01.07.2008
The City of 5 Million
Worldwide, the number of cities with a population of over five million is steadily increasing. What is life like for the inhabitants of these megacities? How do people cater for their daily needs? Such cities are almost impossible for the state and official authorities to govern. To compensate for this, forms of self-organisation arise to enable life to continue in such tightly packed communities. Taking Delhi, Dhaka and the Pearl River Delta as examples, Frauke Kraas takes a first-hand look at living conditions in megacities.
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The City of 5 Million: Episode 01, 15/04/2008
A Valuable Commodity
Water tanks, rows of canisters, pumps: Frauke Kraas explains how the availability of water in the Indian megacity of New Delhi depends largely on how affluent a person is, because water is scarce. While the well-irrigated parks in the central business district are verdant and green, a mere trickle is all that the people in the slums have to fill their canisters with. But how is water supplied to the people, and what does it mean if the pumps have a red marking?
24.06.2008
The Recycling Business in Dhaka
Plastic is the gold of Islambagh. Almost the entire population of this district in Dhaka make their living from plastic or, to be more precise, from plastic waste. Predominantly unskilled workers sort the rubbish....
17.06.2008
Life in a Slum: Korail
With a population of 13 million, Dhaka is one of the largest urban areas in the world. Between 30 and 40 percent of the population in Dhaka live in slums such as Korail, one of the largest slums in this megacity.
10.06.2008
Moving Rice for the Masses
Dhaka, Bangladesh: The inhabitants of this megacity eat some 5,000 tons of rice a day, which amounts to more than 250 truckloads. The rice is brought into the city by lorry, but the lorries are unloaded by hand....
03.06.2008
Urban Pearls on the Pearl River
Millions of people live and work in the South Chinese megacities of Hong Kong and Guangzhou. The megacities on the Pearl River are currently one of the largest "world factories".
27.05.2008
Between Tradition and Modernity
Dancing the tango in a city park, traditional architecture and modern office blocks. This is the new face of China. "If you want to get rich, first build a road," says a well-known Chinese proverb.
20.05.2008
Urban Villages
How do megacities grow? The urban development in the Pearl River Delta provides one example. Increasingly, high-rise buildings are displacing the old village structures and giving rise to urban villages.
13.05.2008
Living in the "World Factory"
Today we are in the city of Guangzhou in South China. Together with the surrounding Pearl River Delta it currently has a population of about 50 million. The region is also known as the "world factory".
06.05.2008
Travelling through Delhi by Mouse Click
A bird's-eye view of Delhi: Researchers use satellite images to study urban settlement structures. Can this also help to improve the water supply situation?
29.04.2008
Urban Health in Delhi
Today Frauke Kraas is taking a look at urban health. Much of the population in Delhi suffers from infectious diseases that are caused by polluted water.
22.04.2008
Wastewater
This is the district of Trilokpuri. Frauke Kraas goes on a fact-finding expedition to get an impression of the wastewater situation in the district. It is catastrophic. Next, she heads for the holy Yamuna River.
15.04.2008
A Valuable Commodity
Water tanks, rows of canisters, pumps: Frauke Kraas explains how the availability of water in the Indian megacity of New Delhi depends largely on how affluent a person is, because water is scarce.2008
The first series: The research diaries and interesting background information on the projects and the researchers themselves. Find out about humanoid robots, sinking coasts, and an animal invasion.-
An Animal Invasion
The "killer shrimp" & Co.: Is globalisation a threat to Lake Constance? -
The City of 5 Million
Are megacities mankind's future? How do people live and survive in them? -
Blue Wonder
Getting to the bottom of the deep blue sea: The role of the oceans. -
Textile Concrete
How can you make something heavy light? Textile concrete opens up new prospects. -
Sinking Coasts
Around 10,000 years ago, people lived where now there are crashing waves. -
The Human Machine
Can a robot learn how to see, hear or feel from humans? -
Rainforest
Between Nature and exploi- tation: Is it possible to re- concile the needs of man- kind with those of nature? -
Temple Restoration
Stone doesn't last forever. Can the temple complex of Angkor still be rescued? -
Run, Lola, Run
Seeking the perfect two-legged robot. -
Giant Dinosaurs
Why did the sauropods grow to be the largest land-dwelling creatures that ever lived?
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