By Karen Stiller

Podcasts are changing how Canadians learn about the world.

In case you’re unfamiliar, a podcast is simply an audio (or sometimes video) file available over the Internet. Once a listener subscribes to a podcast series, each episode is automatically downloaded to her computer or MP3 player. 

The real beauty of podcasts, however, is that you can listen to great global content anywhere and on your own schedule.

Turn up your computer speakers and dinner prep becomes a chance to learn about Australian artists. With iPod in hand, an afternoon of leaf raking becomes the perfect time to learn how climate change affects the world’s poor.

Check out the following podcast options—an expanded global view is just a click away.

CBC Dispatch
If you want to understand the story behind the headlines, this podcast will transport you to places like Rwanda, Somalia and Afghanistan. Host Rick MacInnes-Rae introduces listeners to reports from journalists around the world.

New episodes available weekly at iTunes or www.cbc.ca.

Lonely Planet Travelcast
Most would-be global travelers know about the great insights offered by Lonely Planet. Now you can listen to travel stories that take you from a call to prayer in the Middle East to swimming with seals off Scotland’s coast.

Listen in at www.lonelyplanet.com or iTunes.

NPR
Listen to podcasts on topics as diverse as eco-camping, laughing kookaburras and Honduran farmers from the National Public Radio. A weekly news quiz show called Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! will give you a laugh while driving home headlines from around the world.

Visit www.npr.org or iTunes.

BBC World Service Documentaries
You can access a wide range of BBC programming via podcasts, but the documentaries are a highlight. Each episode is about 20 minutes long and examines a current topic in depth.

Listen at www.bbc.co.uk or iTunes.

Podcast Village
Podcast Village gathers together podcasts about social justice produced by non-profit organizations and offers them up on one easily accessible website.

Visit www.podcastvillage.com for what will hopefully be a growing selection.

Stories for Kids
We know it’s not just the adults who have the iPods. Kids will enjoy this broad selection of stories from around the world, available in different languages, all with the goal of better understanding different cultures.

Listen at www.internationaltales.com or on iTunes.

Karen Stiller is a regular contributor to this website and is the host of The World Vision Parenting Podcast.