A group of Afghan women in headscarves on a street, alongside a veiled woman selling colorful plastic cups from a stroller

Afghan women’s voices under five years of Taliban rule

Full Episode
49:33

A group of young women walk past a woman selling plastic water jugs along a street on the eve of the fifth anniversary of the US withdrawal and the start of Taliban rule in Kabul, Afghanistan, Aug. 14, 2026.

Nava Jamshidi/AP

An Afghan activist who ran the last remaining safe house and shelter for abused women in Kabul until it was forced to shutter last December is still doing her best to voice the aspirations of Afghan girls and women; but she’s wondering if it’s now time to leave. Also, a group of female bird guides in Uganda set a global example for the business. And, a city in Thailand that’s taken over by monkeys. Plus, what do the wrinkles on an elephant’s trunk mean?

In This Episode

‘I promised the women of Afghanistan … that I will be their voice’
13:17
Women bird guides in Uganda set a global example
6:05
A song for a beautiful, yet angry, peacock
1:46
Monkey ‘mafia bosses’ rule parts of this Thai city
6:29
Wrinkles on an elephant’s trunk are not a result of aging
6:20
An urban band captures the jungle-like sounds of an elephant
0:53
Barcelona’s pigeon super-feeders
4:35
Giant tortoises return to Floreana Island in the Galapagos
7:30