The Happy Pod: Saving lives with the man who saved mine
Global News Podcast
BBC
4.3 • 8.3K Ratings
🗓️ 24 January 2026
⏱️ 27 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Mesfin Dollar, who grew up in rural Ethiopia, had to travel to the US for two heart surgeries as a teenager. Twenty-five years later, by chance, he was reunited with the surgeon who saved his life -- when they both volunteered for a charity mission to his home country. Mesfin and Dr Jim Kauten went on to work together, performing hundreds of life-saving operations.
Also: a Paralympic athlete and musician who's blind talks of his joy at being sent a specially designed amplifier. It's thought to be the first to include braille on the controls, giving Anthony Ferraro the freedom to adjust the sound of his guitar himself.
How farmers in rural Malawi are getting help and advice from Articial Intelligence through a new chatbot.
Why a cow in Austria has found fame for using a broom to scratch her back -- suggesting cattle are far more intelligent than we think.
Plus a woman who's entered the male-dominated world of lorry driving in her fifties - and a girl who joined her father's photography business at the age of nine.
Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts. |
| 0:05.6 | This is the happy pod from the BBC World Service. |
| 0:11.8 | Hello, I'm Ankara and in this edition, how an Ethiopian man who needed two heart |
| 0:17.0 | operations as a child ended up working with the American surgeon who'd saved him. |
| 0:22.2 | It's a dream come through life. It's such an amazing privilege to serve together. |
| 0:28.0 | I applaud Mesfin for going back home and paying back. I'm very proud of him what he's done. |
| 0:34.9 | Also, I think I could cry all over again. |
| 0:37.6 | I have goosebumps and butterflies. |
| 0:39.9 | And it's just to see, it's history made. |
| 0:42.7 | When I opened it and touched the braille, it was just freedom. |
| 0:46.9 | A Paralympic athlete and guitarist, who's blind, talks of his joy at being sent a specially |
| 0:52.0 | designed amplifier. |
| 0:53.7 | Later on, how a new AI chatbot is helping farmers in rural areas of Malawi. |
| 0:58.8 | And do stick with me on this one, why a cow is using a broom to scratch its back |
| 1:05.1 | and why it's exciting scientists. |
| 1:07.1 | The surprising thing was she was using it as a multi-purpose tool. And the other example that we |
| 1:13.9 | know of in nature comes from the chimpanzees of Congo. And the girl who joined her dad's wedding |
| 1:19.3 | photography business at the age of just nine. It's an amazing feeling if your daughter actually |
| 1:25.1 | wants to come with you to work and then does such an amazing job at the age of nine. |
| 1:29.5 | I love taking photos. |
| 1:31.3 | You just see, like, the world through a different lens. |
| 1:38.5 | We start with an inspiring full circle story from Ethiopia. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.