Saint Louis and Mexico City feature in new BBC 'Earth Reporters' series
In Saint Louis, Senegal’s former capital, and one of the cities most threatened by sea-level rise in Africa, one man wants to bring the plight of his citizens to the world stage. Cheikh Mamadou Abiboulaye Dieye, Saint Louis’ charismatic mayor, is also the first of five distinctive voices to present their stories to a global audience on ‘Earth Reporters’ – tve’s major new series on the global environment. The series, produced by Headlight Pictures for tve, in partnership with The Open University launches on BBC World News this Saturday, 7 May.
The first film in the series, ‘My City and Your City’ was made with the support of the UN International Strategy on Disaster Reduction (ISDR) and ECHO. During Saint Louis’ annual rainy season, thousands of people face upheaval from flood devastation. Born and raised in the city, Mayor Dieye has taken on the responsibility of trying to protect its 250,000 citizens from flooding, and in ‘My City and Your City’, he shows us the problems.
The long-term outlook, he knows, is not good: “In Saint Louis what makes it beautiful is also its weakness,” he says. “We are in a zone which is extremely exposed. It’s an extremely fragile area. Look here you’ve got the river and just 200 metres away you have the sea.”
But the Mayor is not about to give up his city to the sea without a fight. We follow him as he travels to Mexico City to address the World Mayors Summit on Climate Change to focus global attention on Saint Louis’ problems. As he tells the delegates, “We are here, and we do not contribute to climate change - but I can assure you that African cities are the ones that suffer the most from the effects.” But Saint Louis is not alone in its vulnerability. Although much richer, Mexico City is threatened by floods and earthquakes. Mayor Dieye meets up with Mayor Marcel Ebrard to exchange experiences and find out what steps Mexico City is taking to protect its citizens.
BBC World News broadcasts ‘Earth Reporters – My City and Your City’ at the following times:
Saturday 7 May 02:30 and 09:30; Sunday 8 May 15:30 and 21:30 (All times UK time zone). BBC World News broadcast times vary around the world. For details of transmissions in your region, check the BBC World News website.
To view a high-definition clip from the programme, visit Earth Reporters on tve’s YouTube Channel. The Open University has developed a range of educational resources to accompany the series. These can be found at www.open.ac.uk/openlearn/earthreporters
Notes for Editors
Tve’s Earth Reporters is broadcast first on BBC World News, and is a coproduction by the Open University.
The ‘Global Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction’ takes place in Geneva from 8-13 May and brings together 2,000 delegates from governments, NGOs and business to debate strategies for reducing vulnerability to disasters.
Tve is a collective name for Television for the Environment and Television Trust for the Environment. Television for the Environment is a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and Wales (registered office 21 Elizabeth Street, London SW1W 9RP, company number 1811236) and a registered charity (charity number 326585). Television Trust for the Environment is a registered charity (charity number 326539). www.tve.org