Greenland: Economics and arctic exploration

It is a country you almost never hear about, but there are untold riches beneath all of Greenland’s ice and water. On this week’s Counting the Cost, we talk economics and arctic exploration with Kuupik Kleist, the prime minister of Greenland.

Its location, dependency and, most of all, its potential make Greenland a fascinating place. It is the most sparsely inhabited place in the world – with just 57,000 people in an area more than eight times the size of the UK, which has a population of more than 60 million people.

The economy of this autonomous country within the kingdom of Denmark is dependent upon two things: the export of fish and the help of the Danish government. 

But, the question we are asking is: Can Greenland start to break free of that dependency and exploit its considerable mineral riches?

Also, on this week’s show:

Scavenging for gold in Central America’s biggest municipal dump – the toxic water that can bring riches but also death.

And, would you like the internet and a whole lot more on your TV? We ask if the smart television is the next big thing?

Counting the Cost can be seen each week at the following times GMT: Friday: 2230; Saturday: 0930; Sunday: 0330; Monday: 1630. Click here for more on Counting the Cost.