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Kate Adie introduces insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents and writers.

Kate Adie introduces insight, wit and analysis from BBC correspondents, journalists and writers telling stories from around the world.

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From Our Own Correspondent: Farewell, Super Mario

30/07/2022

Farewell, Super Mario

BBC Radio 4 - From Our Own Correspondent, Farewell, Super Mario

Italy faces more political uncertainty as Mario Draghi resigns as prime minister.

Italy faces more political uncertainty as Mario Draghi resigns as prime minister. Plus stories from Ukraine, Sri Lanka, Peru and the UK.

We begin in Italy, where Mario Draghi has recently resigned as prime minister after only 18 months in office. Initially a popular choice as PM, after the former central banker guided Italy and the eurozone through numerous crises. But having failed to win support for a new economic package among his broad-based unity government, he called a vote of confidence – and lost. Mark Lowen reflects on a very Italian situation.

In Ukraine, Dan Johnson visits some of the Soviet-era institutions where children and young people living with disabilities are confined. He found that many of these residential homes are ill-equipped to provide proper care and cope with their complex needs. Human rights investigators say the neglect disabled people face in Ukraine reflects the failings of a system that has been deficient long before the war started.

Amid the political and economic crisis in Sri Lanka, Aanya Wipulasena reveals how locals like herself are learning to grow their own fruit and vegetables to cope with the soaring costs of food, and how the peace of the kitchen garden helps take her mind off the instability that has gripped the country.

In Peru, we meet the farmer behind a David and Goliath-style lawsuit, who has taken on Germany energy companies over the impact of emissions on the local environment. The case centres on determining the link between climate change and the melting of a nearby glacier, which campaigners fear will flood local villages. Olivia Acland has followed the story.

Roger Harrabin reflects on his 35 years covering the natural world, in which he has focussed on the threat posed by human-induced climate change. He recalls his reluctance to pitch his first report on global warming, and charts the rise of climate change in becoming the number one story of our time. 

Presenter: Kate Adie
Producer: Serena Tarling
Production Coordinator: Gemma Ashman
Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith

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