>> hello, and welcome to "global 3000." ever heard it said that variety is the spice of life? well, in reality, it's much, much more than that. species variety, or biodiversity, is fundamental to both human survival and the future of the planet. find out just how that works on this week's show, where we also have these stories coming up. there one minute, gone the next. sinkholes and their terrifying impact makossa, anyone? young musicians look for their lucky break in cameroon.

and surveying in the savanna, saving congo's wildlife from extinction. it sounds like something from a horror movie. giant chasms which open up without warning, swallowing everything, and everyone, in their reach. unfortunately, these hidden monsters of the deep are all too real. they're called "sinkholes," and they occur all over the world. the 2010 guatemala city sinkhole, for example, opened up in the aftermath of a tropical storm, swallowing a three-story building and taking 15 people down with it. the same year in germany, a large crater opened up overnight pulling a nearby caller into its depths. in siberia sinkholes tend to be caused by melting pockets of subterranean gas. another place that is especially hard hit is the us state of florida, where experts say thousands of sinkholes form each year.

we bring you this report. >> we're on the road from orlando to tampa, in central florida. the area draws tourists from around the world. but the sunshine state also has a darker, more ominous side to it, and that's what we've come to investigate. a road closure. a huge hole has appeared in the middle of the road. it's one of the sinkholes that florida has become infamous for. they appear seemingly out of nowhere, and are often many meters deep. other states have been affected, too. in bowling green, kentucky, ruined sports cars are raised from the ground. a sinkhole had opened up under the national corvette museum. these images are from a surveillance camera. eight of the vehicles dropped 20 meters down. special equipment was needed to get the collectors' items back to the surface. back in florida, we're at a landfill near tampa. here, too, the ground suddenly opened up, nearly taking several workers down with it. one of them is still haunted by

memories of that near-miss. >> i stand and look down, and there was a crack right between my legs that i saw getting bigger. >> where you were standing? >> where i was standing, yes. so as soon as i saw that, i yelled at everybody, "everybody get out!" and we ran in that direction. and after that happened, we stood over there, turned around, and within 10 minutes, the entire surface collapsed. >> landfill manager larry and engineer rich show us aerial images of the sinkhole. it was 40 meters deep, and some 60 meters in diameter. no one could have gotten out alive. >> first responders weren't going to go in immediately to pull you out until the situation was stable. so maybe by the time they got to you, it was going to be too late. but now, in retrospect, i realize how serious the situation was.

>> when sinkholes cause buildings to collapse, it can look like the aftermath of an earthquake or a bomb explosion. many homes are built on a layer of sand and clay, below which is limestone. limestone can be dissolved by rain or groundwater, forming holes. at some point, the surface collapses, takg buildings down with it. geologist mark stewart has been researching florida's sinkholes for many years, and he knows what regions are especially threatened. and this is the florida turnpike. so these major highways, people tend to live along them, so this is where we have much development, so when a sinkhole occurs, there's a higher probability that someone's living there and it would damage their home. green dots indicate sinkholes. >> red ones indicate attempts by homeowners to file insurance claims due to damage. it's a big business. >> it's estimated that there have been up to one point four billion dollars in claims, property damage. so, while not as dramatic, and it doesn't get the attention of news media, it's by far the biggest risk of sinkholes, is property damage.

>> we drive on to seffner, a suburb of tampa. the houses are well-kept but simple. some are a bit run-down. residents here are struggling with unemployment and a poor economy. and it was here that a shocking event occurred on february 27, 2013. >> the bedroom floor just collapsed anmy brother-in-law is in there, and he's underneath the house. >> a phone call to emergency services. >> they rushed in, all they could see was part of a mattress sticking out of the hole. essentially the floor of that room had opened up. >> jeffrey bush was literally swallowed up by the earth. the 36-year-old didn't have a chance. his brother tried in vain to save him. >> well, i jumped in the hole and tried gging him out. and i couldn't get him. all i could hear was, i thought i could hear him screaming for me, and hollering for me to help him. >> but not even ecialists

could get jeffrey's body. the house was demolished, as was the one next door. the sinkhole that claimed jeffrey's life could now be seen. the plot of nd is now fenced off. we meet janell wicker-wheeler, a family member who lived in the house. she and her dog babygirl were there when disaster struck. >> it sounded like somebody drove a car into the house. there was no cracks, there was no windows popping, the pictures did not move, nothing. the whole, nothing. the only thing that happened was, the floor fell. >> janell grew up here, her home for nearly forty years. luckily, her cautious father had taken out sinkhole insurance, which should now be paid out. but no money in the world can quiet janell's nightmares. >> i don't sleep with my bedroom door closed anymore, i can't. and any little noise, anything. i -- i don't sleep at night.

>> janell still finds it very painful to talk about jeffrey bush. his body is still down there, buried forever in one of central florida's many sinkholes. >> florida hopes to prevent future tragedies by investing in new laser technology to help identify risk areas. now, if you want to get to know a city, head straight for its busiest market and listen to the people you meet, people like emperatriz garcia, who runs a stall in the ecuadorian capital of quito. she says it's the most beautiful city in the world and many would agree. quito's historic city centre is a world heritage. site. ♪ >> my name is emperatriz garcía and i'm a vendor at the san francisco market in quito. i'm 66 years old, i'm from ecuador, and i live in the

ibarra district, in the south of quito. ♪ i think i live in the most beautiful country. it's small, but we're in the middle of the world, and there's everything here. in one day here we have summer, rain, and cold. all the seasons in just one day. ♪ >> what do you do for a living? >> i work here from 7 am until 5 pm. i sell medicinal herbs and other natural remedies. >> what makes you happy?

♪ >> it makes me happy to come to work. when i stay home, i miss my work a lot, because i've had this routine my whole life. i spend more time here than at home. >> what does globalization mean to you? >> i think it has to do with pollution. our environment is polluted with so many things, like too much plastic and exhaust fumes. maybe that is globalization. money's also part of it. we now have the dollar, and we

used to have the sucre. ♪ >> which country would you llike to visit? >> the united states or spain. one of the two would be good. ♪ my daughter has lived in spain for several years. and i have cousins living in the united states. ♪ >> now those medicinal herbs , that emperatriz sells might not be around at all were it not for butterflies, bees, beetles, and other creatures. should one of those species become extinct, the consequences for the rest of the ecosystem could be catastrophic. our reporter maria lesser uses the humble butterfly to illustrate the importance of biodiversity, and how animals,

plants, and humans depend on each other. >> up to 14 million species inhabit our planet. animals, plants, fungi, and microorganisms. but do we need them all? butterflies, for example. biologists have identified around 180,000 different species. they can be found here, and here, and here, too. they look very different, and are also different in terms of many of their genes. genetic diversity helps species to adapt to environmental change and survive. and that ensures the survival of species that rely on them. many birds, for example, feed on caterpillars. and cats feed on birds. the pyramid of dependence goes on and on. if the butterflies at the base of it go missing, then it can have a big impact on species

diversity as a whole. and animal diversity can affect plant diversity. that's because butterflies feed on nectar from flowers, and in the process act as pollinators. without them, many flowering plants would be unable to propagate. by destroying natural habitats, human beings pose a danger to butterflies -- and therefore entire ecosystems. climate change is making things worse. and what's true of butterflies is true of every living thing on the planet. each fulfills an important function in its own ecosystem. over the ages, many species have become extinct. to some extent that's a natural process. but currently around 130 species are being wiped out every day. at that pace, earth could soon become a lifeless wasteland.

it's one thing to demonstrate the importance of biodiversity in theory, but how do you go about the process of documenting and measuring species in practice? cataloguing species over vast areas of grassland or jungle is a daunting task, but one which is vital if we are to understand what we need to do to in order to protect them. that's why in the democratic republic of congo, laser technology and specially trained personnel are being deployed to save vast stretches of forest and savanna that are under threat. ♪ >> it's quiet on the savannas along the lower reaches of the congo river. much too quiet. where once large herds came to drink at watering holes, there's now little sign of life. the large african fauna has disappeared, having fallen victim to merciless hunting.

biologist menard mbende and his colleagues from the wwf environmental organization are doing research in this deserted grassland. they're assessing how much biomass and biodiversity still exist in the congo basin. even the smallest signs of life are important. antilope hoofprints in the mud. for example. each detail is carefully measured. >> we're doing a kind of inventory of the fauna here. there used to be animals like elephants and lions. so we're seeing what's still here and what isn't. >> data are also collected from the air. an airplane flies over carefully-chosen areas in the congo basin. on board is a lidar system, a laser that scans the ground. the data it delivers can be analyzed to determine the

condition of the forest, whether it's still intact, or has been damaged by clear-cutting or grazing. the result is a map that indicates tree height, buildings, roads, and open areas. those data are then used to calculate how much carbon dioxide the region can absorb. the congo basin is nearly as large as western europe. it will take many months for all the data to be gathered and analyzed. but they then will be worth money, according to elvis tshibasu from wwf. >> it's an important opportunity for the democratic republic of the congo, in regard to preserving the forest, and in preparation for future trading with co2 certificates. the environmentalists hope that, if money from emissions trading starts to flow in the region, protecting the forest would be worth more than destroying it.

but it's a long way until that point is reached, and time is running out. in order to provide fuel for the rapidly growing population, large swathes of forest are tunred into charcoal, which is loaded on trucks and shipped to cities. aurelie shapiro heads the project to assess biomass along the congo with the lidar laser surveying system. she says the aircraft isn't enough. the measuring really needs to be done from space. >> so we're using satellite imagery to complement the airborne lidar data to effectively view the entire country in one image from space, to be able to see all of the forests at once. >> and that view is cause for concern. satellite expert eddy bongwele says large parts of the congo basin are still forested. but the rain forest is shrinking. >> to get this map, we processed

8,000 satellite images from nasa, and we have deforestation around big cities, where we can see in kisangani, and we have also deforestation in the eastern part of congo, where we've had a conflict in the past. >> war and corruption are the biggest threats to the forest. and there has been plenty of both in the congo basin. menard mbende and his wwf team continue to gather data about the plant and animal world. it is hard work, and it is hot out here. >> here we're in the tree savanna. down on the river, there's riparian forest. we're now going to the forest to collect further data about the biodiversity, the flora, and biomass there.

>> the counting is done within a precisely measured area. the researchers extrapolate that data about biomass to the entire forest. >> this is our predetermined area in which we examine the height of the trees, their circumference, and the color of the wood. we examine the entire biosphere and then compare that data with what comes from lidar. >> here, the forest is still intact, and there's a lot of biomass. that's good for the carbon dioxide footprint. but what the researchers are not finding is animals. this forest is as empty as the savanna that surrounds it. it's former residents have long since disappeared to the (bush)meat markets of the cities. >> time to leave congo now and fly some thousand kilometers to the northwest, were we touch down in the harbour town of douala.

this is where cameroon's distinctive makossa was born, a funky dance music which hit the world stage in the 1990s, having two decades later, douala is still very much a musical melting pot, and a new generation of makossa musicians are competing for the big time. musicians like armel ndumbé and his band, who invited our reporter cathérine toulou to catch up with him and his band at a rehearsal. ♪ >> each week, armel ndoumbé and the other members of the band sans visa meet to rehearse. ♪ armel, the singer, who is also called "petit ndoumbé," has been in the band for four years. ♪ the band plays modern makossa, a traditional cameroonian style of dance music which has become a

fixture on the world music scene. sans visa's concerts in cameroon's major cities are very popular. ♪ >> as you can see, the mood here with the guys is pretty cool. we work well together during rehearsal. if someone makes a mistake or if something doesn't work right, we talk about it, and then change it, so we can make progress in rehearsal. >> they are rehearsing for this man petit pays, a makossa star , in cameroon who also tours internationally. today he's come to see how the band he mentors is getting along. ♪ petit pays and his music have been a staple in west africa for thirty years. this time, it's a dress rehearsal.

adolphe claude moundi - petit pays' real name - has helped launch the careers of a great number of musicians in cameroon. >> young musicians are so fresh. it takes time, but it's a question of will. and they have that will, they believe they'll have careers in music. and there's no reason why they shouldn't be as famous as mathematik, or mony eka, or sonny. or others. >> those are all bands who've been successful in cameroon. armel ndoumbé also hopes for a career like that. the 25-year-old lives with his siblings on the outskirts of douala. he said it was an incredible stroke of luck to be hired for the young band that petit pays has put together.

he earns money from their concerts, money he uses to support his family. it's where he sees his future, both economically and creatively. his siblings say that he started singing at the age of five, and even then, he sang songs by his idol, petit pays. as a teenager, he took part in an audition held by petit pays, and was chosen for the band. >> you don't have the same freedom as a band member. i'm even recognized on the street, and hear things like, "look, there he is!," it wasn't that easy for my family at first, but they knew that things would change once i joined the band. >> if we keep supporting him as a family, then he's sure to go

far. i hope he stays modest and doesn't get a swelled head. then all kinds of doors will be open to him. ♪ >> as another step in achieving his goal of a successful career, armel is working on his first solo album. he uses a friend's recording studio, and works with various arrangers in douala. here, he's doing everything himself. a few melodies have already been composed, and today, he wants to revise the lyrics for them. he's writing about love and being young.

he can only pay to make the album because of his steady income as a band member. armel gets the equivalent of 100 euros per gig. that's rare in cameroon's music business. douala is the country's financial hub, and it has a lively music scene. armel and his bandmates often go to hear other musicians playing different styles and there's , plenty to choose from. ♪ but they're not allowed to perform as solo artists. they can only play in public if their boss and patron says so. that's part of the contractual conditions for the young band members. ♪ >> it's good the way it was. if you play in a band like sans visa, for petit pays, who's also our teacher, then you have to follow the rules.

also in order to have a career like the 'master' has. ♪ >> petit pays remains a role model for armel, and his best shot at having his own music career and being financially independent with his music. ♪ >> and what a soundtrack he has to speed him on his way, and to bring us to the end of the show. you can find more information at on our website or look us up on facebook. "global 3000" will be back next week, but for now from me and the team in our bonn studios, thanks for watching and goodbye. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

steves: while dedicating a month of your life to walk the camino may be admirable, it doesn't work for everyone. but any traveler can use this route as a sightseeing spine

and as an opportunity to appreciate some of the joys and lessons that come with being a pilgrim. just 5 miles before the spanish border stands the french basque town of st. jean-pied-de-port. traditionally, santiago-bound pilgrims would gather here to cross the pyrenees and continue their march through spain. visitors to this popular town are a mix of tourists and pilgrims. at the camino office, pilgrims check in before their long journey to santiago. they pick up a kind of pilgrim's passport. they'll get it stamped at each stop to prove they walked the whole way and earned their compostela certificate. walking the entire 500-mile-long route takes about five weeks. that's about 15 miles a day, with an occasional day of rest. the route is well-marked with yellow arrows and scallop shells. the scallop shell is the symbol of both st. james and the camino. common on the galician coast, the shells were worn by medieval pilgrims

as a badge of honor to prove they made it. the traditional gear has barely changed -- a gourd for drinking water, just the right walking stick, and a scallop shell dangling from each backpack. the slow pace and need for frequent rest breaks provide plenty of opportunity for reflection, religious and otherwise. for some, leaving behind a stone symbolizes unloading a personal burden. the first person to make this journey was st. james himself. after the death and resurrection of christ, the apostles traveled far and wide to spread the christian message. supposedly, st. james went on a missionary trip from the holy land all the way to this remote corner of northwest spain. according to legend, in the year 813, st. james' remains were discovered in the town that would soon bear his name. people began walking there to pay homage to his relics.

after a 12th-century pope decreed that the pilgrimage could earn forgiveness for your sins, the popularity of the camino de santiago soared. the camino also served a political purpose. it's no coincidence that the discovery of st. james' remains happened when muslim moors controlled most of spain. the whole phenomenon of the camino helped fuel the european passion to retake spain and push the moors back into africa. but by about 1500, with the dawn of the renaissance and the reformation, interest in the camino died almost completely. then, in the 1960s, a handful of priests re-established the tradition. the route has since enjoyed a huge resurgence, with 100,000 pilgrims trekking the santiago each year.

♪ >> memphis, tennessee. it has been written, if music were religion, then memphis would be jerusalem and sun studio its most sacred shrine. and you are here! with flea market hustlers. ♪ all i can tell you is i'll be all right ♪ ♪ i'm the last man standing tonight ♪ >> i'm david preston. i'm in the flea market hustlers. i play acoustic guitar and lead vocals. i'm joined by mike sharp. >> i play the mandolin. >> i play the lead drum set. >> and we had joey fletcher on the