Smart city overview

A mayor in Greece is using smart technology to make his city future-proof. Electric vehicles and an e-complaint system are part of Trikala's innovation strategy, but the Greek government is interfering with the plans.

Bullying at school, or "ijime", is a persistent problem in Japan. In 2020, there were 612,000 recorded cases at schools across the country – more than three times the number a decade ago. What begins as a joke among friends can end in insults and violence. Bullying leads to academic failure, isolation and, in some cases, suicide. Last year, 80 percent of Japanese schools reported bullying incidents. Our correspondents Louis Belin, Ryusuke Murata, Aruna Popuri and Justin McCurry report from Tokyo.

Shunned in the Global North due to privacy and security issues, Huawei is a front-runner in Africa. But the Chinese giant's data collection methods may also appeal to authoritarian regimes as a way to cling to power.

Journalists in Mexico are mourning the murder of another colleague – the fourth to be killed since the start of the year. They're being targeted for exposing corruption at the top. The government is under pressure to make it safer for them to do their job.

The fate of Muslims, women and the media are just three of the issues under the spotlight in India's regional elections. The state of Uttar Pradesh perhaps best sums up what's at stake. It has been ruled by PM Modi's Hindu nationalist BJP for the past five years but today, there's increasing concern for the rights of Muslims in particular. Our guests discuss what's at stake in these elections.

The Pakistani government's media watchdog has imposed a ban on "intimate" scenes on television amid growing religious conservativism in the country. Activists have decried the move.

In northern Ghana, farmers lose some 25% of their animals to diseases every year. Feed and water shortages are also a problem. A startup has developed an app to help farmers get their animals vaccinated to reduce losses.

Fear mongering content became viral on social media this week, as Ukrainian civilians prepare for an imminent Russian attack.

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

Many posts on social media claiming to pertain to the current conflict in Ukraine are in fact videos and photos of different events in other regions that happened several years ago. We tell you more in this edition of Truth or Fake.

A rise in demand for air conditioning and refrigeration has pushed up emissions around the world. A project in Kenya is looking into alternative natural refrigerants and is training women to be specialized technicians.

Social media posts may seem insignificant when compared with the brutality on the ground in Ukraine, but what goes viral is directly affecting the war and Russia knows this. This Friday, the chairman of the Russian parliament Vyacheslav Volodin railed against foreign social media, calling it a "weapon" that Russia "must oppose". This comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky secured a series of victories against Russia on the international stage, thanks in no small part to his internet star power.