now on bbc news, our world, svalbard's climate change fight. deep in the arctic circle, there's a place under threat like no other. this is svalbard, the fastest warming spot on earth. it's out of control. it's... it's really impacting our lives

and the wildlife around us. it's scary. it's climate change on fast forward. we know that the clock is ticking, but i choose to stay hopeful, actually. yeah. i can't do anything else. we want to know what's being done to save svalbard as we know it. we are testing new technology, new systems. but even here, are they really ready to give up fossil fuels in the middle of an energy crisis in europe? they haven't found the perfect substitute yet, so coal - are still here to stay. and now the war in ukraine is undermining the international fight against climate change. one of the consequences is that the official exchange with russian institutions is not possible at this time.

it's a dangerous moment for all we meet, those trying to survive at the ground zero of climate change. we're on the top of the world. we have the whole world around us. my name is olaf store. i'm an artist living in longyearbyen. i have been living here for 23 years. we've come to meet olaf and his dog boss at his studio in svalbard's capital. the archipelago's seasons and the unique arctic wilderness have been the inspiration for his life's work. the 10th of february. you have all the possible blue colours around you, day and night. and then you have the pastels coming, the yellowish lights turning a little red. later, the sun comes, and it comes

more and more and more of it, till it becomes so much light that you are tired of it. you have light for four months and then the darkness comes. by new year's eve, it's all black. but you have... you have the moon, you have the stars. you can really see the stars here. you can see the milky way over your head. you can see the northern lights, which is like flames over the sky. this is a land of beauty and extremes. so what's it like to live at 78 degrees north, the most northern permanent settlement on earth? it's impossible to explain to anyone. it's so different. there is nothing between you and the feeling of nature. you and the feeling of something much,

much bigger than yourself. maybe it's god. i don't know. you are here and you have to survive. survival is a word that comes up a lot in svalbard. there have always been threats, but this part of the world faces new ones, as everyone who lives here experiences the effects of climate change first—hand. the summers have become warmer. there are hardly any ice in the fjords any more, so it's changing. someone who has seen these changes is arctic explorer and adventurer hilde falun strom. along with her husband steinar and alaskan malamute ettra, hilde is taking us out on an overnight expedition to show

how nature is changing. if we're lucky, we could see whales, reindeers and birds, of course, maybe an arctic fox. and if we're super lucky, i mean, a polar bear? and very soon, we are in luck. amazing! amazing. they look extremely chilled. very much so. you see the cub sort of teasing her mum a little bit. so... but, yeah, they're super calm. to survive as a polar bear now, i think you have to be super good at hunting because their main source of food, the seals, they are diminishing. and the ice that both the seal and the polar bears are dependent on are diminishing.

it's getting less and less ice. and that's really scary. and...nowhere else in the world do you find polar bears where there are no ice. so, if the ice is disappearing, the polar bears are going to disappear. it's really sad, super sad. and it sort of... the polar bear has to me, and i'm sure to everyone, it's become a symbol of what's happening. since the 1980s, the amount of summer ice has halved, and some scientists fear it will be gone altogether by 2035. the polar bears are so hungry in this part of the arctic, they've been hunting reindeer on land, something they normally wouldn't eat. and it's notjust polar bears. all of the arctic�*s unique wildlife is trying to adapt to rapidly changing conditions.

these beluga whales have decided to go for a quick dip, but they're swimming in water that's much hotter than it used to be. and all wildlife here in svalbard is having to adapt to this hotter world. whale calls. you can hear them now. it's hotter in the water and it's hotter in the air too. maarten, look. the changes are very dramatic, very large. wherever i look around us, i see change. so, it's very profound. climate scientist kim holmen has been documenting these changes for nearly half a century. today, he's our guide

and polar bear guard. you need a gun for protection every time you venture off the main road of the capital, longyearbyen. kim was living on the archipelago back in 1990 when the united nations issued its first dire warning of the effects of climate change. the worst case scenario, the largest emissions scenarios, were dismissed as alarmist or whatever. painfully, humankind has many a time surpassed the worst case scenario. we must actually start turning the tide. and i had no... ..imagination that it would be doing as much as it has. in his time studying svalbard,

it's transformed dramatically. it's now warming six times quicker than the rest of the world. this area here was covered with ice when i first came here. it is a very obvious, very strong image of change. we're pretty much done with the ice here. kim explains that warm air is carried here by the gulf stream, one of the strongest ocean currents in the world. and where the ice melts, the ocean absorbs even more heat. it has implications for all of us. the glacier melting away behind me is pouring out into the ocean and contributes to sea level rise. and all the glaciers here on svalbard are melting faster than ever.

sea level rise influences you in the uk. it influences the netherlands, bangladesh, many a place on the planet. many of us live along the shore. the north—south tension in europe, the north—south tension in the world, will be exacerbated by climate change. svalbard is on the front line of climate change. you can see how this glacier is thinning out, beating a sad retreat. and just have a look at how much ice has already been lost over the years. and scientists warn that what's happening here is a sign of things to come if stronger collective action is not taken now. the planet is already committed to further change. so whether you like it or not, svalbard will be different in the future. nevertheless, there are still remnants that can be saved.

and the more we save, the better is our future. but the future here feels precarious, partly because of what's fuelling the local economy — tourism. svalbard is attracting hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, putting further strain on this fragile environment. huskies, once used for vital transport, now carry around the tourists here to witness this disappearing landscape. and not everyone is happy about it. it makes me a little bit sad that mining history is fading away. now, it's like a la la land for tourists. ok, let's go. my name is bentjakobsen. i'm a coal miner in mine 7 in longyearbyen, norway. despite being on the front line of climate change, svalbard still relies on coal,

as we're finding out. now we are in one of the two production sites we have here in mine 7, eight kilometres in the mine. this is a world few outsiders can appreciate unless they've seen and felt it for themselves. i feel calm. it's like my world. so, yeah, ifeel quite safe. i like it. i couldn't imagine doing anything else. but all this is to end, or so we've been told. bent�*s company, the government—owned store norske, has announced that mine 7, svalbard and norway's last remaining mine, will soon close forever. it makes me sad. i'm... you know, being there all my life, almost, and that's what i've been knowing. it was a mining town and now it's coming to an end. it's more and more of a tourist town.

what do you say to those who argue coal mining's a thing of the past, it has to finish, if we're going to save the planet from global warming? if you can't get it from here, you will take it from somewhere else. they haven't found the perfect substitute yet, so coal are still here to stay. but what about when the mine closes? what will power svalbard? during our visit, we were taken to the outskirts of the archipelago, where the mining company store norske is experimenting with alternative energy sources. so now we are heading to our technical building, where we have the diesel engines and the batteries... the idea is that a mixture of renewables will fuel arctic communities in the future. this is quite new, especially in svalbard, so it takes time for the authorities to kind of get used to this idea. and also we need to prove how good it is for both operations, economically and also for the environment. and i think we can prove that with this pilot. but the mining company

is still waiting for approval from the authorities, both in svalbard and on the norwegian mainland, about which green energy solutions it will be allowed to pursue. why the delay? we went to see one of the top officials on the archipelago. solutions are there. why haven't you got a plan in place already to protect this place? the tough answer to that is that we probably haven't been paying enough attention. but we have been really awakened for the last year, to see that we actually need to do things to produce secure energy for the local community. that has been, of course, very important for us. but there's a problem. since our visit, the state—owned mining company has performed a u—turn. it's now delayed the closure of the last coal mine because, it says, europe's energy crisis

makes it a more profitable operation now. and in another blow to the climate fight, the war in ukraine has halted cooperation between scientists in russia and in the west. one of the consequences is that the official exchange with russian institutions is not possible at this time. half of the arctic is russian coastline, and if we are unable to share knowledge and data, it will hamper our ability to understand what is happening. it will. we need each other in order to do good science. and cooperation is needed more than ever here — if the arctic is to be a place of peace, not confrontation.

life here, it is so on the limits, so on the edge. maybe we should leave svalbard to the scientists. but we can't do that out of political reasons because this is kind of a political hot spot. the arctic has been and will be. singing. i am the world's northernmost vicar, and i have the whole of svalbard — or spitsbergen, as many says — as my congregation — nearly 3,000 people from more than 50 nations. this is siv limstrand. she's invited us to the wedding of a local couple — ellinor, a teacher, and jan—erik, an ex—miner. we can contribute to the world, like kind of a showcase. you know, "this is what happens "if we continue polluting the way we do. "this is how serious it gets, you know?"

so that's also why it's important for us to share our experience. we know that the clock is ticking, but i choose to stay hopeful, actually. yeah. i can't do anything else. climate—induced dangers hang over the community. if you are witnessing something, like, ringside, you are kind of also kind of obliged to reflect on it and also to act on it...within your reach or your limits. every sunday, when we gather for worship, a part of our intercessions is always about the climate change and the threats. it's something that we always spend a lot of time on. it's deeply connected with our faith in a god who created everything to be good.

and now it's definitely not good because creation itself is sort of... we messed it up and we are kind of... our lifestyles have threatened people. in that respect, it's very close to us. this is not now regarded as a good and safe place for the cemetery, so we are establishing a new cemeteryjust north of the church, in respect of both the living and the dead. with the layer of frozen ground — the permafrost — melting, there's a greater chance of avalanches in the winter and landslides in the summer. we can see the huge landslide from october 2016.

and it went on the north...and the south side of the cemetery. and luckily, it didn't kind of wash the cemetery down to the river. and now when i look at it... ..it�*s like a wound, you know? and maybe... ..it reminds us somehow of this wounded planet. across longyearbyen, everyone and everything is having to adapt and confront new dangers. in 2015, a devastating avalanche hit the town. it's left a deep scar on the community. and for hilde falun strom, who was there when it happened, the avalanche has had a massive effect. it ended up to be a huge tragedy.

two people died, a two—year—old girl and a 43—year—old man. so it's... it's hard to describe how that felt and how scary that it was, that you weren't safe inside your own home any more. it changed the whole community. it's changed me. the power of nature that i have been so fascinated of was totally out of control. the avalanche inspired hilde to take action. she set up a project called hearts in the ice with a friend, sunniva sorby. they spent nearly two years on their own in the most remote wilderness of svalbard. during this time, they did important work as citizen scientists, generating vital information for professional institutions. we contacted nasa, norwegian polar institute

and unis in longyearbyen, and they were all so very interested in us being so remote for such a long time — during the dark season in particular, where they don't have scientists out in the field. so we were collecting data, then, for...two winters. i guess i had this climate despair, and ijust wanted to...become more actively engaged in the solutions and learn more about it. so hilde�*s mission continues — to inspire as many people as possible to make the changes the planet desperately needs. we have to try. i mean, we need renewable energy. we need different ways of travel. we need different ways...to find ways to feed ourselves. we need different lifestyles.

but i don't think that's a bad thing. i think that could be a great thing. for all hilde�*s positivity, elsewhere in svalbard, there's a warning from the past of how once thriving communities can be consigned to history if they don't adapt. it feels very surreal here, a weird, eerie atmosphere. this place is completely frozen in time, a monument to a bygone age when the coal powered everything here. it was the lifeblood of the whole community. this is the abandoned soviet settlement of pyramiden, the world's northernmost ghost town. today, though, it's a stark reminder of what the future might look like for the rest of the archipelago if solutions aren't found quickly enough. with svalbard on the brink

and still no answers to its own energy dilemma, what cause for optimism elsewhere? this latest global climate summit will be dominated by the effects of war in europe. our governments will be asked once again what sacrifices they're willing to make today to save tomorrow. hello, there. the unsettled theme is continuing for part two of the week, and certainly as we head into next week, low pressure will be taking over to bring us spells of wet and very windy weather at times. low pressure with us to the north—west of the country for sunday, quite a few isobars on the chart, it will be blustery,

particularly the further north and west you are but still drawing in this very mild air from the azores right across the board. it is not going to be quite as mild on sunday as what we've had throughout saturday, but still temperatures above the seasonal norm. plenty of showers, northern and western areas, some of these will be quite heavy. early rain in the south—east clears away to allow for some sunshine around. like i mentioned, it will be blustery, winds touching 40—50 mph on the irish sea coast in towards the south—west. temperatures, 17—18 degrees as opposed to the low 20s that we had on saturday. mid teens across the north. sunday night, those showers, long spells of rain clear away from scotland, and then things are a little bit quiet through the early hours of monday with clear spells, winds a touch lighter, still quite fresh, though, and those overnight lows, 9—11; degrees. so, for the week ahead, it is going to remain unsettled with low pressure always nearby, and with our air coming in from the west, rather than the south, things are going to slowly

turn cooler and fresher. now, this is the pressure chart for monday. we have got high pressure over the near continent, another area of low pressure, this weather front pushing slowly into western areas as the day wears on. actually, not a bad start for much of the country for monday. there will be variable cloud, some sunshine, one or two showers, but it starts to turn wetter and windier across western scotland and northern ireland later around some irish sea coasts. temperatures again on the mild side, 17 or 18 degrees in the south, mid teens in the north. as we head through monday night, that weather front in the west starts to push slowly eastwards, so it is pretty wet, i think, for much of the north and west of the country. we will also start to see some rain pushing into the south as this area of low pressure develops a bit more as it moves across the country. winds will be a feature, particularly across southern and western coasts. quite a messy picture for tuesday, again details a little bit uncertain this far out. you will have to stay tuned to the forecast, but it does look like one batch of rain will clear away, allowing for some sunshine, and then some showers or longer spells of rain

will feed back into southern and western areas. at this point, temperatures coming down a little bit, highs of 15 or 16 degrees in the south, low teens in the north. as we move into wednesday, there is a brief bump of high pressure here before the next low pressure system hurtles in later on wednesday into thursday. so i think at this point, wednesday doesn't look too bad, we are in between weather systems. a cooler start, some sunshine around, but it will be turning wetter and windier in the north and west later in the day. top temperatures, around 16 degrees in the sunshine, that won't feel too bad, otherwise it is the low teens in the north and west. then, like i mentioned, beyond wednesday it stays very unsettled, in fact we could see some disruptive areas of low pressure hurtling in off the atlantic to bring spells of gales, maybe even severe gales, some heavy rain at times. most of these affecting more northern and western parts of the country, higher pressure always towards the near continent means the south and east should be a little bit quieter. generally, we stay on the mild side of the jets but there will be influxes of cooler air at times with these deep low pressure systems. and you can see that on the outlook here,

temperatures falling closer to where they should be for the time of year. it will be quite cool across northern areas, and you can see from the logos there, it's going to remain on the very unsettled side.

this is bbc news, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm lukwesa burak. officials say at least 146 people have been killed in a crush in the south korean capital seoul during halloween celebrations. it was very clear that there was just so many people here, probably the most i have ever seen in itaewon, and the crowds were just gathering more and more. russia pulls out from a crucial un—brokered deal to export grain from ukrainian ports. the move follows moscow blaming ukraine for a wave of drone attacks on the russian black sea fleet in occupied crimea. a new zulu king has been crowned in south africa in the first such ceremony since apartheid.