Driven by an overwhelming desire to have a baby... a Canadian woman hires a surrogate in India.  A business transaction that would be illegal in this country - commercial surrogacy in India is an ever expanding and increasingly controversial industry. Sound labour market or modern slavery?

Freelance journalist Tanya Springer travelled to India to look into this story. Her documentary, Of Mothers and Merchants, originally aired on CBC Radio's The Current. It received the Canadian Medical Association's Award for Excellence in International Health Reporting  in 2012.

Of Mothers And Merchants - Documentary by Tanya Springer

In Slovakia’s second largest city, Kosice, an 8-foot concrete separates the city’s Roma slum from the rest of the community.  The wall is not an age-old relic; it was built just 2 years ago, and represents a growing trend in Slovakia. At least 14 similar walls have been built in the country since 2008, segregating Roma slums from adjacent non-Roma villages, towns and cities. The walls symbolize the rise of anti-Roma rhetoric and segregation in Eastern Europe, despite the much reported 'Decade of Roma Inclusion' coming to a close in 2015. 

Written and produced by freelance journalist Tanya Springer, 'The Writing on the Wall' first aired on CBC Radio's The World This Weekend. 

The Writing on the Wall - Documentary by Tanya Springer

At first glance, it's an unlikely venue for a radical social experiment. Šarišské Michaľany is a quaint Slovak village, nestled into the rolling hills in the country's northeast. One road runs through the enclave of brightly coloured homes. There's not a single traffic light. Sheep graze in the frontyard of the local church. This is home to just under 3,000 people. 

The village has one school, for students in grades 1 through 9. And it's this school the world is watching. 

Until recently, and like most others in the country, the school in Šarišské Michaľany had strictly segregated classrooms. White students made up all academically advanced classes. The remedial classes were exclusively for the darker skinned Roma - or Gypsy - students. 

But last year, a federal court ruled that the segregation here violated Slovakia's anti-discrimination laws. It was a landmark ruling, hailed by human rights activists across Europe. 

Now, for the first time in the country's history, a school is being forced to integrate Roma and non-Roma students.

Freelance journalist Tanya Springer went to Šarišské Michaľany to see the experiment in action. Her documentary, called "The 'Other' Kids', originally aired on CBC Radio's The Sunday Edition. 

The Other Kids - Documentary by Tanya Springer

The Roma minority face marginalization and exclusion across Europe, but activists say the situation for Slovakian Roma is among the worst. One school is taking on the task of integrating some of the once-segregated Roma children into classes.

Freelance journalist Tanya Springer travelled to the small Slovak town of Šarišské Michaľany and filed this two-part series for PRI's The World. 

This two-part series originally aired on PRI's The World. 


No longer separate, still unequal - Pt. 1 - Documentary by Tanya Springer

The Roma minority face marginalization and exclusion across Europe, but activists say the situation for Slovakian Roma is among the worst. One school is taking on the task of integrating some of the once-segregated Roma children into classes.

Freelance journalist Tanya Springer travelled to the small Slovak town of Šarišské Michaľany and filed this two-part series for PRI's The World. 

No longer separate, still unequal - Pt. 2 - Documentary by Tanya Springer

If your perception of the Burning Man Festival is hippies doing drugs, making art, and dancing barefoot in the sand, you're not totally wrong. Traditionally, Burners live in tents and participate in a "gifting economy". But sold-out tickets over the past couple of years has led to higher prices and given birth to new participants with more money to spend and a different idea of what it means to be a Burner.

Burning Man goes Corporate - Documentary by Tanya Springer

The Doc Project is a CBC summer radio series that celebrates documentaries and audio storytelling.

Listen on CBC Radio One, Wednesdays @ 7:30 p.m., Thursdays @ 9:30 a.m.

The Doc Project, on CBC Radio One

An award-winning journalist and broadcast producer who is savvy in content creation, digital media, storytelling, and brand development. An accomplished writer, documentary producer and project manager. Will develop and deliver innovative solutions and compelling multi-platform that will attract and engage audiences.

Tanya.M.Springer