>>hello and welcome to "global 3000," your weekly look at the issues that drive our planet. and this is what we have coming up for you today -- illuminating the andes -- peruvians take their electricity needs into their own hands. vietnam's growing pains -- how urban development takes its toll on hanoi's old city and science fiction in south korea -- we take a look around songdo, the model city of this century around a quarter of the world's people live without access to electricity.

often governments and providers refuse to invest in a grid to cover remote regins like the peruvian andes. a problem with knock-on effects, because no electricity means no opportunities for the younger generation. so many leave their villages. in the province of cajamarca aid agencies are now trying to combine progress with higher environmental standards. instead of simply providing diesel generators, they help the locals find renewable sources of energy. here's our report in co- operation with the international climate initiative. high up in the andes mountains, one of the oldest known weaving techniques is still being practiced. using simple tools, the women here ply and weave the yarn they've dyed themselves.

there are no mechanical looms here in the cajamarca region. most villages here don't even have electricity. but that is changing, like here in chorro blanco, a remote village at an altitude of 3,000 meters. the signs of progress are impossible to overlook: power lines and and street lighting are changing the way people live. >>before, we couldn't do anything after darkness fell. but now i can make use of time at night before i go to bed. and we don't have to buy batteries anymore either. >> chorro blanco literally means white jet. the village got its name from a nearby waterfall. that's also become a source of clean energy.

employees from the aid organization "soluciones practicas," or practical solutions, say they can provide power to the most remote villages -- without co2 emissions. gilberto villanueva heads the eco-friendly electricity project in chorro blanco. the engineer says the andes region is rich with steep mountain cliffs and roaring waterfalls with great potential for producing hydropower. there's around 250,000 megawatts of power in peru -- that's a lot. but only about 10% of it is being tapped at the moment. the government says it wants to build massive centralized hydroelectric power stations. that way peru can reduce its dependency on fossil fuels.

but so far the government's plans remain a future vision. there's been virtually no state help to build the water conduit and the turbine house in chorro blanco. instead, gilberto villanueva had to rely on the manpower and determination of the villagers themselves. construction took almost two years to complete. half the battle was transporting machines and materials to the remote mountain village. people here have long been wondering why they didn't take advantage of the waterfall to produce electricity. that was their dream. when we approached them with our project, they had high hopes. politicians don't pay any attention to the small villages in this area. they just make empty promises.

>> this small hydroelectricity plant produces around 20 kilowatts of power-enough to meet the needs of the 60 local households. one villager was trained to monitor and maintain the generator to prevent breakdowns. it's crucial for the locals to understand how the technology works. the closest large town is five hours' drive away. the cajamarca region now has more than 40 of these micro plants. together they supply electricity to nearly 4,000 people -- more cheaply than the national energy provider. in days gone by, the villages had to depend on diesel generators and candles, which were expensive and bad for the environment.

but their new eco-friendly power has meant big changes especially in chorro blanco's school. this classroom used to have just a blackboard and chalk. now it has a computer. it's the children's first contact with the digital world. even very basic educational software captivates the students. >> it gives the children a chance to expand their horizons. they can listen to music or watch tv after they've done their homework. the electricity also gives us new economic opportunities.

some families in the area have already invested in electronic devices for the home. >> for years, chorro blanco has been suffering from the effects of rural migration-the young people move to the cities to find work, leaving the older generations behind. the andes region is one of the poorest in peru. but electricity is seen as key to a better future. gilberto villanueva says the tide is already turning. one young man moved back from the capital lima to his home village. he invested all his savings in woodworking machines so that he could open up a small carpentry shop. >> a lot of people left like i did because there was no electricity here and that meant no work, either.

you couldn't get anything up and running here. but now that the village has power, living conditions have improved. maybe some others will come back. >> the sun is setting in chorro blanco. at one time, that signaled the end of the day for the villagers. but now, they turn on the lights. some families have even bought tv sets. it's another way for people here to move closer to a world that seems so far away from their remote andean home. and now we want to find out from you, what you think about globalization and how it is affecting the way you live. you can e-mail us or go online and fill in our global questionnaire. and today we hear from senegal.

>> i live in baila. i'm 54. my name is abass goudiaby. i'm a farmer. i tend my fields. i earn my upkeep working the land. for me globalization means respecting differences. and the capacity for every single person -- wherever they are in the world -- to be aware of what's happening elsewhere in the world. and to adjust their lifestyle

accordingly. i worry about losing my identity, disappearing into a totally unfamiliar world and not knowing where i come from and where i'm heading. it would make me happy for all the children in my country to have access to all human knowledge available today. for the future i hope that africa embraces renewable energy and assimilates all the appropriate technology.

i would like to visit the developed countries because of the monuments they have there. they depict a history that is not my own and in which i can see the whole of humanity. >> our planet is not only getting ever more crowded. we are also increasingly seeing more and more people leave the countryside to move to the big cities. more than half of mankind already lives in urban centers. a trend that is gathering pace as the world's population grows by some 70 million people every year. asia is already home to 60 % of the world's population, making it a hotspot of urbanization. vietnam's capital hanoi used to be known as the paris of the east with its unique blend of

french and asian architecture. but modern-day demands on the city leave little room for a nostalgic look into the past. so, just like shanghai, beijing and many other asian megacities, hanoi and the people who live there are struggling to cope with changes in this modern age. hanoi's old town is a bustling place after nightfall. this is where vietnam's new middle class likes to go out. the restaurants, cafés and shops are always busy, and the narrow streets are teeming with thousands of mopeds. this morning, 35-year-old pham hong dung is visiting his father and his uncle, who live in a run-down building in one of the old town's back streets. he himself was born here, and has only just moved out. it had got too cramped -- these 16 rooms are shared by 50 people.

pham hong dung's family own two thirds of the house -- the other six rooms are state-owned. they were confiscated by the communists over 50 years ago. but life in the house is still very communal. it's like a village, says pham hong dung. these days, he works in a bank. he has fond memories of the house he grew up in. i still remember people waking up and saying hello and exchanging the news of the day. it was quite close. >> the old town is a jumble of busy roads, winding lanes and rickety houses. it survived the vietnam war largely intact, and poverty in subsequent years was so widespread that the government never got around to renovating this run-down part of town. things changed in recent years as the vietnamese economy opened up and private sector development was legalized.

anyone who owned property in the old town soon discovered the potential of tourism, and the neighborhood began to transform. some streets are lined back-to- back with souvenir stores, banks and fast food chains. pham hong dung is off to the temple to pray. he buys some offerings on the way. when it's full moon, the residents of the old town traditionally go to the temple to pray to buddha and the old vietnamese kings. this temple is over 700 years old. inside, the noise of the mopeds fades to a distant hum. >> twenty years ago, it was very nice. sometimes i still remember.

i'm a bit sad about it, about the changes. >> in 1999, there were fewer mopeds in hanoi's old town. there were barely any stores -- just a few craftsmen's workshops. the streets in this footage shot by a german film crew have been completely transformed. today, traffic is a serious problem. property owners are considered very wealthy in hanoi. they get to benefit from the flourishing tourist industry. this house has been lovingly restored to its formr glory and turned into a museum. hanoi's urban planners say the city needs to address the problem of over-crowding in the old town. we have 900 people crammed into every hectare. there are some 90,000 residents here and we would like to relocate 40,000 of them to the suburbs. but they don't want to move.

>> the new residential districts are viewed as sterile and dull -- with none of the vibrancy of the old town. and few job opportunities. hanoi's historic opera house dating back to french colonial times is a piece of the city's architectural heritage that's been preserved. this colonial mansion is home to the vietnamese president. the communist leadership now accepts that the colonial period is part of the country's history. a number of embassies are housed in mansions on the tree-lined boulevards. one neighborhood on from the french quarter is the old town. led by the city's former chief architect, we weave our way along the crowded pavements, between motorbikes and strolling tourists. though our interpreter, dr. dao tells us how apparent the french influence is in the old town, as well.

the old-fashioned, eclectic charm of the neighborhood makes it a magnet for western visitors. local authorities want to make sure it remains a tourist attraction, and they'd like to see residents make more of an effort to keep it looking nice. but urban planning regulations are hard to implement here -- there are just too many loopholes. pham hong dung moved away from the old town in order to build his own 5-storey house in a suburb of hanoi. he's been living here with his family for two months. his wife has a job at a university. how does this compare to his former home, we ask him. >> very seldom do people talk

together, but i don't regret it because the conditions of living have improve quite a lot. i prefer to stay here. for now, hanoi's old town is still picturesque and largely unspoilt. but its days are probably numbered. property prices here have sky- rocketed -- up to 20 thousand euros per square meter. as the quaint cafés frequented by the locals are replaced by even more souvenir shops, traditional life here is gradually being lost. so if you don't want to have to deal with the complications of planning a new city around the old, like in hanoi, the only option is to build one from scratch. and that's exactly what south korea is doing. only a short drive from the capital seoul, songdo city is being built according to a master plan for a greener, interconnected metropolis. here science fiction springs to life.

cutting edge technology regulates every aspect of life here. let's take a closer look now at what's aiming to be the most modern city in the world. >> south korea's capital seoul is a booming, rapidly-expanding city with 20 million residents. here, history and tradition mix with modern life -- there's no space here for a comprehensive urban renewal. but just 40 kilometers west of seoul, a new bridge leads to south korea's future: songdo city -- also called the songdo international business district. it's a place its creators call a 21st century "smart city." and it serves as a model for what other new south koran cities could look like, and how they could function. songdo has turned into a teeming laboratory for global experts and pioneers from every industry -- construction, environmental engineering, computer technology and architecture.

the city of the 21st ceuntry is still a baby. when i look at the entire songdo development, the project i'm working on is only one fifth. and that part alone is alone one third complete. so you can imagine, it's just the very beginning of the city. it's not anywhere close to complete. >> south korea is an economic powerhouse in the region. songdo city is being built from the ground up -- on a six square kilometer patch of land reclaimed from the yellow sea. the city will cost around 40 billion us dollars, and it's expected to be completed by 2020. living and office space for 250,000 people is under construction -- along with ultra-modern infrastructure. right now, the buildings that will house international universities are going up. the apartment buildings are nearly finished. at 200 meters high, they're the tallest in the country. this promotional video shows

what songdo is set to look like when it's completed: a futuristic, model city that revolutionizes the concept of urban life. the infrastructure will be based on green technology, and a massive computer network will serve as the brain of the digital city. from the moment residents step into the office, all their basic information will be readily available. it'll be easy to identify and locate people. they'll carry smart cards that serve as identification, keys and money -- all in one. that's all made possible by a central control system that runs all aspects of life, including utilities, waste management and transportation. even shopping can be done virtually. it all looks like a science- fiction movie, but it's fast becoming reality. the apartments in songdo are being linked to the central computer grid.

everything -- from air quality to energy consumption -- can be individually monitored and regulated. high-definition video conferencing systems will be available anywhere at any time. the project manager john baekelmans says teleconferencing will be a central aspect of digital life in songdo, whether it's about conducting business, shopping, talking to the doctor, or connecting with family. technology companies are using songdo as a testing ground for the future. >> korea has made an amazing advancement from 50 years ago. people in korea are really open to actually experience a new way of living and experience a new way of working, living and playing in a community. the openness of that community made us come to korea, because it's much easier for the

adoption of all the capabilities in the city to work with people who want to do that. american sustainability manager suzanne johnson and a local team are making sure all of songdo's modern developments don't come at the expense of the environment. they're keeping a close watch on indices like water consumption and pollution. waste will be also digitally managed in the new city. garbage will be separated into boxes using special chips that decide what materials go where, and when. all of songdo's waste will be transported underground via compressed air pipes to a central processing station. it's incredible to watch it grow from a place where everybody was working in the construction industry to now finding and meeting people who live here as

a family and maybe work in other industries. and to see communities start to network and friends start to network. >> the developers say songdo is not intended to be a luxurious urban home for the wealthy and privileged. it will be a one-of-a-kind city, made for people from all walks of life -- and regulated by one network. but there are concerns that a central network could be abused. >> yes all systems are being connected. everything is connected to each other so yes it could be used as a big control system. but it's the way you actually organize it. it's the way you actually bring it into their lives and the openness you give about what you're doing which i think can make it work very well. >> south korea's songdo city

could be a model of how private and professional life can mix in a modern urban environment -- a thoroughly 21st century city. >> looking to the very near future, next week, we will be taking a look at life. >> a special strain with the deep purple color is catching the attention of exporters, and because the crop is shipped directly by farmers through a fair trade organization, a lot more of the profits are ending up in the area. word of the proceeds also go to help social projects in the region. >> more on that and other issues impacting our planet next week. that is all we have time for on today's program. from the crew here in berlin and myself, thanks for watching.

dw captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--