This week, as part of the Be Hope Podcast Takeover, we talk to guerilla gardener and nature rights campaigner Kalpana Arias about her work and what makes her feel hopeful.

We also talk about new social media rules in the EU, a scheme to encourage more people to read in Singapore, and whether e-scooters should be banned.

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The WWF’s new Living Planet Report is called The Science of Hope, and Bex, Eve and Stevie talk through what it found, including wild tiger numbers rising by more than 70% since 2010, and what we can all do to help nature recover.

There’s also Dutch porridge maker Gina Saarberg winning the Golden Spurtle in the Highlands, a government investigation into why the UK keeps flopping at Eurovision for Real or Rubbish, a tiny chihuahua called Comando joining Mexico’s National Guard as hero of the week, and a big debate on whether it’s okay to boo sports stars.

Plus Week Junior editor Vanessa on the hunt for the magazine’s first ever Word of the Year, a very human-looking carrot and a papier-mâché bowl from the inbox, The Week Junior Real or Rubbish? as Book of the Week, and your chance to win a copy.

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South African lawyer Navi Pillay has won this year’s Nobel Peace Prize for her work on human rights and international law, and Bex, Eve and Dan talk through her life’s work, from defending people who fought against apartheid to six years as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, and how she found out she’d won at the same time as everyone else.

There’s also the Atlantic puffin, barn owl, buff-tailed bumblebee and hedgehog being picked by the public for the next Bank of England banknotes, a pool party in Nevada crashed by 296 puppies for Real or Rubbish, a 150-year-old “bendy” wych elm in County Down crowned UK Tree of the Year as hero of the week, and a big debate on whether more data centres should be built.

Plus what joy means to the team for The Week Junior’s Christmas cover competition, Stevie from Science+Nature with a spooky quiz on tarsiers and glowing scorpions and a call for your questions about time for Jim Al-Khalili, home-sewn trousers for a teddy bear and a reader in a vintage tram in Milan from the inbox, Girl with a Sabretooth Tiger by Jasbinder Bilan as Book of the Week, and your chance to win a copy.

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It's the Hope Issue! Bex is joined by Eve and Joe from The Week Junior.

Joe reveals how a potato-shaped sea creature from Antarctica could one day help scientists treat skin cancer, and Eve explains how thermal-imaging drones are being used in Germany to rescue baby deer hidden in tall grass.

There's also a big debate — should adults have screen-free days? — and a special visit from Editor Vanessa to mark the International Day of Hope.

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The UK has a new Prime Minister. The team explains who Andy Burnham is and how he landed the top job so quickly. There's also the Queen's surprise Christmas present for every Year 6 pupil, an electric guitar that may – or may not – have been made from the burned wood of Notre Dame, and a debate on whether pets should be allowed everywhere.

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The Commonwealth Games have come to a close, and Bex, Joe and Stevie look back at what happened. There’s also a hero rescue dog retiring, a nine-year-old author, and a big debate on whether it’s wrong to farm octopuses after a Spanish company dropped plans for the world’s first octopus farm. Plus the STEM shortlist for The Week Junior Book Awards, Pamela Butchart on this week’s Book of the Week, and your chance to win a copy.

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A new defence agreement has been signed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey, and Bex, Joe and Dan talk through what it means. There’s also a woman in Italy whose winning lottery ticket was rescued from a bin lorry, pufflings being saved in Iceland, Parkrun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt as hero of the week, and a big debate on whether cars have got too big. Plus the picture book shortlist for The Week Junior Book Awards, Rashmi Sirdeshpande on this week’s Book of the Week, and your chance to win a copy.

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A total solar eclipse passed over Greenland, Iceland and northern Spain, and Bex, Eve and Martha talk through what happened, including Eve’s trip to Spain to see it. There’s also an 18-year-old in Belgium who uncovered £7.5 million of gold while doing a summer job on a building site, robot cleaners for hire in San Francisco, trainee volunteer firefighter Talara as hero of the week, and a big debate on whether there’s too much football. Plus the audiobook shortlist for The Week Junior Book Awards, Catherine Doyle on this week’s Book of the Week, Believe, and your chance to win a copy.

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