The Conversation

Kim Chakanetsa is in the heart of Los Angeles' comedy district to meet two stand-up comedians who recently opened their own venues. Jiaoying Summers is a stand-up comedian, a social media star and the owner of The Hollywood Comedy Club and the Pasadena Comedy Club. Originally from China, she moved to the US when she was 18. She studied theatre and drama, but after director John Singleton failed her at an audition and suggested she should try comedy instead, she gave stand-up a go. She says comedy saved her life and helped her through her post-partum depression and her divorce. Nthenya Ndunda is an actor and comedian who, in 2021, opened The Comedy Nook, a venue promoting the work of black artists. She was born in Kenya and grew up in Canada, and decided to open her business after her best friend passed away. Nthenya draws inspiration for her jokes from her personal experience as a black woman living in the US and as the mother of a one-year-old.Produced by Alice Gioia(Image: (L) Nthenya Ndunda, credit Getty Images. (R) Jiaoying Summers, credit courtesy of Jiaoying Summers.)

Kim Chakanetsa hears about the awe-inspiring journeys of two white-water kayakers from the US and France, and the resilience that's kept them at the top of their discipline. Nouria Newman is the first and only woman to run a 30-metre waterfall, a feat captured in the film Wild Waters which charts some of her most audacious expeditions. After a career on the canoe slalom competition circuit, she left that behind to explore her love of the great outdoors, a passion which has taken her to some of the world's most remote and challenging rivers. Having heard many times what small, slight women like her weren't expected to do, Darcy Gaechter set out to prove them wrong. Her memoir, Amazon Woman, describes the 4,300-mile long perilous journey she undertook in 2013 from one of the sources of the Amazon to where it meets the Atlantic Ocean.Produced by Fiona Clampin(Image: (L) Nouria Newman, credit Getty Images. (R) Darcy Gaechter, credit Matt Power. Background image: East Fork Kaweah River, credit Don Beveridge.)

In many societies there are misconceptions about disability and sex. Beatriz de la Pava meets two activists from Pakistan and Nigeria who break taboos and help disabled women access family planning services. Abia Akram is chief executive of the National Forum of Women with Disabilities in Pakistan. She was on the BBC's 100 Women list in 2021 and has spoken out about the unique disability challenges faced by women in Pakistan. Abia is also a trustee with international charity Sightsavers. Lois Auta is the founder and chief executive officer at the Cedar Seed Foundation, an organisation that promotes the participation of women with disabilities in human rights-based development in Nigeria. She focuses on inclusive legislation for people with disabilities. Lois also works on an inclusive family planning project in northern Nigeria run by Sightsavers and BBC Media Action.Produced by Hetal Bapodra and Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Abia Akram, courtesy Sightsavers. (R) Lois Auta, credit Sejoro Ekundayo.)

Kim Chakanetsa talks to two women who help save cultural heritage in areas afflicted by conflict and natural disasters.Kateryna Goncharova has a Ph.D. in Museum and Monuments Studies. She joined the World Monuments Fund in April 2022 as Ukraine Heritage Crisis Specialist and she works on the ground to safeguard the country’s cultural heritage. Some of the sites she’s currently working in are the Khanenko Museum in Kyiv, the Library of Youth in Chernihiv, and the Local History Museum in Okhtyrka, which have been severely damaged by missile attacks. Aparna Tandon leads the First Aid to Cultural Heritage in Times of Crisis Programme at Iccrom, the International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property. She has worked in countries afflicted by conflict and natural disasters – like Haiti, Nepal, Japan, Italy, and more recently, in the areas of Turkey and Syria hit by the 2023 earthquake. Produced by Alice Gioia(Image: (L) Kateryna Goncharova, credit World Monument Fund. (R) Aparna Tandon, credit courtesy of Aparna Tandon.)

Kim Chakanetsa talks to two Paralympic wheelchair rugby players from UK and Denmark about competing at the top level in this mixed-gender, adrenaline-filled, high-impact sport – that used to be known as murderball.Kylie Grimes is an Paralympic gold medallist, competing at three Paralympics for Great Britain. As a teenage athlete and show jumper, Kylie had a life-changing spinal injury in 2006 but her passion for sport remained. Within three years she was cycling 450 km, from Vietnam to Cambodia, to raise money for charity and was playing wheelchair rugby. In 2012 she qualified for her first Paralympics in London she helped Team GB win its first Paralympic gold in the sport at Tokyo 2020.Sofie Skoubo helped the Danish wheelchair rugby team qualify for their first Paralympics in Tokyo. She has Muscular Dystrophy and has also fought off the court to focus on the special needs of para-athletes. Alongside her sports career she works for the Muscular Dystrophy Foundation on an initiative supporting disabled children access education.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Sofie Skoubo, credit D Echelard. (R) Kylie Grimes, credit Megum Masuda.)

Perfumers from Colombia and Sweden tell Kim Chakanetsa about inventing fragrances that evoke emotion and nostalgia.Adriana Medina is a Vice President Perfumer at one of the world's biggest fragrance companies, Givaudan. She grew up in Colombia and after a Masters degree in Cosmetic Science, she attended the Givaudan Perfumery School in Paris. Her creations include 3121 for Prince and Meow for Katy Perry as well as Bombshell for Victoria's Secret – one of the most popular perfumes in US for more than a decade.Born in Västerås Sweden, Maya Njie moved to the UK to study at the University of the Arts London. She started making her own fragrances as part of her art and as interest grew among friends and fellow artists she founded Maya Njie Perfumes in 2016. Her scents are deeply rooted in her Swedish and West African heritage.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Adriana Medina, courtesy Givaudan. (R) Maya Njie, courtesy Maya Njie.)

In a world that is dominated by news of destruction and disaster it seems as though we will never see any positive news. Amongst this bad news fatigue, media forums focusing purely on positive and uplifting stories have begun to seep through to mainstream media. Kim Chakanetsa meets two women who decided to start their own positive news ventures. Anuradha Kedia is the co-founder of The Better India, the world's largest positive and solutions based media platform. Anuradha focuses on objective reporting and impact driven media to create a positive impact across India. Geri Weis-Corby is the founder and editor-in-chief of the Good News Network, an online newspaper which solely publishes positive and uplifting news stories. Geri is also the author of ‘And Now, The Good News’ which highlights some of their best news stories from the past 25 years.Produced by Abbie Bulbulian and Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Geri Weis-Corby, courtesy Geri Weis-Corby. (R) Anuradha Kedia, courtesy Anuradha Kedia.)

What does it take to become a world champion tree climber?Josephine Hedger is a five-time World Champion and a Six Time European Champion tree climber. She lives in the New Forest, in the South of England, and when she's not competing or training she runs her own company, Arbor Venture Tree Care.Jess Hamer is an arborist from Australia and the record holder for fastest 15 metres ascent in the Tree Climbing World Championships. She’s passionate about conservation and she uses social media to document the amazing trees she climbs and the animals she encounters - including scary looking spiders and hairy caterpillars.Produced by Alice Gioia(Image: (L) Jess Hamer, courtesy Jess Hamer. (R) Josephine Hedger, courtesy Josephine Hedger.)

Women playing, watching and reporting on sport is increasingly common. Yet sports journalism is an area still dominated by men, especially in written media. The women cover sports are subject to greater criticism and abuse than male counterparts. Beatriz de la Pava talks to sports journalists from India and Northern Ireland about the love of their careers.Orla Chennaoui is a sports presenter from Northern Ireland. She works for Eurosport covering MotoGP and the Olympics. Growing up she was a national level track and field athlete. She was a news journalist and broadcaster before a job as Sky’s London 2012 correspondent reawakened her passion for sport. One of India's most respected sports journalists, Sharda Ugra has been writing about cricket and other sport in India over 30 years. She got her first job as a sports writer at the Indian newspaper Midday after she and friends interviewed the cricket legend Imran Khan. She went on to be a senior editor at the sports channel ESPN in India and the CricInfo website. She’s now freelance and has written several books on cricket.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Orla Chennaoui, courtesy Eurosport. (R) Sharda Ugra, courtesy Sharda Ugra.)

A skin positivity influencer from Venezuela and dermatologist from Barbados tell Kim Chakanetsa about the impact having acne has on their lives.Constanza Concha has a rare and extreme form of acne called conglobate which started when she was nine years old. With over 57,000 followers on Instagram @cottyconcha she’s appeared on the covers of both Vogue and Glamour magazine. She says she’s proud to be the representation she wanted to see when she was younger.Dr Sharon Crichlow is a consultant dermatologist from Barbados who works in the UK. As a lifelong acne sufferer, Dr Crichlow understands fully the enormous impact dermatological disease can have on a person’s quality of life and mental health. She focuses on acne, treatment of acne scarring and the problems associated with skin of colour.Produced by Jane Thurlow(Image: (L) Constanza Concha, courtesy Constanza Concha. (R) Dr Sharon Crichlow, credit Michelle Jovic.)Produced by Jane Thurlow