♪ in a anchor: todayay on "global 3000," we head to cambodia, where extreme poverty often leaves kids with no where to go but the streets. but a special initiative offers hope. in mozambique, wildlifife pars were devevastated by civil war d poaching. a modern noah's ark-like project as is now changing that. but first, we head to colombia, to a village that seems almost cursed by a gene mutation that causes earlyly-onset dementia. there's a name for a cognitive decline that affects more than 47 million people worldwide.

dementia. those affected gradually lose their mental functions, such as the ability to think, to remember things, and to orientate themselves. according to world health organization, the number of dementia sufferers will rise sharply over the next few years. the majority of people affected live in developing countries and emerging economies. at present, dementia is seventh among the world's 10 most common causes of death. the most common form of dementia is alzheimer's disease. little is known about its causes. all that's certatain is s the e played by various genes. these are being intensely researched, including in colombia, where many residents of one small village are affected.

>> where are we?" >> where we are? we're at home. reporter: we have come to visit aicardo, in a mountain village in colombia. >> who are you laughing with now? what are you laughing at? i don'know whoho he's sharing a jojoke with. i started to notice it when he was about 45. now he's got alzheimer's, just like his father did. he cried when he first got the diagnosis. we were all very sad. reporter: aicardo's brothers have come over for lunch. aicardo has a gene that causes alzheimer's. it's been passed down through his family for generations.

his father and two of his brothers died as a result of the disease. and one of his sisters is close to death. they all developed the condition unusually early, at around 40. aicardo's siblings look healthy, but there's a 50% chance that they, too, have the gene. and anyone with the gene invariably develops alzheimer's. >> to be honest, if we don't get it, it'll be like winning the lottery. reporter: these days, evereryoe here knows that alzheimer's is a disease. but for centuries, people in this mountain village of belmira believed it t was a curse e tt causused people toto go crazy. countless families were affected. francisco o lopera at the university of medellin is taking a closer look at the strange phenomenon in belmira and the surrounding villages. francisco: at first, we were just curious. we didn't know what to make of it all. but one thing was clear to us.

this was very significant. reporter: lopera's team looked through death certificates going back over centuries, talking to local priests and family members. they were amazed by what they found. lucia: this one had it, this one died of it, this one didn't, this one did. reporter: in just a handful of villages, more than 25 extended families, comprising over 1,000 people, were affected by the mutated gene that leads to alzheimer's. lucia: there was no end to it! you'd pick up one thread and then find more and more cases. i felt like we'd opened pandora's box. reporter: the researchers recognized a unique opportunity. for the first time, they could work with healthy people that they knew would later develop alzheimer's. nowhere else in the world are there so many alzheimer's cases concentrated i in such a small area.

a chance for scientists to research metethods in a fight against the disease.e. francisco: we might be successful, or we might fail. both results would be very interesting from a scientific point of view. but if we succeed, we could be on the road to finding an answer to alzheimer's. reporter: scientists believe that protein deposits build up between nerve cells in the brain, eventually causing the cells to die. they want to know whether these deposits can be impeded or even stopped. the deposits are microscopopi, but the damage they cause is all too visible. here we have a healthy brain and a diseased brain. david: you can see the difference quite clearly. the diseased brain weighs 600 grams. the healthy one weighs about twice that. you can see at a glance what has happened to the patients.

if we turn it over, once again you can see the difference. here we see a cavity has developed, while here it's all compact. reporter: back to belmira, an hour's drive from medellín. the medidical team p pays regr visits to the affected families. all the family members are keen to support the research and help fight the disease. >> go like this. i'll show you. turn your hand round. like this. try this. reporter: sadly, any breakthrough in the research will come too late for aicardo. but it could help his son or his grandchild, who will soon be born. >> i don't want to think about it. our child will be healthy, with god's help. reporter: there's currently no cure for alzheimer's.

but this study in colombia has raised hopes of a breakthrough. the scientists hope to publish their first results in two years' time. david: i'd like to be there whwn that happens, just for the families' sake. but it could also lead to further studies, aimed at curing or preventing this disease. that's the goal. i'd love to be part of it if it is possible. let's hope so. reporter: and hopefully, it will be possible for the scientists to achieve a breakthrough in the fight against the terrible disease of alzheimer's. ♪ anchor: 300 currently unaffected family members will be taking part in a preventive-medicine trial. the results are expected by 2022. we humans are living increasingly longer, which means more of us will be affected by dementia. and there is no cure for the disease as yet, although its progression can be slowed down

in some cases. but families are often unable to care for affected loved ones themselves, so many are moved into care homes. is there no other alternative? one possibility is shared accommodation, where small groups of patients can be cared for together. or to create villages set up specifically for people with dementia. like in denmark. nothing beats a summertime bike ride over the svendborg sound bridge. at least, not for mei pedersen and her companion, emmelie, who are on their way to a small sailing port on the coast. from bicycle tours to free -ranging chickens, there's a lot that makes denmark's first dementia village different from tradaditional assisted-livingg facilities. this summer, a large outdoor area is being designed with aa variety of features aimed at helping dementia sufferers recall past events from their own lives.

annette: we want to place a camper right here, complete with an awning on the front. residents can come here anand pk up a sandwich and a cup of coffee and look out onto the pond, or they can watctch the chickekens. anchor: ththere are fiveve frh gsgs to gather t this morning r breakfast. inside the village café, inge watsham, seen on the right, is sitttting withth her neighbor. those who fefeel like ncncing n -- are free e to do so. inge has her regular place att the tablble. her backck hurts a little toda, but shststill manageges to cher everyone up. she barely remembers what happened y yesterday but has o trouble recalling events from her past in svenborg. inge: i useded to run a hahair salon. but t that ended after i had y firsrst child.d. then i i had another four yeas one, latater. i spent a lot of time alalone bk then.

my husband was a sailor. he went for long j journeys ouout at se. he was gone fofor months a at a timeme. anchor: ththere's now roroom fo5 demeiaia sufferers i in svendborg's s d brewery, where all the residents can move arouound the grounds freely.y. one popular spot is the village store. today, birgit hervig is in charge. she points out the top-selling item. birgit: it is definitely chocolate. a lot of people here come in to buy chocolate. anchor: inga's not allowed to eat chocolate, but she has found a new top. she doesn't want to try it on. she says it's sure to fit. paying cash is a form of therapy here. dealing with money is meant to keep the residents' brains active.

anwhile, t the cyclists hahave arriveved at the other side of svendborg sound. the three caregivers acaccompanying thehe residentn their bicycle tour b belong toa team of volunteers. their help takes the pressure off the staff and provides the residents with some variety. mei:i: i told my n neighbor ife ever g gets dementia, , she hao come here. they really take good care of you. anchor: it was a few shocking stasastistics that brought aboua change of thinking in svendborg. this community alone is expected to have nearly 2,000 dementia sufferers by the year 2040. so the mayor of svendborg dedecided to take e action. lars: we h have a large numberf visitors from other countries who want to learn from our experiences with the village.

it's's enormously important fr the families of dementia suffererers to see their mothes and fatherers rediscscover thes of life, thanks to the environment we've created here. anchor: but dementia village is only the beginning. threree other nursining homesr set to b be converted. inga feels at home in the old brewery. she works on crossword puzzles in her spare time. that keeps thehe grey matter n shape. her apartmenent has two roroomd a smsmall kitchehen. inge even plans to do some sailing on her son-in-law's schooner. inge: it's a three-masted scsconer, a bebeautiful ship.. there's a picturof i it up there. my mother, by the way,y, livedo be 81, my granandmother 91. so my chances of havaving a fw more years are pretty good..

anchor: it doeoesn't realllly mr if she makes it t on board o or. at 83, the most important thing for inge is that she still has things she wants to accomplish. anchor: now it's time for "global ideas," and this time, we're off to mozambique. the country's civil war wiped out almost all of zinanave national park's large animal population. now, 25 years later, the park is being repopulated with wildlife from some of the country's other parks. our reporter, jürgen schneider, went to find out more about the translocation operation. jürgen: some 45,000 waterbuck graze on the floodplains of the gorongosa national park in mozambique. that's actually too many for the grass to sustain itself. today, the animals are more jumpy than usual..

on the edge of the savanna, something is afoot. staff from the southern african conservation group peace parks are out to get them. they are setting up a huge chute to guide the antelope into a cattle truck. antony: it's part of our rewilding process, so, in total, we'll move around 1,400 animals from here, which includes waterbuck, and we will also move 200 reedbuck this year. jürgen: the peace and quiet of the bush is shattered as the hunt begins. a helicopter circles groups of waterbuck and herds them in the direction of the truck. those on the ground get much closer to the frightened animals.

antony: we've got six there, which is ok. i i think we'r're up to a a tof 3030, so two thirds of the way there. we've got more or less 50 or 60 in the truck. the other truck's just arrived now, so progress is going ok. jürgen: some need a little extra persuasion. today is a special day, and so werner myburgh, the head of peace parks, has come along too. he's spent years helpiping to prepare e this ininitiative. wernerer: we are making g quia big effort to translocate animals back to a park that has been completely wiped out of animals. so there is no animals at all. so what happened is in mozambique, there was a civil war. it lasted over 16 years, and as a a result, a lot of the wildle was decimated. and to bring back the animals, you have to come to a place like gorongosa national p park, cath animals, and then take them all the way to new parks that are being rehabilitated.

and there's quite e a number f those in mozambique that are goining through this process f starting from scratch really. jürgen: the gorongosa national park was one of the first in momozambique to be repopulated after the civil war ended two decades ago. the effort paid off. today, thehere are even lions here. and the park has e enough anims to give away. the waterbuck now begin their journey to the zinave national park. it's a 16-hour, nonstop ride. to minimize the stress for his precious cargo, the driver is not permitted to make longer stops unless it's an absolute emergency. like gorongosa, the zinave national park is now to be repopulated with wild animals. transferring the waterbuck is a first step. in the meantime, staff from peace parks are already at zinanve, meeting with mozambican officials. they're here to discuss how to develop infrastructure to make

the park morore easily accessie to visitors. bartolomeu soto, the director-general of mozambique's national parks, supports the project. the coastline is already developed for tourism, which should help make zinave attractive to investors. bartolomeu: there is a national strategy that zinave fits in. that is, we want to rebuild all the protected areas to help the socio-economomic devevelopmenf mozambique. mozambique has decided to opt for a sustainable dedevelopmet , whwhe we improrove our qualiy of life, but we don'n't destry the resources. jürgen: as yet, zinave has nothing. houses are being built for the future rangers. and transferring the animals alone will cost $2.5 million. peace parks is shouldering much of the financial burden, but it's also looking for donors. the animals here will need protection from poachers. there are people living both in and around the park, most of

them impoverished farmers or fishermen. they often clear the bush for farmland by setting fire to it. the conservationists hope to discourage that by ensuring the park provides a source of employment to local people. in the meantime, the animals in zinave are surrounded by high, electric fences in an area of 18,000 hectares. the conservationists have come to check up on things. the animals in this area will later populate the entire park. it's hoped the zinave national park can reopen in a few years ' time. but first, thehe giraffes wille getting some new neighbours, to help rebalance the environment. antony: : our primary fofocus o bring in the plains game, such as zebra, wildebeest, and buffalo. they'll focus on the long grasses and change the ecosystem. and elephants will do much the same thing.

you've got a lot of thick bush, and they'll open up the bush for us, as well. thereafter, in about four or fifi years' titime, we'll lookt bringing in carnivores sucuch s lion, hyena, and leopard. jürgen: the truck carrying the waterbuck finally reaches its destination. despite the long journey, the animals appear in good condition and are soon ready to explore their new surroundings. but it's just one step on the long road to recreating the natural paradise that zinave once was. werner: : to rewild a landscapef this size will take time. kruger nationalpark is 110 years old. ththis area is a quarter of te size of the kruger nationalpark, so it will take time. if you think there's very few animals left to rebuild the wildlife, to bring it back to where it was, it will take anything 15 to 20 0 years to really get it baback to just having reinstated the wildlife as it was before. jürgrgen: the waterbuck from gorongosa are alalready settlig into their new home. over the next few years, they'll be joined by some 7500 animals from other african parks.

and d so, gradualllly, zinave l come b back life.e. be joined by some 7500 animals ♪ anchor: 767 million people around the world live in desperate poverty, more than half of them are children. for many, poverty prevents them from being able to attend school. many don't even have a roof over their heads. worldwide, up to 150,000,000 children live on the streets, several thousand of thth in cacambodia's capitital, phnom . reporter: their classes take place on the street. a social worker teaches the basics to children in a poor ararea of phnom penh. their families can't afford to send them to a state school. they can't pay for medical care either. both the doctor and the social worker here are volunteers. many of their parents moved from

the countryside to find work in the capital. they can't pay the $1.50 a day that state schools charge for lessons and a midday meal. the organization "friends international" has its offices in the center of pnomh penh. it was set up by sebastien marot in the 1990's. sebastien: when we came in, it was all abandoned. it was an old factory from the 19th century. later it was a bicycle factory. it was a weapon depot during the khmer rouge. many, many things. a garage. and then, when we came in, abandoned for quite a few years, there was about a meter high trash everywhere, and we had to clean and discover what was underneath. and it was quite exciting , actually, in many ways and very strange. reporter: today, the center caters for hundreds of children every day. it provides a kindergarten, school lessons and vocational , training.

all the children get a hot meal every day, which the parents don't have to pay for. the idea is to empower the young people to later provide for themselves. practical training is key. sebastien: here, they prepare the meals for all the students in the center. so they prepare up to 1,000 meals a day. and all the students eat here, and then when they graduate from this level, they go into our vocational training restaurants. and we have two here in phnom penh, but across the system, we have nine restaurants, like this, in other countries. and these are then open to the public, where everyone can come and have a meal prepared and served by students, and this is the best training possible, and it is the best training possible because it's hands-on and young people learn really, really fast and can be highly employable. reporter: profits from the restaurants are used to pay for the children's meals and training. vanthy is one of the students here. she's 16 years old. vanthy: during the rainy season,

my father doesn't have work. so we couldn't afford school fees, and he couldn't support our family. when i graduate from here, i will look for a job. reporter: the practical training is mixed with sessions in the classroom. friends international is also there to help when the time comes to look for a job. many of the chchildren come frm difffficult backgrounds, markedy poverty, violence, and drugs. they have to apply for a place on one o of the trtraining cous here. they can choose between various fields. some drop out early, but most complete the training. lita: i want to open my own garage later, back in my hometown. i'm hoping to earn lots of money so that i can support my family. reporter: friends international believes it's important to keep close contact with the children's families. but the group also works with

tuk tuk drivers in phnom penh. they have been given training in how to recognize typical indications of problems like domestic violence, sexual abuse, and drug addiction. the drdrivers can then raise te alarm. sebastien: if you take the drugs, 1998, no drugugs. until 2000, it was mostly glue, and then suddenly, influx of amphetamines, and then more recently, a start of injecting heroin. and the changes in this drug-use pattern among the young people changed the type of services that we needed to provide because drugs are , different. reporter: cambodia is still one of the poorest countries in asia. the average wage is just $100 u.s. a month. thousands of children live on the streets of phnom penh. some aid groups seek to help them. tourists often give money or visit orphanages. sebastien marot says there's a kind of poverty tourism which he

strongly dislikes. sebastien: would you accept a truckload of asians coming into a german school, raiding this class, teaching the kids for an hour a strange song in cambodian, having them taste fish and rice, having photos put on facebook, and then march out? of course not! so why do this in this country? not acceptable! reporter: marot and his family have lived in cambodia since 1988. he always plans long-term. last year alone, his organization was able to get 5000 children back into school, a success for him and his team. ♪ anchor: that's all for today. thanks for joining us. we love hearing from you, so drop us a line to global3000@dw.com or on facebook

-- dw global society. take care, and see you next time. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

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