DW presents a brand new series! Our correspondents profile local leaders, activists, artists, musicians, rich and poor, ordinary and extraordinary people from around the globe, whose lives tell us more about the world we live in.

Check out the first inspiring story to find out why this Kurdish mayor has been stripped of office and faces scores of court cases.

Jail is ‘occupational hazard’ for Kurdish mayor

Darko and his indie rock band Side Effect are singing for change in Myanmar. Despite looser censorship laws, he doesn’t feel totally free. But the band’s first-ever tour abroad has given them courage to continue.

Listen to the report by Nadine Wojcik in Berlin:

Singer raises his voice in Myanmar

 

 

Read more about Side Effect in the DW article.

As an upper-class Shia Muslim, Jihan Kazerooni was far removed from Bahrain’s Arab Spring revolution. But when she learned of human rights abuses in her country, she founded a rehabilitation group for torture victims.

The Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting provided a grant for Reese Erlich’s coverage of Bahrain. Listen to the report by Reese Ehrlich from Manama, Bahrain:

Bahraini crosses class borders to help torture victims

 

Children of prostitutes often end up working in the trade themselves. But some brothel children in India, who have launched a unique handwritten magazine, are making efforts to escape the trap.

 

Read the article here.

Six out of 10 Brazilians know a woman who’s experienced domestic violence, according to a recent survey. Hiphop artist André Luis Machados in Rio de Janeiro uses his music to get people to rethink violence against women.

Listen to the report by Naomi Conrad in Rio de Janeiro:

Brazilian hiphop artist promotes respect for women

 

The Colombian city of Neiva is located in the valley of the Magdalena River. For the past few decades, a spate of terrorist attacks, corruption cases and violence against women have kept the city in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. But two young journalists based in the city are trying to change that. Hernando Flórez and Luis Eduardo Manrique founded the Cinexcusa Neiva Film Festival seven years ago as a way to get people to critically engage with the social and political issues affecting them.

With fighting increasing in recent months, more Kurds in Turkey are seeking refuge in temporary camps. But a 27-year-old Swedish-Kurd is making the people’s lives there a bit more bearable – with his rap music.

Listen to the report by Jodi Hilton in Diyarbakir, Turkey:

Rapper brings hope to Kurdish refugees

 

Playing the piano, going for walks and doing household chores are what make Daniel in New York an everyday hero for Alzheimer’s patient Byron O’Connell. Now he’s making a film to encourage those dealing with the disease.

Listen to the report from Laura Postma in New York:

Dignity in disease

Pictures: J.P. Dobrin

Byron has helped Dan see people differently

More on Daniel Davy’s blog.

 

Jayne Kennedy, 24, saw that members of the Orang Asli ethnic minority in Malaysia were living in unstable and unsafe homes. So she got her friends together and founded the organization EPIC Collaborative, which builds sustainable new homes for families there. Jayne used to work in the advertising industry, but found that improving people’s lives, just a few at a time, was a lot more rewarding.

Listen to the report by Subir Che Selia near Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia:

The gift of a home

Learn more about EPIC Collaborative on their website.