>> when you think of people smugglers, you probably imagine cruel and brutal gangsters gleefully exploiting the misery of others. whilst that type of smuggler certainly exists, we're about to meet some rather more ambiguous figures caught up in the murky trade with human lives. that's here on global 3000. life in limbo -- would-be migrants wait to be smuggled to an uncertain future. beethoven, not bombs -- taking on terror with the help of a cello. and, how eco is your eco fuel? should crops land in the tank, or on a plate?

with more people on the move than ever before, the un is warning of a "paradigm shift", an "unchecked slide" into an era of displacement dwarfing anything previously encountered. it's thought that around 60 million people are currently displaced worldwide, 38 million of them within the borders of their own country. alarmingly, over half of the world's refugees are children. in the west african country of mali, some 100,000 people have been displaced by armed conflict. to compound the problem, mali has become an important intersection for migrants from other countries seeking to make their way to europe. despite the risks, smuggler gangs have no trouble picking up custom. reporter: it is early morning and bilal kamara quickly downs a cup of coffee before continuing his journey. the sierra leone native is nervous. the organized people smugglers here in gao might give him trouble.

gao is located in northern mali. it has become a major crossroads for migrants wanted to reach europe. human trafficking is a lucrative business. yehia and issa have years of experience in this dubious trade. two young men have just arrived from southern mali. yehia and issa advise them to beware of the criminal gangs. the gang members have no scruples and will steal all their valuables, possibly even cut their throats. karamu sibe: what can we do? all we can do is to pray that things go well. i know there are people who only want to rip us off and cheat us. reporter: the newcomers are reluctant to place their trust in yehia and issa. they choose instead to have a look around gao.

the traffickers herd migrants into a so-called ghetto, a barracks-like building, where they stay until they can pay the 50 to 100 euros to travel on. this is where we first met bilal from sierra leone. he's the one with the plaid shirt. but before we can speak to him, the ghetto bosses arrive and break off the interview. they refuse our request to film, accusing us of trying to ruin their business. yehia provides some insight into how the organized gangs work. he's watched thousands of refugees come and go over the years. yehia diarra: everyone receives rations and a five-liter canister of water for the trip across the desert. those with a little extra money can buy 20 liters. reporter: and who profits from that?

yehia diarra: the money is divided up three ways between the truck owner, the ghetto and the police. reporter: a small cadre of leaders earn a good living. yehia and issa also profit from human smuggling. they say it's their only way to survive in northern mali. the region surrounding gao is notoriously dangerous. u.n. forces are trying to establish a measure of security. but recently there has been intense fighting between rival militant groups. and the refugees must traverse this life-threatening route. they often set out late at night on their journey through the desert, without the protection of u.n. troops. in the evening we receive a call from yehia. one of the migrants at the ghetto wants to speak with us. we ask that he be brought to our hotel. it's bilal. he tells us the bosses threatened to kick him out if he spoke with us. he adds that he has no place else to go.

the 22-year-old dreams of living in europe. he sees little opportunity in his homeland. sierra leone is one of the world's poorest countries. recently hard-hit by the ebola epidemic. bilal has seven sisters. he's the only son. he tells us he dreams of providing a better life for his mother. he never knew his father but she has always been there for tehm. his mother is unemployed but she still got him through school and the first year of university. but after that, he says the money ran out. he wants to give something back to her. how did you imagine -- bilal kamara: my friends in sierra leone see europe as a paradise, where everything is easier. our dream is that things would be better there.

having a meal, nice close, cars. that's how we see europe. reporter: if one were to tell you it's not easy bilal kamara: i wouldn't believe them. because africa is difficult. i can't compare africa suffering and europe. i know that whenever happens in europe, it happens in africa. reporter: the next day we want to film footage of a truck pulling out towards the sahara. goods from algeria are being offloaded. on the return trip, the driver will be carrying human beings. young men from a variety of countries are waiting to get on board. no one is willing to speak with us. they are probably afraid we might hinder their chances of reaching europe.

we resort to a hidden camera. we meet bilal again and he tells us of a surprising turn of events. he's decided to return home to sierra leone. this his second trip to gao. two months ago he tried to reach italy but he was beaten by criminals in the desert. in libya, he paid 500 euros for a place on a boat. but the smugglers disappeared with all his money. then came news of the hundreds of refugees who'd perished trying to cross the mediterranean. bilal decided to turn around. bilal kamara: i lost a lot of money, i dropped weight. i missed a lot of things are used to know. reporter: what did you miss the most?

bilal kamara: i missed my mom. i miss having dinner with my mom every night. reporter: so bilal is on his way back to sierra leone and an uncertain future. kate: shelled-out buildings, abandoned cars -- this is the image the world now has of bagdad, iraq's ancient capital. and what's the soundtrack to this dystopic panorama? explosions? gunfire, shouting? karim wasfi, the renowned conductor of the iraqi national symphony orchestra, wants to change that. he wants the soundtrack to be music, beautiful classical music ringing out across the streets of bagdad, conquering the city with hope. reporter: a baghdad street vendor peddles a selection of flutes against a backdrop of heavily damaged buildings. the flutes cost the equivalent

of two euros and 50 cents. we see billboards touting the various militia. security forces are everywhere. it appears no one is interested in making music. karim wasfi hopes to change all that. he is on a very personal mission. some time ago he started playing his cello in public spaces. a bomb exploded not long ago at -- exploded here recently, killing five people. construction workers are still repairing the damage. wasfi wants to send a message that rebuilding is worth the effort. he's trying to keep hope alive. so he regularly plays at bombing sites.

karim wasfi: since the other side had chose every aspect of life to be threatened by that, so hope and inspiration is jeopardized. this is exactly what i'm doing. i'm offering hope and inspiration and refinement and civility. reporter: the man in the wheelchair survived the bombing here. his name is dschassim. he's always drawn to the melodic notes that waft through the noisy street. he tells us that iraqis know only suffering. he adds that war has become normal and atrocities are a part of daily life. he says islamic state won't allow iraqis to have peace. their people been treated horribly, for so long now.

indeed, the horrors are part of everyday life. bombings, shootings, death. but at the same time, books are being written. people tell jokes. and somehow, life goes on. in his own small way, karim wasfi is sending a signal to his fellow citizens, pitting the delicate notes of his cello against the deafening concussions of terrorist bombs. karim wasfi: if from every 10 isis fighters, if i have a chance with 5 of them, to expose them to bach or brahms or beethoven or wagner or mozart or stravinsky, or maybe they were exposed, but at least the chance to, prior to meeting the level of annihilating each other, totally destroying those who oppose me.

reporter: wasfi is also a conductor with the iraqi national symphony orchestra. today, they're practicing a piece by rimsky-korsakov. the conductor believes classical music has a special power. it's thought-provoking, emotional, and provides a civilizing influence. karim wasfi: this is the only approach to resolving this agreement. this is the only way to resolve disagreement. it is an endless killing machine. doubts, yes. but i overcome those doubts with hard work. am i hopeful?

i don't want to comment on that. reporter: an evening game of dominos and lively discussion in a local café. wasfi tells us that iraqis are simple people and don't need much to feel satisfied. he asks us why iraqis should have to constantly fear for their lives. he rejects accusations that he's naive. he says he's escaped 33 bombings. karim wasfi: a bomb is made to explode. so it's becoming what it is when it explodes. so escaping or avoiding or not being within the perimeter of such an event, i thought had a meaning and still does. reporter: he says people could surrender to the terror, and that's an obvious concern in baghdad. his message -- it's possible to choose differently, for culture, music, and life.

kate: well, as karim wasfi shows, the smallest gestures often have the biggest impact. to beat global warming, we're going to need policy changes on a massive scale. but beware -- not every so-called ecological breakthrough necessarily helps the environment. biofuel, or ethanol, is a classic example. reporter: summer of 2011. strange happenings at gas stations across germany. pumps were taped over, selection was limited. customers were outraged. >> i honestly don't see the point. >> neither do i. the clarification was lousy. >> we got this information from the internet and we told customers whether the fuel can be used in their cars, with some reservations.

reporter: the biofuel, called e-10 in germany, was part of an attempt to meet eu guidelines on c02 emissions. but no effort was made to educate motorists. automakers largely ignored it. so did oil companies and automobile associations. e-10 contains 10% ethanol, produced from agricultural sources. but german drivers have largely spurned the product. many believe it's harmful to engine blocks. e-10 accounts for only about 15 percent of the gasoline sold in germany. and there is plenty of opposition to biofuel. many think it is wrong to use foodstuffs for fuel production. about two thirds of germany's rapeseed harvest is now used to produce biofuel. and environmentalists are increasingly critical as well. matthias meissner is an agricultural expert at world wide fund for nature, points out that enormous tracts of land are needed for biofuels.

matthias meissner: c02 emissions increase when forests and other natural habitats are turned into farmland. it doesn't matter whether the crop is sugar cane, wheat or corn. the major problem comes with the changes that occur and the release of carbon dioxide. reporter: the eu has reacted accordingly. new guidelines call for biofuels to make up no more than seven percent of combined production by 2017. emphasis is now being put on electric vehicles. the united states is by far the world's largest ethanol producer. a biofuel plan was put into action years ago and the percentage of its mix in gasoline rises steadily. nearly half of all domestic corn production winds up in ethanol. and 15% of gasoline comes from

renewable sources. the state of iowa is a major producer of biofuels, and the industry has created tens of thousands of jobs. brazil has turned to sugarcane to fill its gas tanks. the south american nation is the second largest producer and the second largest consumer of ethanol. in fact, sales of ethanol overtook petroleum based fuels in 2008. and most new cars are equipped with special engines that can run on pure ethanol or regular gasoline. again, environmentalists have complained about the destruction of rainforests to gain more land for agriculture. they say better sources would be plant detritus and algae.

but a second generation of biofuels is still a long way off. kate: of course, biofuels aren't the only cause of deforestation, as we'll be seeing as we turn to peru. peru is famous for its rich forests, like the one in san martin. but those forests are now endangered by, amongst other things, expanding coffee plantations. now a new initiative is aiming to protect the forests whilst increasing crop yields. reporter: the rainforest of northern peru. rare species of crabs and fish are at home in this remote region. butterflies, insects, and monkeys, too. many endangered plants and

animals thrive in this biotope. jose cruz llatas takes tourists on boat tours of this massive protected habitat. he's been doing it for one and a half years. it's an additional source of income. he's also a coffee grower. but he has a newfound love and respect for the rainforest. jose cruz llatas: if we don't protect the rainforest and destroy it, the rains will wash away more and more soil every day and the air will become polluted. people want to cut down the trees and plant coffee. since the highway was built, more people have moved here from the coast and the mountains. of course they need something to eat and a source of income. reporter: the highway connects this remote area with the coast. it's an 18-hour drive from here to the capital, lima. the road is a lifeline for the locals, bringing jobs to the impoverished region.

but it has also spawned migration and a host of new problems. the highway has taken a heavy toll on the rainforest. rice and coffee fields line both sides of the road. coffee beans are the cash crop of northern peru. demand, and prices, have been rising for years. the community of shampuyacu used to include four-thousand hectares of rainforest. now it's less than 600. the environmental group international union for conservation of nature has launched an effort to reclaim some of that forest. project manager alonso castro is planting both coffee and trees together.

alonso castro: this is an attempt to protect the rainforest and to introduce alternative farming methods to the coffee growers. it will allow them to improve their harvest without destroying more forestland. reporter: the women of the village are on their way to the coffee fields. they were the first to become involved in the project. they've started using natural fertilization, which has led to increased profits. elita tingal: before this project began, the rainforest was in pretty bad shape. we just took everything we needed. now we're giving something back.

reporter: the community leader, thomas wajajai tuwits, loves to show visitors his nursery. he's raising coffee bean plants, just like all the other farmers. but in addition, he's growing young saplings, more than a thousand in all. soon, they'll be standing tall right next to the coffee plants. tomas wajajai: it was hard to convince people to plant new trees, and to explain the benefits to them. we talked with everyone and they are taking it more and more to heart. they're planting coffee and a variety of trees. those trees provide shade for the coffee plants. reporter: today, there's a farmer's market at the village hall. locals are selling bananas,

mangos, roots, and coconuts. it's all harvested from the rainforest. the women also give helpful tips on various ways to prepare then. the knowledge and traditions of the older generations should not be lost. that, too, supports the goals of the project. alonso castro: we've taken the first steps. ground has been recovered and people are learning to use this resource to grow food and medicinal plants. everyone profits. reporter: from the community center, it's just a 20-minute walk to the naranjillo river. the rainforest used to line the banks of the river. but that was long ago. now the water washes away precious soil. there are no more roots to hold it in place. alonso castro has done a lot of

planting here in the fields along the banks. not just trees, but also coffee. alonso castro: the bushes have deep roots that stabilize the ground. the smaller trees are over here to the side. they can't stop the erosion on their own. and that's because they're not strong enough yet. reporter: jose cruz llatas, the tourist guide, also tends his coffee fields. he's leased 10 hectares of land and he's growing coffee and bananas. he planted trees as well. since then, his income has been steadily rising.

jose cruz: tourism has been a major boon for the people in this region. more visitors are coming all the time. even from abroad. they spend money, and that's provided a great boost the local economy. reporter: tourists only go where the rainforests are intact. that is something jose is mindful of, as he prepares the boat for another group of visitors. kate: and that's all from this edition of "global 3000." join us again next week. in the meantime, thanks for watching and goodbye. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

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