three more wells and install a filtration system. I took a look at it with Pai, and also with the woman who's responsible for running the new system, Moi. Now we only pay five baht, and it used to cost 13 baht. The villagers don't just use the water themselves, they now sell it on to neighbouring villages. That money goes back into the village company. But it's not just the well. The fund has paid for community kitchens and a redesigned village square. So far there's only been about 30 tourists to the village, but the community

is already benefiting. And you can hear more on that story on People Fixing the World, wherever you get your podcasts. And finally, to a rather unusual book written with the help of a computer that tracks eye movement. Howard Wicks had a stroke aged just 16 that's left him with what's called locked-in syndrome, where he's fully conscious and his mind isn't affected, but he can't speak or move a muscle except those in his eyes. Howard, who's now 29, mentors children and says he wants to be able to inspire and educate others. He can only communicate using what's called an eye-gaze computer,

controlled by tracking the glint in his eye. So he used that to write his book and to tell us about his life. This condition has profoundly impacted my daily life, making every physical activity or job impossible and preventing me from communicating impulsively with those around me. It's one of the most agonising and frustrating aspects of this condition. It took me about 18 months to write just over 50,000 words. I think that's actually quite quick.

Throughout that time, I barely stopped because I couldn't enjoy myself until it was complete. Now, at last, I can enjoy life again. My book recounts the first four years following my stroke. The initial chapter introduces the reader to my life before the stroke, allowing them to understand who I was. This is the first installment in a trilogy. The books will invite readers to join me on this miraculous journey and share in the many experiences I've had along the way.

I love cultivating hope, happiness and joy and showing children how I embody these qualities despite how I am. I want to broaden the reach of hope and positivity through my own experiences and I believe that helping children is the starting point in achieving a better future for all. And if you'd like to know more about Howard Wicks or locked-in syndrome, you can find him on Instagram. And that's it from the Happy Pod for now. We'd love to hear from you, if you have any stories to share that will make us all smile. As ever, the address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. This edition was mixed by Pat Sissons.

The producers were Holly Gibbs and Rachel Bulkeley. The editor, as ever, is Karen Martin. I'm Valerie Sanderson. Until next time, bye-bye. If you're hearing this, you're probably already listening I'm going to bed. 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.