THE PRODUCERS BLOG – ROBERT LAMB

World Challenge is now in its fifth year. Over that time we have received thousands of nominations. Sadly, we have only been able to film a small selection. But it's enough to know that there are millions of points of light out there. Watching the news is easy to forget that the vast majority of people go about their lives peacefully and productively. Our aim In World Challenge is briefly to bring stories of modest scale sustainable enterprise to the screens. Every year has thrown up big surprises. The diverse ways that ordinary people go about making a living without taxing the Earth's resources is uplifting. This year we feature the most diverse crop of stories yet. I've seen the footage coming in from all corners of the world and can testify that all deserve to win the World Challenge prizes. This time it's slightly different because we will be ending every programme with a ‘catch up’ on finalists featured in previous years. And the really good news is that they are still going strong and proving that 'sustainable' is a term with a lot of meaning. I don't envy BBC World News viewers who will have to make some very tough choices about their favourites for 2009.