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Outlook: Dancing Blind With My Horse

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Verity Smith (credit: Brice Braastad)

31/05/2018 GMT

Dancing Blind With My Horse

BBC World Service - Outlook, Dancing Blind With My Horse

Verity Smith is a blind international dressage rider but competes against sighted riders

Verity Smith began to lose her sight aged eight but she was determined not to give up her passion for horses. She took up dressage, and has become a top level competitor.

Verity Smith is originally from the UK but now lives in France and is a top level competitor in dressage, a sport which she describes as 'equestrian ballet'. It's an incredibly challenging and precise sport and for Verity, who is legally blind, it's even more challenging.

Outlook Inspirations nominee Fatuma Abdulkadir Adan grew up in the Marsabit area of Northern Kenya. Most of the families there are nomadic farmers who raise cattle, and there has been a history of violent conflict between different tribes competing for the best pasture for their animals. Fatuma wanted to bring peace to her community, and one day she came up with an idea - get people to play football together. You can find the other nominees for Outlook Inspirations 2018 by searching this website: www.bbcworldservice.com/outlookinspirations

Willem-Pier Vellinga is a scientist from the Netherlands who almost by accident became the guardian of the largest collection of bird sounds in the world. He now runs a website called Xeno-Canto, a growing collection of bird sounds where people from all over the world have posted recordings of  cheeps, tweets, songs and warbles. Last month it reached 400,000 recordings. Outlook's Gibby Zobel went to meet him.

Bird sound credits: David M, Laysan Albatross; Thijs Fijen, Pallid Harrier; Willem-Pier Vellinga, Plain-tailed wren; Gabriel Leite, Capuchinbird and Musical Wren; Bram Vogels, Nkulengu Rail; Frank Lambert, Oriental Reed Warbler; Chris Benesh, Snowy Egret; Gibby Zobel, Chaco Chachalaca and Slaty-breasted wood rail; Robson Silva e Silva, Rufus-bellied thrush.

Image: Verity Smith
Credit: Brice Braastad

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