Mapping the World

El revés de los mapas

Le dessous des cartes

Na rewersie mapy

Mit offenen Karten

Dietro le mappe

China is a country of contrast from the busy heartlands of the East to the vast empty expanses of the West. A focus on the world most populated nation.

program_content

The Geopolitics Programme

<p>China is a country of contrast from the busy heartlands of the East to the vast empty expanses of the West. A focus on the world most populated nation.</p>

China: One Country, Many Facets

program_playNext

The fall of the USSR destabalised the Caucasus, which is being eyed up by three autocratic regimes: Russia, Turkey, and Iran. Each country jealously guards its interests in this oil and gas-rich region. 

The Caucasus: At the Crossroads of Europe and Asia

The fall of the USSR destabalised the Caucasus, which is being eyed up by three autocratic regimes: Russia, Turkey, and Iran

Thirty years after the end of apartheid, South Africa has still not overcome its many problems: Endemic violence, economic and racial inequalities, state corruption. However, the rainbow nation has a lot to offer: tourism, natural resources and a leadership role on the African continent.

South Africa and its Demons

At the crossroads between China and India is Indonesia, an archipelago bursting with potential. The biggest Muslim country in the world became a democracy after years of dictatorship. It successfully curbed threats from Islamic extremists and enjoys the most dynamic economy in the region. Indonesia could well become a major player in international politics.

Indonesia: An Archipelago With Potential

At the crossroads between China and India, is Indonesia, an archipelago bursting with potential

Ten years after Gaddafi's fall, what state is Libya in? There's the official government based in Tripoli that is recognised by the international community, and rival forces controlled by General Khalifa Haftar.

Libya: A Global Power Struggle

Ten years after Gaddafi's fall, what state is Libya in?

With France holding the European presidency and with presidential elections on the horizon, a focus on the French nation. An assessment of its economic, cultural and military influence in the world today.

France: Still a Major Power?

 An assessment of France's economic, cultural and military influence in the world today.

"Hard power" means economic, military, and demographic power; "soft power" means symbolic, cultural, and informational power. And now there is also "food power": the weaponised production of food. Wheat, one of the most consumed grains and traded on the stock exchange, has become a geopolitical issue.

The Weaponisation of Wheat

 Wheat, one of the most consumed grains and traded on the stock exchange, has become a geopolitical issue

Understanding geopolitics has never been more urgent. Mapping the World analyses Putin's unprecedented attack on Ukraine with a short history of relations between Russia and Ukraine. Political scientist Anna Colin Lebedev and the head of the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI), Thomas Gomart provide context.

Putin and Ukraine: What Next?

We put Putin's attack on Ukraine in context with a short history of relations between Russia and Ukraine

A focus on the world’s largest country by landmass. Russia is a major world power that excels in certain spheres but glaring inequality, major structural problems and Western sanctions mean it may struggle to keep up with other world powers.

Russia: Land of Contrasts

Places of learning, universities also have another role: to affirm the status of their countries and guarantee their cultural influence. Since the advent of global league tables, the struggle between universities vying for prestige has only intensified; especially between East and West.

Soft Power - Universities at War

Since the advent of global league tables, the struggle between universities vying for prestige has only intensified

We look at Argentina to understand why this country with multiple resources did not live up to its promise. The missed opportunities are numerous: over-investment in agriculture, a singular political model, inequality, and corruption.

Argentina: Country of Missed Opportunities

We look at Argentina to understand why this country with multiple resources did not live up to its promise

Since 2021, Joe Biden and Xi Jinping are rivals on the world stage with China now positioning itself to take the lead in all areas - economic, military, diplomatic, cultural and political.  An overview of the Sino-American competition to be world leader, which could be decisive for the 21st century.

USA vs China

An overview of the Sino-American competition to be world leader, which could be decisive for the 21st century.

The history of Europe since the end of the Second World War cannot be properly understood without taking into account immigration. Within countries, between European countries as well as from outside Europe, immigration has always been a hot topic.

A History of Immigration in Europe

From the North Sea to the Black Sea, the Rhine and the Danube form a link across Europe. Mapping the World navigates the history of the two longest rivers of the European Union.

Rhine and Danube: Two Rivers, Two Europes

Iraq in 2022: Will the emerging nation succeed in resisting foreign influence and from Iran in particular? What does the future hold for the Kurdish autonomous region? And will the USA ever really leave?

Iraq - A Sovereign Country?

Iraq in 2022: Will the emerging nation succeed in resisting influence from foreign powers, and from Iran in particular? 

Compared to neighboring Mali, Senegal appears to be quiet and stable. France, a former colonial power, maintains its place as its main partner, but others are now vying for a spot at the table: China, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Indonesia and the United States.

Senegal and France: Allies?

France, a former colonial power, is Senegal's main partner, but others are now vying for a spot at the table

The ruling junta renamed Burma Myanmar, claiming it was a way of erasing the country's British colonial past. But the deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi still defends the name Burma. This episode of Mapping the World looks at this ethically diverse country influenced by both India and China.

Myanmar: The Junta and the Democratic Dream

This episode of Mapping the World looks at this ethically diverse country influenced by both India and China

The two main cocoa-producing countries - Ivory Coast and Ghana - aren't reaping the rewards of a growing global taste for sweet treats. On the one hand there are multinational corporations that control the entire value chain, on the other, small cocoa producers trying to support their families.

Cacao: Who Profits from Chocolate?

The main cocoa-producing countries - Ivory Coast and Ghana - aren't reaping the rewards of growing global demand

A region of Europe with a shared experience of communism and USSR dominance, Eastern Europe today is characterised by nations with diverse cultural and political identities.

How many Eastern Europes?

How we represent our world in maps depends on our perspective. For many centuries Europeans have put their continent in the centre and on top of their maps, the Chinese likewise placed the Middle Kingdom in the centre of things. What do our maps tell us about our worldview?

Cartography: How We Represent the World

For centuries Europeans have put their continent in the centre of their maps, the Chinese likewise placed the Middle Kingdom in the centre of things. What do our maps tell us about our worldview?

Warfare has evolved with the professionalisation of armies, the refusal of public opinion to see their soldiers sacrifice their lives in distant lands, and the emergence of new technologies such as artificial intelligence, robots and other drones.

21st Century Warfare

Warfare has evolved into high tech drone strikes and robo-armies, and it's a gamechanger for global geopolitics

All world powers want a piece of Antartica, the only continent that belongs to everyone and no one. This unique territory at the end of the world is currently protected by international law, with only scientific research allowed. But for how long will it remain a pristine wilderness?

Antarctica: Ice and Greed

All world powers want a piece of Antartica, the only continent that belongs to everyone and no one.

Amongst the millions of species of insect on the planet, the bee plays a crucial role in human civilisation. A focus on how bees have spread around the world with globalisation and how they are now critically endangered.

Bees and Agriculture

The world's tech giants - the likes of Facebook, Apple or Google - now have a political role to play. They can curb misinformation or spread it, along with all of the massive social issues that entails. An in-depth analysis of social media uses and regulations in China, the United States, and Europe.

The Geopolitics of Social Media

An in-depth analysis of social media uses and regulations in China, the United States, Europe and Russia.

Germany in the 21st century is unthinkable without Angela Merkel, leading the country for the last 16 years. Ms Merkel grew up in the GDR before beginning her political career in the united Germany. A look at the Germany she leads as she approaches the end of her political career.

Germany: Angela Merkeland?

A look at the Germany of Angela Merket as she approaches the end of her political career after 16 years as chancellor.

20 years ago, on September 11, 2001, 3,000 people died when al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked four planes. Mapping the World looks back on the 20-year struggle against Islamic terrorism, from Osama bin Laden's Al-Qaeda to the so-called Islamic State, Boko Haram, and other jihadist organisations.

20 Years of War against Terrorism

Mapping the World looks back on the 20-year struggle against Islamic terrorism

The historian Herodotus in the fifth century BC said that Egypt was "a gift from the Nile", and from the pharaohs to Nasser, the Nile has played a vital role in Egypt's fortunes. But Ethiopia now intends to remind leaders in Cairo that the Nile is not just an Egyptian river.

Geopolitics of the Nile

Ethiopia wants to remind Egypt that the Nile is not just Egyptian

In 2016, Colombia the country signed a historic peace treaty with the FARC rebels. This was intended to mend the deep rift in Colombian society, which has long been divided into two extreme camps: on the one hand the Marxist revolutionary guerrilla, on the other the ultra-conservative right and paramilitary militias. But the violence that has shaped the recent history of the country is far from over.

Colombia: A Nation in Revolt

Colombia is still struggling to control violence from extreme groups and drug cartels

There are an estimated 1,500 active volcanoes on Earth and in the 20th century, 437 of them erupted in places like the United States, Russia, Indonesia and Japan. Both a blessing and a curse, they have shaped our world on land and at the sea.

A World of Volcanoes

Climate change is often viewed as a far-off phenomenon but the effects are already being felt around the world by millions of people. A global overview of the regions on the frontline of the climate catastrophe.

Climate Change Is Happening Now

 A global overview of the regions on the frontline of the climate catastrophe.

Focus on the second largest country in the world. Canada can appear so similar and yet so different politically and cultural from its southern neighbour, the USA.

Canada: The Other America?

Tourism represents 10% of global GDP and for some nations is of vital importance. A focus on our changing travel habits from the late nineteenth century up to the present day and beyond.

Tourism Post Covid

Oceania, a continent of scattered islands across a vast expanse of ocean, is at the forefront of climate change and at the heart of the confrontation between China and the United States.

Oceania: China Eyes Up the Pacific

The 5G revolution will truly bring the internet of things within everyone’s reach and make smart cities a global reality. But with this major technological advance led by Chinese company Huawei, it is leading to renewed tensions between the USA and China.

5G: The New Cold War?

With a beautiful coastline stretching more than 2,000 kilometres along the Indian Ocean and a wealth of natural resources, Mozambique has the makings of an Eldorado. But the former Portuguese colony is facing a jihadist insurgency in the north which is jeopardising its chances of development and stability

Mozambique: A Cursed Eldorado

Originating from Ethiopia in the 700s, coffee has spread across the globe with a clear division between where coffee is produced and where it is consumed.

Coffee: A Global Beverage

Mapping the World - The Geopolitics Programme

program_recommendations

The Supreme Court is now made of a majority of ultra-conservative judges since President Trump's term in office. The court now looks set to overturn the Roe v Wade case which gave women the constitutional right to have an abortion if they so wish or need. This worrying step backwards for women's rights doesn't mean women won't have abortions. It means they'll die trying.

Abortion: A Threatened Right

This worrying step backwards doesn't mean women won't have abortions. It means they'll die trying

51 million abortions are performed worldwide every year. But abortion is illegal in many countries, and 23,000 women die every year from improper procedures. The Dutch doctor Dr. Rebecca Gomperts founded Women on Web 15 years ago, making abortion accessible to women worldwide by prescribing the abortion pill.

Dr. Rebecca Gomperts founded Women on Web 15 years ago, making abortion accessible to women worldwide

Abortion: The Parcels That Save Lives

In Latin America, 12 countries are currently governed by left-wing parties, while only 7 are governed by right-wing parties. In 2022, three presidential elections are expected on the continent: in Costa Rica, Colombia and Brazil. Elections that could change the face of the continent.

The Left in Latin America

May 2022 has seen record temperatures in many places around the world. As heat waves become more frequent, the harmful effects on humans and the environment are ever more apparent.

Heatwaves in Spring

May 2022 has seen record temperatures in many places around the world. 

Mapping the World Essentials

Olaf Scholz, Mario Draghi and Emmanuel Macron recently visited Kyiv in a show of support for Ukraine at war. Summary of the situation in Ukraine and Europe’s position on the conflict.

Scholz, Macron and Draghi in Kyiv

Bulgaria is highly dependent on Russian oil and gas and has been hit hard by the repercussions from the war in Ukraine. Focus on and often overlooked European nation.

Bulgaria Caught in the Middle

program_bonus

Bonuses and Extracts

program_external

Discover more

program_categoryMostViewed

Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish perform at Hellfest 2022.

Hellfest 2022

Nightwish

Drockick Murphys are perhaps the most Irish of American bands. The Bostonians baptize their new album Turn Up That Dial at Hellfest 2022.

Dropkick Murphys

Just a few weeks before the release of their new album, The Sick and the Dying… and the Dead! Thrash metal stars Megadeth perform at Hellfest 2022.

Megadeth

Punk rock fans note: The Offspring have released a new album: The Californians perform tracks from their latest work at Hellfest, Let the Bad Times Roll.

The Offspring

Dutch band Epica returns to Hellfest to present Omega, a new album showing off their inimitable symphonic heavy metal sound.

Epica

Brazilian cult band Sepultura is back at Hellfest! They unleash their intense thrash metal in front of a white-hot audience.

Sepultura

Known for their incandescent, fiery performances, Swedish black metal band Watain perform their pyrotechnics at Hellfest 2022.

Watain

JInjer are Ukraine’s official ambassadors of metal. Led by the voice and charisma of singer Tatiana Shmayluk, they are bringing their special blend of progressive groove metal to the world.

Jinjer

What does it mean to be a man in the modern world? Jan goes in search of answers on the streets of Berlin where he meets barbecue grillers, American football players and queer foresters.

Be a Man! - But How?

Streetphilosophy

As soon as weightlessness sets in in Earth orbit, everything floats, including bodily fluids. Most astronauts suffer from space sickness – similar to seasickness. You get sick, your eyes go crazy, your face swells up, your legs get longer and after a few sleepless nights (there is no day or night in space) many astronauts get severe back pain. Space researchers are trying to understand how the human body reacts without gravity. Could we need it to live?

Are We Ready for Mars?

What would happen to our bodies if we were all suddenly exposed to weightlessness in space?

42: The Answer to Almost Everything

With their latest album Soul on Fire, The Last Internationale brings a rebellious spirit to the main stage of Hellfest 2022.

The Last Internationale

Hellfest invites a heavyweight of crossover and thrash metal: Los Angeles natives Suicidal Tendencies make the main stage tremble!

Suicidal Tendencies

According to the latest calculations by the OECD, South Korean women could live to be over 92 years old on average in 2070, and men over 89. That would be a world record. What's the secret?

South Korea: An Obsession With Health

South Koreans are on track to be the longest-lived people in the world

ARTE Reportage

According to the myth, the Greeks managed to enter the city of Troy by building a wooden horse in which was hidden Greek soldiers. How much of this story is based on actual historical events? And if the story is true, was it even a horse?

The Mystery of the Trojan Horse

The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad sits between Lithuania and Poland. Once German East Prussia, it is now home to 1 million Russian citizens. What is life like in this small territory now practically cut off from its EU neighbours since the war in Ukraine began?

Kaliningrad: Putin's Enclave

The Russian enclave of Kaliningrad sits between Lithuania and Poland and is now practically cut off from its EU neighbours since the war in Ukraine began.

The trio led by Matthew Bellamy is one of the most explosive and creative forces in rock music over the past two decades. There is no one else quite like Muse. Be impressed by their committed performance at Berlin’s Tempelhof Sounds Festival.

Tempelhof Sounds 2022

 There is no one else quite like Muse. Be impressed by their committed performance at Berlin’s Tempelhof Sounds Festival.

Muse

The ‘Operation Hotel’ revelations back in 2018 revealed that the Ecuadorian government was spying on Julian Assange, taking refuge in their London embassy at the time. But recent evidence from Spanish authorities suggests that it was in fact American intelligence that sponsored the surveillance. With the USA currently trying to extradite Assange from his London prison to be tried for the disclosure of hundreds of thousands of top-secret documents on WikiLeaks, the global Assange story, murkier than ever, is ongoing.

Global Assange

The WikiLeaks founder is currently fighting extradition to the US where he faces charges that could result in a 175 year prison sentence

Pittsburgh punk band Anti-Flag have been going strong since the late 1980s. They bring their anthemic sound at Hellfest 2022.

Anti-Flag

In Jordan, on the site of one of the world's first settlements, archaeologists have unearthed treasures including a sumptuous pearl necklace for a little girl. An object that provides clues about life in the Neolithic period.

Neolithic Treasures from Jordan

In Jordan, on the site of one of the world's first settlements, archaeologists have unearthed treasures including a sumptuous pearl necklace for a little girl. 

The Mysterious Stone Age Village

Drugs have a bad press. But scientists have long been convinced that the use of psychedelics can sometimes be beneficial. The use of ecstasy, LSD and other hallucinogens could soon be authorised for therapeutic purposes. Should we change our relationship to certain drugs?

Are We Doing More Drugs?

Scientists have long been convinced that the use of psychedelics can sometimes be beneficial.

China: One Country, Many Facets

Mapping the World - The Geopolitics Programme