Government officials in Bangladesh denounced US sanctions but activists hailed them as a step forward for human rights in the country. The measures were implemented over rights abuses and extrajudicial killings.

Over 500 people were aboard the passenger ferry, which had a capacity of 310, when it caught fire in the south of Bangladesh. The blaze was put out after more than three hours, and rescue operations are still underway.

With days to go until Christmas, Santa might be somewhere out there worrying about how to deliver all the presents with his team of reindeer... meanwhile, just north of the Arctic circle, real reindeers herders are struggling with much bigger problems: climate change threatens their very livelihood.

The 10 most expensive weather disasters of 2021 caused more than $170 billion (€150 billion) in damages, UK charity Christian Aid has reported. That's up $20 billion on last year's figure.

Bangladeshi police have arrested one of the four owners of a ferry involved in a massive fire in which at least 39 people died. Seven other people, including owners and captains of the vessel, are on the run.

International aid groups are once again drawing attention to the plight of Rohingya refugees relocated to the remote, flood-prone island of Bhasan Char in the Bay of Bengal. Earlier this month, dozens of people drowned as they tried to flee what some are calling a prison island.

More than 1,100 people were killed when the Rana Plaza textile factory collapsed in 2013. The tragedy drew attention to poor safety standards in Bangladesh's lucrative garment industry.

In Bangladesh headlines are dominated by violence: Secular bloggers murdered by extremists, opponents of the government disappear, the Hindu minority is under attack. Why is Bangladesh finding it harder and harder to reconcile democracy and religion?

As climate change continues to take effect, we are all going to have to change the way we behave in order to survive. That's the conclusion of Eric Klinenberg, a professor of social science at New York University who's written a book focusing on the extreme 1995 heatwave in Chicago. Temperatures there hit over 41°C, killing hundreds of people. Klinenberg says it's not just infrastructure that will have to change, but the whole way we interact with our families and those living around us.

As climate change takes its toll, warm winter and unreliable snow are now the new reality. Will skiing become a relic of the past? Ski resorts can improvise and adapt, but can they survive? We take a closer look in this edition of Down to Earth.

The government must commit resources to fight the most pressing "danger" of climate change, former defense officials said in an open letter. "Australia has failed when it comes to climate threats," the letter read.

Narendra Modi set lofty climate goals at the COP26 climate conference. But his government has also watered down India's environmental rules, used protected lands for industrial purposes and stifled environmentalists, including 23-year-old Disha Ravi. In 2019 she launched the Indian wing of Fridays For Future, the movement inspired by Greta Thunberg. She was also arrested in 2021 for sedition and conspiracy over a document connected to India's farmer protests. She joins us on Perspective.