oh wow, going from is becoming a super plant. hello to post a startup company who do tend to sell thread from flower fibers. and the left, overweight is we use is the co, lo, to plant offering the indian textile industry a chance to 60 minutes long d w. a . people have to say matters to us. m. that's why we listen to their stories reporter every weekend on d. w. you're watching t w news, asia coming up a special edition, looking back at some of the most compelling stories from the region this year.

first up here is one way to combat the climate crisis. how much can ocean agriculture help reduce global emissions? plus the fan come a phone booth, how one telephone line is helping survivors to speak to those who died from one of the most devastating natural disasters in recent memory. we need a transgender news anchor in bangladesh who's helped we need to find what's possible and permissible in a mostly traditional society. and when getting an education means you literally have to climb your way to the top. we go to sri lanka for a closer look at some hard working students. ah, i melissa chant, thanks for joining us. india is the world's 3rd largest carbon polluter. and at this year's climate change, some in glasgow,

the country pledged to reach net 0 by 2070. critics say that would be too little too late. that may be the case, but it doesn't mean there aren't those in india looking for ways to reduce emissions in rama's warren, where the gulf of men are offers. fertile waters. locals have turned to a marine crop farming for seaweed on india, south eastern coast. a road flanked by seaweed beds provides a clue to the natural resource that has been hailed as a marine miracle. scientists say see weed absorbs more carbon dioxide than trees. a characteristic that could play apart in fighting the effects of climate change. it absorb lot of carbon dioxide available in the see water and produces up for for both of those are the result is believes that a lot of oxygen i would good scientists hope the macro al gays,

oxygen producing abilities can help reduce the impact of greenhouse gas emissions by reversing ocean acidic vacation. that would be good news for marine organisms sensitive to acidic conditions and the benefits don't and there. it's also environmentally friendly. a sustainable crop that doesn't require land fresh water, fertilizer or pesticides. when harvested sea, we test many uses. as the food stuff for humans and animals, and ingredient, and medicines on cosmetics, and as a bio fertilizer and biofuel c, we'd farming also offers a sustainable source of income for local communities, especially women. oh, in am barbara and i used to think i wouldn't be able to educate my children, but this seaweed business is enabled me to send them to college. around college was

evident. there are some dangers like being stung by jellyfish or injured on the rocks. but the women say the improvement in living standards is worth the risk. they also have to take precautions to avoid over harvesting, ensuring their c, we'd farming remains eco friendly. more than 18000 people died from the 2011 earth quick. and to nami that hit northeastern japan. the natural disaster meant survivors never had the chance to say good bye to loved ones . now a decade later, a telephone line is helping some people cope with that loss. kaiser yoshi sasaki is about to cool his wife may walker's cellphone. he wants to tell her what happened the night she died. and it's in this phone booth known as a wind phone that he can speak to her good mom,

like thousands of others in japan's devastated coastal communities. sasaki last many loved ones in the disaster. this is where he comes to work through his grief, but also to tell his wife about their children. they'll soon be moving in with their youngest son and that a recent medical checkup showed his last weight. come available, passmore. this phone booth embraces all of me. so this is a place that embrace is not only the people who are alive, but also all those who've passed away, but on. that's how i feel. so clunk, north or near the phone booths, owner says it attracts thousands of visitors. now, from all over japan, to 3 or 4 owners who did, they was suddenly not able to see their loved ones after they left it that morning to go to work or to school. so there are many feelings left behind, or these people would have wanted to say something for the last time. had they

known they were not going to see them any more for them, but they couldn't do that. this isn't only a place of solace for the older generation said, chico, a kawa has been bringing her grandson's ears since her husband was swept away in the soon army monthly breakdown. but gilbert i grandma more well, as grandma said it's been 10 years since the earthquake. oh, i'll be a junior high school student next year. leah is already in his 2nd year in junior high, so he'll be in his 3rd year and he'll be doing high school entrance exams. yeah, and there's this new virus is killing lots of people just like the earthquake and sin army. that's why we're wearing masks. but we're all doing well, must do it again to day mother, the boys and they grandma feel like he can hear them. and later when she's alone in the booth, a cow office, a husband to keep them all safe from the corona virus wound for you in

a moment. did he go there? now to bangladesh, where a woman has made headlines by becoming the country's 1st transgender news, anchor conservative estimate say there are some 10000 transgender people in the country. though active as say the actual number is higher considering bangladesh as population of 160000000. and like in so many places, the transgender community faces stigma, abuse and harassment. finding employment is difficult, many turn to sex, work or begging, making this story all the more incredible. but it's been a long way to the top potash nuva unknown shisha. the newly appointed news anchor has had more than just glass ceilings to push through to end up here. i think as bangladesh is 1st transgender news, rita, she's had to work hard to get her foot in the door. i mean,

i knew quite that alice had the chrysler to many other channels. you barely anybody called me for an interview? a couple of them called me for auditions, but that was it. i. i guess they weren't brave enough to take me on is only god who compensated hard the out of the many others perhaps wanted to work with me. but again probably they had their own limitations. but i never realized this would grab so much attention born camel. hussein shashir tash nuva says she knew from very early on that she was born in the wrong body. friends, neighbors, and even her family teased her for acting more like a woman than like many transgender people. she says she was bullied and sexually exploited for years. at before that is it about why my parents once told me to get out of the house. then when i couldn't cope with it any more, i left home by myself. oh, i couldn't stand the neighbors telling my father about how i should act or walk

like a man one only i never wanted be a person like that shall be able to log on to some are going into another. her determination has paid off. after fleeing her home town for the capital duck her, she underwent hormone therapy, worked hard and kept up her studies. though it hasn't been easy, she hopes her fi, it will make it easier for others. i mean, i mean, dynamic protocol means i don't want any member of the transgender community to suffer. i don't want them to live a miserable life to this. i hope they will find work according to their skills, under basic article, a tall order in conservative bangladesh. but tesh knew his journey suggests a start has been made their pandemic as almost every parent knows massively disrupted education. according to the world bank at 1.94 percent or $1600000000.00 children were out of school across the entire planet. very quickly,

learning went online, but for those of you in advanced economies who think it's been tough for you and your family buying extra laptops and getting your children to pay attention. take a look at these students in sri lanka who had declined literally their way to their studies for kilometers. that's how far the school pupils have to track through tropical forest to reach a suitable place for their online lessons. there's no stable internet connection in their village instead harsh and, and his friends study in these trees. i did a lot order with no credit audio or it's far less comfortable than sitting on a chair at school. of course, we can't study for very long up here and we have to constantly watch out the we don't fall down the rub. okay. for schools in sri lanka have been closed for the past 18 months harsh. ann and his fellow students have had online lessons instead, but poor internet connections or lack of equipment are made that difficult for many,

typically up to for students have to share a computer. why with part of that a born out and out on the part of like the past 18 months and presented huge challenges for every one. a lot of them, even up in the trees, there's often no proper connection will not. and if it rains, we have to interrupt the lessons so that the equipment doesn't get wet or length legato. during the past few weeks, teaches in sri lanka had been taking to the streets to protest that calling for the schools to reopen. so that students across the country are no longer only taking online classes, but can finally learn face to face again online plus when there are that amount again, it is really important to pupils and teach that up to see each other in person. sometimes in it is incredibly difficult to just to teach online la la, we have classes with 40 pupils, and i can't tell whether everyone has understood everything parker below on their motto, a girl. the forest school is better than no lessons at all, but it's certainly not a permanent solution. the views here might be stunning,

but they don't ease the challenges. the students face of choral along on that our, that we don't understand so much here. it isn't easy to learn when you're sitting in a tree or on a rock roller. and my sister and i only have one smartphone between us. it's all really tough, harsh, and, and the other people's long to get back to their classrooms so that they are no longer dependent on unreliable technology. and so that they can see their friends again, will lay federal more myth, former of good length. and we really miss proper schooling. our lives would be so much nicer if the schools reopened. robbie, it's much easier to have an exchange with the teachers in the school itself in the corner online lessons. a no real substitutes our dilemma. no substitute, but they're all they have right now and for the foreseeable future as yet, there's no date set for the reopening of sri lanka,

schools. that's it for today. be sure to check out our other stories on d. w dot com, forward slash asia, or on facebook and twitter. we leave you with these pictures of everyday life across asia from this past year. people at work and play with you next time. good bye for now with the fight against the corona virus pandemic. how has the rate of infection been

developing? what does the latest research say? information and context? the corona virus update the coven, 19 special. next on d. w. are you ready to get on board? with these places in europe are smashing all the records into gold adventure just don't lose your grip. it's the treasure map for modern globetrotters. discover some of europe's record breaking sites on youtube and now also invoke form ah, ah, by carbon dioxide emissions are banked it to

return to pre pandemic ice. this year. last year they fell significantly during the great lockdown. in china, they bounced back and grew overall due to coal. the crisis has only given climate change, respite and unprecedented consumption. boom is fueling the global economy and people are driving more to avoid getting infected on public transport. then there's the pandemic most visible legacy plastic waist. high on been for solon, millions of people around the world of taken to wearing masks to protect themselves, but they're hurting the environment.