Life was lived in tribes or extended families. That made things like gathering food, looking after one another and surviving both easier and more likely. But over time, we became increasingly selfreliant. People are often left to fend for themselves in densely populated cities. Community tends to be something that takes place only online. The result is a sharp rise in loneliness. Millions of men and women cut off from society, devoid of a sense of belonging. Alall e lonely p people, whehe re do ththey come from all the lonely people, w whereo they belong g onene europewidede study revealed that t around 30 milln europeans regularly feel lonely. Thats 7 of the overall population. In japan too, many people live in total isolation for years, even decades. Tokyo, a vibrant mega city home to 15 million people. Some tokyo residents find it a challenging place to live. They say its too busy, too noisy, so they simply dont leave their homes. Sometimes for a few months. Sometimes for decades. Ogatake is one of these modernday hermits. He hardly ever leaves his room. He decided to become a recluse 15 years ago. [speaking japanese] i was learning french at the time. The teacher wowould always asks what wed done that week. I didnt have a job, so i never had ananything to say. I couldnt have a conversation. So i retreated more and more from the world. Ogatake is whats known in japan as a hikikomori, which basically means puining inward, being confined. They spend their days cooped up in their homes, on thehe intern, playing videogames. They cant cope with preressurs of the outside world. [speakingng japanese] ivven lolooking at the same e view f5 years. Some might say its a lovely view, but when im not feeling well, i see everything as though it were shrouded in grey. Its j just all grey somehow. Japan is now reportedly home to over a million hikikomori, possibly even more. Its hard to compile exact figures. They fear school or work. They fear failure. In japanese society, being different or standing out is frowned upon. Without outside help, its hard for these people to find a way back into normal life. Miho goto is a qualified nurse. Five years ago, she founded a help organisation for these social recluses. Its called hidamari, which translates as a place in the sun. [speaking japanese] we need to help them build confidence. The aim is to find them jobs. But there e are many small stes that have to be taken before we get to that point. We go for walks outside with them. We encourage them to spepeak o their paparents and develop a daily routine. Earlier thihis year, two peoe died when a hihikikomori attacd a group of schoolchildren in kawasaki. Days later, a Government Official stabbed to death his clusive soson, fearing he might harm others. S. Miho goto says incidents like these further stigmatises hikikomori, worsens their anxiety and exacererbates the problem. [speaking japanese] isolated incidents like these can make people afraid of hikikomori. Then the parents of hikikomori no longer feel able to talk openly about their children and share their concerns with others. Ththat makes it eveven hardero help them. Most hikikomori are men. Goto and her team see themselves as their big sisters. Kensuke and daisuke dont want to be recognised. The fact they managed to leave their rooms to attend a consultation is already a major achievement. [speaking japanese] on a scale of 1 to 10, today i feel minus 3. Its hot and humid. Im in a bad mood. [speaking japanese] when im in my room, all i can think is, how can i get out of here . And how can i stop being a burden on my parents . The parents of hikikomori often suffer as much they do. They often feel a strong sense of shame. Pupublically admdmitting that r child has no job and no friends would be humiliating. More often than not, theyre complicit in maintaining their childs isolation hiding thehm from the neighghbours, for example. Its a problem thats set to become even more acute in the coming years. [speaking j japanese] in n we talk abouout the 808050 pro. When t the parents are 80, ther children are 50. And the older the parents get, the harder it is for them to look after their children. Traditionally, Japanese Culture emphasized conformity. For people who feel different, staying within their own 4 walls can seem like a safe option. But this selfimposed exile can become impossible to escape. E. Now aged 40, ogatake wonders if hell be able to reenter society. [speaking japanese] my biggest worry is taking that first step. Thats the hard bit. Should i leave my home, should i leave my father, who looks after me . Maybe if i were on my own, i would have more clarity about what sort of life i want to live. Leaving the house should be so easy, but for hikikomori its a a terrifying step. If the world outside better understood their condition, perhaps it would help them reintegrate. And now we head to africa. Rwanda is known, rather poetically, as the land of a thousand hills. But such topography makes farmers lives anything but easy. Rainfall commonly leads to flooding and erosion. On a recent assignment there, our reporter, wiebke feuersenger, trudged through a fair share of mud. She met with people in northern rwanda who are taking measures to reduce the incidence of flooding. The farmers of the kotimu cooperative are distraught. What looks like a lake is actually potato and corn fields. Everything is under water. The harvest is lost. The only road through the valley is also flooded. Everything that needs to be transported now has to be carried around the lake. Yet the valley is supposed to be protected against floods. [speaking foreign language] first of all a project manager from the Adapation Fund came to see us. Then other peoplple came to prepare the construction work and get an idea of the terrain. Once they were finished with their work, we were finally able to plant up the whole of the valley with crops. They dug drainage ditches everywhere. Then the project was over, but not long after they left, we realized the problem still wasnt solved. The water just came back. The Adaptation Fund is a United Nations initiative that aims to help developing countries cope with climate change. Rwanda has a High Percentage of fertile volcanic soil. That means even the High Mountain slopes can be used for arable farming. The problem is heavy rain washes the soil down into the valley. The solution is to build terraces into the slopes, following the example of the incas in south america. [speaking foreign language] before we knew about building terraces, the soil on the slopes just used to get washed into the valley. There was no point using manure or fertilizer. But now, whatever we use stays where its meant to be. So the crops on the terraces are growing faster, and we have better harvests. Now all the mountain villages here have built terraces. Its a timeconsuming process. The steps in the slope need to be at least 5 meters deep. Once complete, the ground then needs to rest for 3 months. Sometimes there are unexpected obstacles. Farmers have stumbled across unmarked graves left from the genocide in 1994, which killed around a millionon people. [speaking foreign language] we found bodies under this field of People Killed during the genocide, so we didnt dig any furtheher. There used to be a house here. Presumably there was a massacre and they just dumped all the bodies under there. We dont dig terraces in an area like that. A few valleys further on is the kabyaza green village. Its one of many socalled green villages in rwanda that are helping to promote sustainable development. Each village has its own school. Local families are each given a plot of land to farm. Sanitation facilities and rainwater tanks ensure clean water is available. And each family is also given a cow. More than 200 flood victims from the region have found a new home in kabyaza. Aloys rutayisire is one of them. [speaking foreign languag] ive planted potatoes, beans, and corn on my land. Ive also specialized in leaf vegetables. Theyre especially good for the children to o ensure they geta balanced diet, plus chard and spinach h sell for a particulay good price. The profit he makes on selling his fruit and vegetables has s allowed him to build upa flock of sheep again. He now has a few chickens too. Just one year ago, things were very different. [speaking foreign language] in orderer to get a house in kabyazaza, you first hadad to e that y you were a victim of te floods. We lost everything in a single night. Before that i had been a v vey successful businessman, but in one fell swoop all of my 63 cows were gone. Everything i possessed was destroyed by the rain. I thought i woululd lose my mi. But his neighbours gathered signatures to ensure he got a house in the green village. Today the stream that washed away his house looks quite harmless. Another building has been put up where his once stood, with a new Family Living in it. He warned them about how dangerous it is here, but in densely populated rwanda, every piece of farmland is needed, and jobs are in short supply. Work outside of the farming sector is especially hard to come by in rural areas, but a center for regional handicrafts opened recently. Here a small group of women are running their own tailoring business. They make everything from festive gowns to more everyday items, with bags and other accessories to match. [speaking foreign language] its so much easier to make a living from m sewing. The work here is seasonal too, but i earn well between 25 and 30,000 rwandan francs a week. You can live well on that. We make our way back to the kotimu farmers cooperative. Anyone capable of holding a shovel is out in the fields doing their bit. Everyones hoping that if they can move enough mud out of the way, the water will drain off. The women dig out the big stones they then carry them to one of the many small water channels. In this way theyre building dams, designed to filter the water and prevent further mud slides. And finally, theres relief all round as the water starts to drain away. [speaking foreign language] this sound of water flowing is really music to my ears. It makes me happy because it means weve got control of the floods, for now at least. We dont know how long it will last. But its too late to save the harvest. What the farmers really need is a more permanent solution. Theyre hoping and praying for change. Weve got another snack for you, and this time its from england. Its a fast food many brits cant get enough of. The english city of oxford is best known for its elite university. Its one of the oldest in the world and has just under 24,000 students. A mere two kilometers away is the other oxford. This residential neighbourhood is home to Kazem Hakimis fish and chip shop. Born in iran, kazem hakimi first came to england in the 1960s. Since 1988, hes been selling that most british of all fast foods, deepfried fish and chips. He says its a lot healthier than many people might think. Well, its a wholesome food. We do the potatoes, peel the Fresh Potatoes in the morning. Theres no preservatives or nonsense in there. Well, we get the skinless cod, the best cod i can get, the filets of cod. I take the bones out, debone it. Its then coated in a batter made of flour, salt, and water and put straight into the deep fryer. About five to ten minutes maximum. We do it to order. We dont have them ready made. The Portion Sizes are certainly not for anyone watching their waistline. The price, 8 pounds, thats nearly 9 euros. Please enjoy. Many of his customers have been coming here for years. I dont know, no one is gonna not like it, because of the flavours and everything. There is nothing to not enjoy. And its not too sickly or too filling. So, yeah. Its cheap. Its good. Cant tell you if its healthy or not, probably not. Very y nice hospitality, l make you a cup of tea, if you ask him. But you pay for it. [laughter] k kazem hakimi aims to do me thanan just sell fast food. He says its about an attitude to life. A few years ago he started photographing his customomers, putting them togogether in a lae book. Many of his photos have gone on show in galleries in oxford. I interlink, interact with people here, and we have become friends. So its just like an outing realally, i come to see my friends. Also it happens that i work, too. So its good. Thats what keeps me going. Otherwise i would have gone beserk, just cooking, cooking. Trekking in the mountains, the ultitimate challenge for ambitious hikers, and a source of incomomfor those e who cary ththr bags and supplies. Like t s sherpa oplele of e himalayas, for example. For over 100 years theyve served as porters. Without the help of the sherpa tenzing norgay, Sir Edmund Hillary may not have reached the peak of Mount Everest back in 1953. The ruins of the ancient city of Macchu Picchu lie in the peruvian andes. The site is a tourist magnet, but many wouldnt manage the journey without the help of porters, which these days may very well be women. These three women have bkeken a taboboo, changing aa longstandnding traditioion. Their cocompany tourisists, carg their baggage in the peruvian andes. Their destination, the famous World Heritage site machu picchu. [speaking foreign language] we are so proud of machu picchu. It was built by our ancestors. We are strong like them. Theyve broken into a maledominated world by becoming the first female porters in peru, with the help of one man. [speaking foreign language] our bossss also comes from a rul area, where he knows that women have very few rights, and are not on an equalfooting with men. Thats why he lets us work in the tourism industry. After settiting up the tent, the women help the chef. They barely take a break. The tourists get only the best treatment. At this high altitude, theyre served a nutritious fourcourse dinner, including fresh trout served with avocado salalad. The next morning, the tourists set out for the next campsite while the porters pack everything up, luggage, tents, and cooking gear. Its a tough job, but it provides them an income and allows them more independence from the men. The mountain trek to machu picchu takes three days. During that time, the porters children are being looked after back home by their grandparents, as 27yearold marleni explains. [speaking foreign language] before we stayed home, and all we could do was sell vegetablel, which earned us hardly anything. Now, thanks to this opportunity, were earning much more. Thats good, and its also benefiting our children. The tourists struggle with the lack of oxygen up here in the mountains. This old incan path rises to an altitude of 3,500 meters. Having grown up here, marleni, dora, and noemi are used to it. So they easily overtake the visitors, and they get farar ahd of them in no time at all. That allows them to set up the tetes in advance and have them adady befo thehe gro arrivives the tempereratures up hehere e clclose to freezezing, but thaht doesnt seem to bother the porters. Leandro from argentina is happy to have e managed d the first s. [speaking foreign language] unbelievable. You give your all, and the porters march right past you all the same. Great. In the evening, the porters are introduced. The mountain guide explains that they are now consciously hiring more women to promote greater equality. Here, marleni earns 90 euros a week, which is not a bad wage fofor the peruvian a andes. In the morning, its minus three degrees celsius. The next part will be the most difficult leg of the hike, ascending to the pass at 4,650 metres. Dora kararia is traveleling ts roroute for the e first tim. Even t though its h hard work, shes very proud to have gotten this job. [speaking foreign language] hiking on this Mountain Path is just wonderful. Its a chance for me to get to see more of my country. I never had the opportunity to do this before. Only now as a porter. While washing up after lunch, marleni explains how much has changed in their generation. [speaking foreign language] our mothers had to stay home. Fortunately today everyone is equal, and we women finally have the same rights. But theyre still denied one right, going to machu picchu. It is so crowded, only tourists are allowed to continue from here on. The visitors express their gratitude to the women. The hikers pass on an extra tip for the womens hard work. Then it is time to say goodbye. At 6 00 the next morning, the crowds que u up to eer s south americas number one touri at 6 magn. E next the incas hihid their holilieste from the spapanish conquisistas fofor centuries. S. Now thouousands of touourists r through h the ruins evevery d. Each group o only gets a l limd amamount of timeme. Speakingoreign lguage] the authities artrying t get contl of the masses. More an. Atats w they introduced maxim number the proem is mo peoeopl want to comesoso manthat i i airporis beinguilt nexto interconontinental flilight. Ththe queson i is whher ththend. Cient site of machu picchu willll be able to cope with al t repression anand discriminanation are e part of lifefe forany woe around the wor. Our new faceboochchannedw women, you will find more stories about those taking a a stand and inspiring others to oo the sameme. Dw women g gives a voice to te women of our world. Anthats all from us. As alwayays, do drop us a line d let us k know what you t thougf the program. We love hearing from you. Our email address is global3000 dw. Com. And dont forget, were on facebook, dw women. See you next week