hohost: welcome to "global 3 3" this week we meet a young entrepreneur w who's helpedd breathe e life back into a russn village on the brink of extinction. the mamaldives are stunning, ad more and more luxury hotels and airports are being built there. we look at the downside of tourisism. and we head to uganda, whehere pele in the lgbt community lilive in rpetetual ar. there are as many different kinds of intimacy as there are people. every relationship is unique.

there are men who love women, women who love women, people who love both men and women, and so on. and yet being homosexual, bisexual, or transgender is highly discriminated against, or even outlawed in 70 countries across the world. in 11 countries in africa, the arabian peninsula, and the middle east, homosexuality is even an offence punishable by death. homosexual acts are commonly defined as obscene or unnatural, and often described as sodomy. words like that are also used in uganda. and some politicians there have called for the introduction of the death penalty. reporter: daybreak in kampala. and for the activists from "freedom and roam uganda," it will be another day fighting discrimination against lesbian, gay, a and trans people. gloriaia mutyaba, ththe progrs

officer, could potentially face imprisonment, or even execution. the government has plans to reintroduce lelegislation, colloquially cald the "k"kl the gays law," that would imimpe the death pepenalty for sasamex relations.s. gloria: looking back at what has changed, what has s been trtransparent leleading up toe time when ththat informatitios shared publicly, there's been a lot of intimidation. reporter: : uganda is one e ofe momost homophobibic countries se planetet. the bill i in questios origininally psed d by i parliamentnt in 2014, bebefore g struckck down followowing prots from intnternational a aid don. gloria: inhihis countr regigion pys a verery fundamental role. thatat's o thingngeople don't know. because even in policy foformulations, , their recommendations are really held inin high regardrd. rereporter: and that presentsa

dilemma for gloria. shshe's a lesbiaian acvist w whd a strict c christian upbpbring. her mothther is a paststor. the chur's homophobic stance has alwaways bn an i iss for heher. gloriaia: i still gogo to churcd some days it's g good, other ds it's h hard for yoyou to s throh a seon where a pastor is just saying that you're going to burn. reportrter: every weweekend, l saints cathehedral in kampmpala hosts a numbmber of weddiningst only betweween men and w women. hohomosexuality y was first fofy criminalized in uganda after the introduction of christianinit. the cathedraral's provost,t, rea hyegenyeye, is opposeded to tolerance. rebecca:f f you aran a afric

who hahas grown up w with th culture ofof aicans,s, iis somethining that has a always n foreigign to us. but alalso as a church ministr whwho reads the e scriptures, ,o find it difficult to a accept . because e homosexualitity is a, justst like any other sin. it is jujust like i w went ad ststole somethining, i have si. i cannot p polish it andnd say, well, i was s stealing because m hungry. .. reporter: lgbt people continue to be stigigmatized by b bothe church and p politicians, , ane ten ththe ctims ofofiolence. sex workers like samuel ar rticicular at ririsk alalthough he's s a masseur, t mostst of his custstomers pafofs sex.x. samumuel receis s clientin h hs own homeme.

samuel: you te m me whe you feelel lot of pain, th i i wil concentrate ther reportrt: and even at ho hee doesn't elel saf samuel has been vererelyeaten on a nber r ofccasions. samu: i i waattacked. ththey jled memeor one month. no one couould help me.. hahad to call mymy relives, , n they hadad to know whoho i am. so after leavinghe j jaii had to lea m my thgs thehe, because the community was not withe. reporterer: for homosesexuals, g outeted is a dailyly fear. rumors spreafastst ithe city's dedenselpopulateteinformal selemement d samuelays the mber of attacks is oththe ri. samuel: in ugaa, if yore in ththe gay commununity, youhiht afafter short t peod of titi.

if you sususpect that ththey w you, youou shift. rertrter: so samuel stays t the momove, d has s be disownened y his fafamily. his customomer has storiries, . >> i wasith my dad. he found o, , then hwantntede to l leave his house. so i started sleeping in the rereet, oking g r a new life, beuse i cannot go ckck to dadad. ththats the life we arliliving in. rerter: : bt people in ugaa are osacacizednd oftften alo. samuel: friendinin the communitity, they are not helpg at a all. reporter: samuel is afra t the ananti-hosexuaual gislatioio wowould further r stoke hostiy towards s the lgbt comommunityd gloria mutyaba agrees. she continues the fight for more tolerance, and continues to hope. after all, the bill has been ruled unconstitutional befe.

glgloria: hopes the only thing we h have. becaususe when you l lose hope, basically y you don't lilive anymorore. so eveven when thingngs seem impossible, we keep the hope. host: and now for our "g"globl ideas" series, we take a big leap from africa to the maldives. last year, the tropical island paradisen n the middle o of te indian ocean receieived nearly 4 million visitors. new w hotels andnd airports to accocommodate them a all are bg built at a a cost to bototh nau and locacals our reporter roberrichchter travavellethere e to reveal a se ofof the maldiveves that hoholidaymakers s don'see. adam: big corporations and businesses, they always seem to

win. nono matter whicich governmentnn power.r. mamartin: humansns won't stp travaveling. and reclamation is the only way to be closer to the airport right now. so will there be more coming? absolutely. over the next four, five years, u'll have probablynonother 60, 70 rorts h he. shaza: once ese lagos started velopingat once the'll be so much ststructn, sedimentatn n to t reef,f, wch wouldefinite have a gative impact on our isndnds. rereporter: the e internatnanal rporort inhe malaldian capitit malé provides gagateway r tourisistsrom all l er the woworld. they're then taken by bo t to e reresortslandsds tt are juju a short distanance from e rport. th provides a gistical advante, especially wh orms hit. in just 15 mutes, the sitors arrive i"crossroads," a ga

resort made upup of nine islsl. a night inin one of thesese bungngalows costs s 650 euros. two yeyears ago thisis was allt wateter. sasatellite imagages reveal hoe artificial islands s suddenly emerged in the middle of the coral-reef lagoon. 2500 palm trees were brought here from other islands. if you didn't know, you'd think it had all developed naturally. those in charge of the p projet are keen to uphold tha illuon.. martin: it's still a natural island. the sand lerally camfrom ten minuteaway from re. so ultimately this is still ho landnds arformeded. all ththe palm trees are from neneighboring islandnds, very n because theyey were develolopg somemething on thehe island, san aiairstrip or coconstructio. repoporter: the whwhole issuef arartificial islslands and reped palm treeses has long cacaughte attention n of the anti-i-corrun ngo trtransparency maldives.

under a a number of dedeals red by t the previous s government,, near 6 60 coral lagoons surrounding ththe capital maée were leasesed to investors. they are nowow buildg momore ad more artificial islands for tourists. this means the need for palm trees is growing. and they are in short supply, as maldivian law states that trees mustn't be brought in from abroad. shaziya: why are these trees being transported to the resorts, not to the islands where there's no trees? there arare so many islalands h have been reclaimed for the purprposes of expanding the lad area for the people to live. and they're completely barren. like, they don't have any plants, any trees. reporter: transparency maldives says that tourism is given more significance than the environment. the country's environmental protection agency used to assess tourism projects before they were approved, but the previous government changed that.

ibrahim: it's harming the environment,t, eeciaially you consider the areas closer to the capitatal malé. there is a lot of reclamation and island-making going on. i think wewe should nott concncentrate makiking resortsr malelé. rather than doing ththat, we should be focusing o on outer atolls. reportrter: six new airports we scheduled to be built this year and next, to improve access between the islands. the island of kulhud-huffushi was stripped of most of its mangroves to accommodate its airport. but most of the time, it stands empty, as it's not really needed. the next airport is just a 20-minute boat-ride away. activists like a adam abdulla te to twitter to report on the latest building projects. theyey're using ththe twittr hashtatag #semaldidiveto speakk out and engage with th thororitie

adam: i ink it is a a huge risk basase oueconomomy just thth tourism inindustry alonene. inin order for p prolirationoo tourism, we are deroroying t ry thihinghich ourur tourism indudustry is basesed on. reporter: ththese coconut t shs have spent nine mont s soaking in the manangrove swamp p to t them sofoft enough to o gain fs useded for making g rope. for 400 women on t i island lhud-h-hufshi, it't'the only source of income, onththat is nodryingng u planare e afoot toememove the island's's last mangroroves toe way for a bubuilding pjeject. 70-yr-old d aiath hassss has spent mostst of her lifefe mag rope. aishath: beforore the airprpors built, t the communitytyas askd if we wantnted to keep t the mangroroves and evereryone said. reporter: the politicians simply ignored the residents' wishes. that's a problem people on the island of guraidhoo have been

complaining about for 15 years now. their standodoff with ee authoritities concernsns ths channel l of water. sand i is to be takeken from it regulalarly to preseserve te beaches s of the resorort oppo. it's s standard practice in te maldives. residentnts on the island gain nothing from the resesort, but sandnd is being tataken away m ththem. shaziya ali i from traparency maldes s says the islaland is shririnking. trtrees along ththe coast are e, as t the beach is s steadily eroding. she'cocollecng evivince in a bid givive ople here a voic but thth're fighting a perfuful opponent. shshaziya: the c current oeres alsoso concted v verclosely y th some of the leads of thi countr so it t would reallyly be hard a cocommoner or a a small commuy likehehem, this islaland, to std up a and fight agagainst them.

adam: i hoped that with the ww govevernme comining that thth would immemediately stop a alle reresort developopment projectct it is very sad that a lot of these projects are continuing. host: anyone involved in the construction trade, whether on the maldives or elsewhere, knows how important sand is. afafter all, it's an essential component in concrete. the worldwide demand for sand has tripled in just 20 years. so much so, in fact, that in some parts of africa and asia, usable deposits are already growing scarce. up to 50 billion tons of sand are processed every year. that's enough to build a wall 27 meters high and 27 meters thick encircling the entire planet along e eqequato

cambodia has been a marr exrterer of nd. and th's causi major problemsor peoplliving ang e mekongiver. reporter: khat samor dreads the sound of the masonry settling at night. the first thing she does after getting up is to check if there are any new cracks in the walls. this building used to be her home, what's left of a once contented life. khat: when the river bank broke away, i dragged the bed across to the back. i tried to sleep here. but then i saw how the entire garden was gone and the wall had collapsed. then i took everything apart, piece by piece. reporter: in order to at least salvage something, khat samor began to demolish her home with her own hands.

khat: i worked hard my whole life long. now i'm old and alone. i've lost everything. i was afraid that the stone house was too heavy and would sink. that's why i at least rescued the doors, windows, and tiles. reporter: they're now in storage a few meters away, for when times get better, if they ever do. the mekong river is devouring this village. it's changed course, and now flows faster. the river has carried away entire buildings here. the government has placed sandbags along the shore as a makeshift barrier. what used to be an asphalted road is now a new waterway. these boats are currently empty and riding high in the water. on the return trip they're heavily laden with endless tons of sand. a fisherman shows us the dredgers extracting it from the riverbed. locals don't know who they belong to. sales: the mekong has changed. it didn't used to be this wide.

sales: the mekong has changed. it didn't used to be this wide. we used to be able to swim from one side to the other. you could hear what was being said on the other side. and the water wasn't as deep as it is today. reporter: he positions his fishing net here by the riverbank every morning and used to catch plenty of fish throughout the day. today though, once again, his net remains empty. across asia, rivers and seas are being robbed of their sand, which is needed at construction sites in far-away cities. glass, cement, asphalt -- all vital materials for urban centers expanding all over asia, and all made using sand. sisiapore's prprosperity is literarally built onon sand, wh for many years was imported from cambodia. khat samor h has sold her cow d now lives in its former shed with no door, no cupboards, and no toilet.

khat: when it rains and is windy, the water comes through ththe walls. to stay dry,y, i cover everythg with plastic a and crouch on te bed under ththe tarp. reporter: her neighbors were also hit hard. now, they live in this shack. one night the family heard strange noises. their tiny home began n to sik and to slilide. the e bank of e e river llapaps, anand it was swept awa for drinking water, the villagers collect rain. the grown-ups work hard every day on construction sites in the nearby city, but they never earn enough. ououm: every day, i builild hos for other people. the hotels, restauaurants, and skyscrapers are also all madee using sand. the rich live their comfortable lives, and i'm poor and can't do anything about it. but because the sand is missing here, , our house slid into te mekong. reporter: the villagers are

desperate, but also disheartenened. khat: the sand doesn't belong to anyone. it belongs to the river. but these people come here -- investors, business people -- they come and just take the sand in order to sell it. reporter: cambodia has now officially prohibited the export of sand. but how strictly is the ban enforced? when asked, government officials refuse to comment. just outside the capital phnom penh, mountains of sand are piled up for the city's own construction sites. this man works for a conservatition group. thun: : in 2016 we c checked e shipping documentation and found that cambodia claimed to be sending only small amounts of sand to singapore. but according to singapore, it imported many times that quantity. it doesn't add up, but the government has never commented on it. reporter: in cambodia, sand used to be something that never ran

out. now, it's a valuable resource, a vital material in the construction of booming asian cities. host: and cities are where it's at for many seeking a more osperous life. big urbacecenters aroundnd the world d are burstingng at the s. foforecasts suggggest that by , up to two-thirds of the global population will live in large cities. and that has a knock-on effect in the countsiside. villages arere dying out.. many places are seeing a rural exodus of unprecedented proportions. how can village life be made appealing again? one russian entrepreneur is trying to help. reporter: welcome to malyj turysch, a small village deep in turysch, a small village deep in the ural mountains. only 20 houses are inhabited. there used to be 500 people living here. now there are only 50. it's one of the many thousands of villages in russia that was dying out.

but then guzel c came to the rescue. i may be small and look like a boy, she says, but don't underestimate me. guzel calls herself a social entrepreneur. she's always on her cell phone. guzel sells jam online. and everyone who buys some gets a personalized thank you vidido for helping thwhwhole village. guzel: people need to know that they are doing a good dedeed. anyone who contributeses becoms part of our initiatitive. we're a whole army of people that want to bring about change. reporter: jam from malyj turysch. strawberry, raspberry, the jars are dispatched throughout the country. many are sent out individually. they even make the labels themselves.

and tea is another one of their products. the herbs grow right outside the window. most people here have long reached retirement age. we're all grandmothers, babushkas, they say. and the babushkas decide who can work here. galiya: remember the woman who was here for only two days? we told her to stay home. she was too slow. reporter: they all come from the village, or neighboring villages. sukhra: we chat, we tell jokes, and we laugh a lot. the whole village can hear us. the windows are open. reporter: sweet spoonfuls for tea. they came up with the idea themselves, a syrup made with wild herbs and dried berries.. the latest flavor is sea buckthorn and cinnamon. an organic food chain in moscow has just placed an order for 8000. guzel says it's for customers

who long for a life in the country. guzel: you're at work, making tea with a teabag. you'd much prefer tea from a samowar, just like in the country. it's like a little vacation at work, or the next best thing. you take the sweet spoon, dunk it into your boring tea, and all of a sudden, it smells like summer in the countryside. reporter: word has long since got out that guzel pays a good price for berries and herbs. she has made a big difference in all of malyj turysch. she also founded a small library, even if it's seldom used. and she also organized g garbae collection. that is something very rare in russian villages. ralina is so impressed that she moved back to the village from

the next larger town. she inherited a house this year, and now she's renovating it. soon she'll be moving in with her husband and child. ralina: everything has changed since guzel's been here. we're going to make a go of it. we'll fix up the house and try out village life. reporter: it's not a big house, but it's sturdy with threeee rooms. her grandparents built it, ralina tells us. she's hoping to find a job through guzel, who mentioned that she needs someone to help with administration. ralina: in the city, you sit at work surrounded d by concrete walls, then you go home to more of the same, and don't know what to do with yourself. here, you go into the garden, you pick some dill and you make a salad. it's simply a much nicer life. reporter: next door in the small factory, the order for the moscow organic chain is almost

ready. as always, everyone's having fun. at some point, guzel says, malyj turysch will be able to stand on its own without her. then she'll pack up and move on to the next village and help the people there. guzel: where will i be in ten years? somewhere out in nature. feeling free. or maybe in a plane. because of course, i'll be flying back and forth between the villages. hopefully a lot of them. reporter: and there are many villages like malyj turysch inn russia, just waiting for her help. host: that's all from "global 3000" this week. thanks for watching. we love getting your feedback about the program, so do write to us at global3000@dw.com.

and don't forget, you can also find us on facebook, "dw women." see you next week. till then, take care. ♪ [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which h is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

narrator: today on "earth focus," kikilling elepephants fr ivory y fuels crime, corruption, and terrorism. coming up p on "earth focus." narrator: for more than two million years, wild elephants have been living in the savannas and forests of africa. they were once plentiful, as