Stories on why we find it so hard to save our own planet, and how we might change that.
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Does climate change have an ‘image problem’?
Images are a key part of communicating climate change, and shape how we understand the crisis unfolding around us. But while lots of research has been done into the language we use to talk about climate, images are often left out of the conversation. As a result, over time, a limited set of images have come to dominate how we think of climate change – like polar bears and melting glaciers - which haven’t kept up with the changing conversation about the crisis. All too often, these images tend to be abstract, removed from our daily lives and typically don’t feature people - when we know that climate change is happening all around us, all the time, and is very much a story with people and communities at its core. So how can we develop a new, and more effective visual language for climate change? What kind of images ‘work’ to both convey the urgency of the crisis as well as inspire behavioural change? And what are some of the ways in which photographers are seeking to represent the crisis in a way that transforms apathy into action? Guests: Cristina Mittermeier, photographer and conservationist Arati Kumar-Rao, National Geographic Explorer and photographer Toby Smith, Programme Lead at Climate Visuals Saffron O’Neill, University of Exeter Presenter: Neal Razzell Producer: Zoe Gelber Researcher: Lizzie Frisby Series Producer: Alex Lewis
Why do we find it so hard to take action on climate change?
For decades scientists have warned us about the risks of climate change. Yet humans are badly psychologically designed to face up to the challenge of changing our behaviour. Research shows that constant threats of impending doom make us hit the snooze button rather than waking us up. And our evolutionary shortcomings mean we respond to the threat of immediate danger rather than what might happen in the future. So what can actually work to help us change our status quo? Presenters Kate Lamble and Neal Razzell are joined by: George Marshall, Founder of Climate Outreach and author of Don’t Even Think About It: Why Our Brains Are Wired to Ignore Climate Change Elke Weber, Professor of Psychology at Princeton University Per Espen Stoknes, Psychologist, Economist and author of What We Think About When We Try Not To Think About Global Warming. Producer: Sophie Eastaugh Reporter: Frank Walter Researcher: Natasha Fernandes Series Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Emma Rippon Sound Engineer: Graham Puddifoot
What role is overpopulation playing in the climate crisis?
If there were fewer of us, would the amount of greenhouse gasses we emit reduce? It’s a question that often creeps up in discussions about climate change. Studies show that the global population will decline eventually and populations in many rich nations are already declining. However, 11,000 scientists signed a paper warning of “untold suffering due to the climate crisis” unless society transforms, including the reversal of population growth. But an analysis by the United Nations found that affluence has a greater impact on the climate than population. When we talk about overpopulation, what are we really saying and where does the conversation go from here? Presenters Neal Razzell and Kate Lamble are joined by: Nyovani Madise, head of the Malawi office of the African Institute for Development Policy. Anu Ramaswami, professor of civil and environmental engineering at Princeton. Arvind Ravikumar, professor in energy transition and climate policy at the University of Texas. Producer: Darin Graham Reporter: Rajesh Joshi Series producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: Tom Brignell
Counting the cost of fashion
The journey from catwalk, to wardrobe, to landfill is getting shorter and shorter. Our demands for fast fashion mean around 100 billion garments are produced every year. We’re buying more, then wearing them less often. Many will end up in the trash. Not only that, there’s been a big growth in clothes being made out of synthetic materials originating from crude oil. In this edition we ask can fashion cost less to the climate? Speaking to Kate Lamble and Sophie Eastaugh are- • Vanessa Friedmann New York Times Fashion Editor • Lily Cole Fashion model, actress and podcast host- ‘Who Cares Wins’ • Phillip Meister - Quantis Sustainability Consulting • Claire Bergkampf – Textile Exchange Producer: Jordan Dunbar Researcher: Natasha Fernandez Series Producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Emma Rippon
What can we learn from the fight to fix the ozone hole?
In 1985 British scientist Jonathan Shanklin and colleagues published a study that shocked the world. The study revealed a hole in the Earth’s atmosphere right over Antarctica. It had been caused over time by chemicals known as CFCs, used in things like fridges, air conditioning units and aerosol cans. These were destroying the layer of ozone in the stratosphere which protects us from most of the sun's ultraviolet radiation - without it, cases of skin cancer would soar. Less than two years after the discovery, world leaders signed an agreement called the Montreal Protocol, committing to phase out CFCs. It has been described as the most successful international treaty of all time - every UN country has signed up, and ozone is expected to return to its previous levels around the middle of the century. So what can we learn from how we tackled the ozone hole in how we address climate change? Presenters Neal Razzell and Kate Lamble are joined by: Jonathan Shanklin, Meterologist at the British Antarctic Survey, Dr Paul Newman, chief scientist for Earth Science at the Nasa Goddard Space Flight Center, Tina Birmpili, former executive secretary of the Ozone Secretariat, Dr Anita Ganesan, associate professor of Atmospheric Chemistry at the University of Bristol. Producer: Sophie Eastaugh Researcher: Natasha Fernandes
Could giving nature rights help fight climate change?
Around the world a growing number of rivers, mountains, nature reserves, even marshes have all been given legal rights. It’s an idea that’s being tested in courtrooms around the world. But to what extent might this help reduce the worst impacts of climate change and help us adapt to a warmer and wetter world? Presenters Kate Lamble and Neal Razzell are joined by: Natalia Greene , Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature John DX Lapid, reporter in the Philippines Liza Osorio, lawyer Jacinta Ruru, Professor of Law at the University of Otago, Aotearoa/New Zealand Jan Darpo, Professor of Environmental Law, Uppsala University, Sweden Producer: Darin Graham Researcher: Natasha Fernandes Series producer: Ros Jones Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: James Beard
What did we learn at COP26?
The lights have come on in Glasgow, the bar is closed and it's time to head home. Now the 26th Conference of Parties is over we ask what's really been decided and where do we go from here? In discussion with our presenters Neal Razzell and Kate Lamble are; Jeffrey Sachs - Director Earth Institute, Columbia University Dr Rose Mutiso - Research Director, Energy For Growth Hub Kenya Helen Mountford - Vice President, Climate & Economics, World Resources Institute
How’s it going at COP26?
Climate negotiators from all over the world are gathered in Glasgow for the global summit to discuss how we can curb the worst effects of global warming. The Conference of Parties (or COP26) has now reached its half-way point. Kate Lamble and Neal Razzell take the temperature on what has been discussed so far.
What do young activists want from COP?
This week will bring around 25,000 world leaders, business people, policy shapers and campaigners together in Glasgow for COP26, a global climate summit that’s seen as a crucial moment in the fight to curb global warming. Among them will be young activists who in the last few years have made global headlines with the School Strike for Climate movement. Beginning with Greta Thunberg in Sweden in 2018, millions of young people have taken to the streets to try to get their voices heard. We hear from three young people devoted to climate activism. In the Philippines, Mitzi Jonelle Tan grew up amid severe typhoons that would flood her bedroom. In India, Disha Ravi saw her grandparents struggle to get enough water for their farm. And in the United States, 19-year-old Jerome Foster has been invited to join President Biden’s Environmental Justice Advisory Council. Do these young activists feel their voices are being heard? What action do they most want to see from world leaders at COP – and how realistic are their demands? Presenters Kate Lamble and Jordan Dunbar talk to Disha Ravi, Mitzi Jonelle Tan, Jerome Foster and the BBC’s Environment Correspondent, Matt McGrath. Producer: Sophie Eastaugh Researcher: Natasha Fernandes Series producer: Alex Lewis Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: Neil Churchill
What will it take for countries to keep their climate promises?
World leaders are gathering in Glasgow for a global climate summit to agree on how to further limit the threat of global warming. Experts say the conference, known as COP26, could be the last chance for governments to agree on a way to cut global emissions in half by 2030. It’s also an opportunity to assess how well they have been doing with previous targets to prevent average global temperatures from rising beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius, agreed at a big climate meeting in Paris in 2015. According to the Climate Action Tracker, The Gambia is thought to be one of the only countries with plans in line with 1.5 degrees. What further commitments will leaders from the rest of the world arrive with at COP26 and what will it take for countries to keep those climate promises? Presenters Kate Lamble and Katie Prescott are joined by: Sandra Guzman, consultant, Climate Policy Initiative. Jennifer Morgan, executive director, Greenpeace International. Niklas Höhne, founding partner, New Climate Institute Producer: Darin Graham Researcher: Natasha Fernandes Reporter: Thomas Naadi Series producers: Alex Lewis and Rosamund Jones Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: Neil Churchill
Putin and the planet
Russia is the world’s fourth-largest emitter of greenhouse gasses. Any talk of changing that needs to focus on President Vladimir Putin. Under his leadership, Russia has become a fossil fuel powerhouse. Since he took office in 2000, Russian oil production has risen by 70%. Today, the state is dependent on its revenues. Four in every ten dollars Moscow spends comes from fossil fuels. So the idea that Russia needs to shift away from fossil fuels to prevent the worst effects of climate change strikes at the very heart of Mr Putin’s power. But Russia is already suffering more than most from the effects of climate change. Arctic temperatures are rising faster than the global average, forests the size of countries are going up in smoke. Two thirds of the country’s permafrost - permanently frozen ground - has roads, homes, schools, oil and pipelines and even nuclear reactors are built on it. And the permafrost is starting to melt. Putin’s latest national security document for the first time mentions climate change as a risk. But can he do what is necessary to prevent things from getting worse? Contributors - Angelina Davydova - Environmental Journalist Chris Miller - Director of the Foreign Policy Research Institute’s Eurasia Program Vladimir Chuprov - Director of the Energy Program, Greenpeace Russia Presenters: Neal Razzell and Kate Lamble Reporter - Olga Dobrovidova Producer: Jordan Dunbar
Why can't we stop gas flaring?
There are thought to be over 10,000 gas flares around the world that contribute to global warming by emitting tonnes of carbon dioxide and methane. Flared gas is a by-product of oil extraction and is frequently used as a method of eliminating unwanted gasses in countries such as Albania, Algeria, Libya, Iraq, Russia and Nigeria. Yet, year after year deadlines set to stop the practice are missed. The oil industry says better infrastructure is needed to stop flaring and some of the world’s largest producers of oil have committed to ending flaring by 2030. What will it take for that to happen? Presenters Neal Razzell and Kate Lamble are joined by: Bjørn Otto Sverdrup, chair, Oil and Gas Climate Initiative Mark Davis, CEO of Capterio. Sharon Wilson, senior field advocate, Earthworks Producer: Darin Graham Reporter: Fyneface Dumnamene Series producer: Rosamund Jones Editor: Emma Rippon Sound engineer: Tom Brignell
What made us doubt climate change?
Recent research has shown that oil companies knew about the threat of climate change decades ago. Yet over forty years, it has been revealed that they contributed millions of dollars to think tanks and campaigns to spread doubt and misinformation about climate change – its existence, the extent of the problem, and its cause. Across the US, these revelations have sparked a wave of lawsuits against the fossil fuel industry, demanding accountability for climate change – and now a US congressional committee has started to investigate. Executives from the world’s biggest oil companies and trade groups have been called to testify before US lawmakers in October this year, in an inquiry modelled on the tobacco hearings of the 1990s, which paved the way for far tougher nicotine regulations. This week, The Climate Question looks over the evidence behind these allegations – and asks whether Big Oil might finally be facing a reckoning for its role in the climate crisis. Presenters: Neal Razzell and Phoebe Keane Producer: Zoe Gelber Series Editor: Ros Jones Editor: Emma Rippon
What homes to build in a climate-changed world?
Heatwaves and floods are becoming more frequent around the world. But are the homes being built today taking that into account? The Climate Question considers the impact that living in a building threatened by rising water or constructed so that you bake in the heat has. And it asks why planners and developers in many countries have been so reluctant to adapt. Where are lessons being learnt and will other places follow their lead?
What role has the media played in the climate crisis?
For decades, around the world, climate change coverage has been thin. Guests discuss why the media in petrol states, in particular, have struggled to tell that story. Science illiteracy in newsrooms has led to a mixture of climate silence and false balance in print and on air. But, even when the science has not been contested, the way the crisis has been reported may have caused audiences to turn away. Can climate coverage learn lessons from how that other hugely consequential science story of our time – the pandemic - has been told? Contributors : Mark Herstsgaard, co-founder Covering Climate Now Marianna Poberezhskaya, associate professor Nottingham Trent University Kris De Meyer, neuroscientist Kings College London Wolfgang Blau, The Reuters Institute Presenter: Graihagh Jackson Producer: Rosamund Jones Editor: Emma Rippon