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Global News Podcast

The Happy Pod: Learning begins with breakfast

Global News Podcast

BBC

Society & Culture, Daily News, News, Documentary

4.27.8K Ratings

🗓️ 2 August 2025

⏱️ 27 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Meet the charity which is providing free breakfasts for three million children across sixteen countries. We visit a school to see how Mary's Meals is helping children to focus on learning. Their biggest programme is in Malawi in south-east Africa, and for many students there, it's a reason to stay in school.

Also on the podcast, we hear from the micro-farm in Montreal growing fruit and veg for local people on low incomes. Plus a social club trying to combat loneliness in Venezuela by bringing elderly people together for a dance, and the Italians coming together to save a tiny island from developers.

The Happy Pod, our weekly collection of uplifting and inspiring stories from around the world. Part of the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service.

Presenter: Ankur Desai. Music composed by Iona Hampson.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hello from Malawi. This is the happy pose.

0:11.1

Hello, I'm Ankara Desai and in this edition, how school breakfasts in Malawi are helping children to learn.

0:17.5

My greatest joy about the job is seeing the children happy, just happy.

0:22.3

We meet the people growing fresh and affordable fruit and veg in Montreal.

0:26.5

I'm fortunately gifted to have a family that can't provide themselves with enough food,

0:31.1

and that's kind of why I feel I come back year after year,

0:34.1

because I like ensuring that other people can have that same security

0:38.1

I know I have.

0:39.4

Also, I dance even in the bathroom.

0:44.4

In the morning, when I get up, I turn on the radio and sing and dance.

0:48.7

My feet just start moving on their own.

0:50.7

The dance club tackling loneliness amongst older people in Venezuela and a much

0:56.4

needed lesson in optimism from tortoises. People often say breakfast is the most important meal of the

1:06.5

day and that can be especially true for school children whose concentration and learning can suffer

1:12.1

without a nutritious start to the day.

1:14.8

One of the charities working to ensure they get just that, Mary's Meals,

1:18.9

recently reached a major milestone,

1:21.2

feeding 3 million children every day across 16 countries.

1:25.1

Their biggest program is in Malawi in Southeast Africa, and for many

1:28.8

students there, it's a reason to stay in school. Ella Bicknell has been there finding out more.

1:36.3

It's just before dawn here at Chilanga School for the Blind, which is Malawi's oldest school

1:41.1

for visually impaired children. Everyone is still asleep,

...

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