Green Thinking podcasts bring new approach to climate questions

2021 is an important year for tackling the climate and nature emergency. The eyes of the world turn to Glasgow for the UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) summit in November.

The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), part of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), has teamed up with BBC Radio 3 to create Green Thinking, a new series of podcasts. They aim to help stimulate the conversations and action needed to meet the global challenge and are hosted by Professor Des Fitzgerald from the University of Exeter and Dr Eleanor Rosamund Barraclough from Durham University.

The Green Thinking podcasts explore a wide range of intriguing topics associated with the climate challenge, through fresh informal conversations with some of the UK’s leading researchers and experts. The series launches on 3 June 2021, just ahead of World Environment Day (5 June 2021).

The podcasts will provoke, inform and engage. They will explore cutting-edge research into unexpected angles; issues related to the global challenge and where solutions could lie.

BBC Radio 3 – Free Thinking, Green Thinking aims to engage and inspire listeners to discover and do more, to help build a brighter future. Covering topics from ecological emergencies to the future of fashion, and from environmental management in conflict zones to the world of work.

Professor Fitzgerald said: “I’m incredibly honoured to be part of the Green Thinking podcast. It shows how critical arts and humanities research is absolutely laser-focused on some of the most pressing real-world issues facing us all today, including the consequences of climate change and global heating.

“If delegates at COP26 listen to the podcast, and I really hope they do, they’ll be able to help themselves to some really transformative, practical insights on some of the major topics of the conference.”

University of Exeter experts work to create solutions to the environment and climate emergency. Researchers are leading the way in interdisciplinary research to better understand and tackle environment and climate change. By mobilising expertise in research and education they are accelerating global action in partnership with governments, businesses and communities.

AHRC’s Head of Public Engagement, Mike Collins, said: “Some of the greatest insights and advances come where different disciplines meet. For example, the power of storytelling combined with years of careful research has created a tipping point in how the world sees plastic pollution and its impact on our oceans in particular.

“Tapping into the work supported across UKRI, from engineering and medicine to social science and the arts and humanities, the Green Thinking series aims to inform and inspire a growing audience of listeners concerned about the climate-related challenges ahead.”

The podcast series is launched on 3 June 2021 with a special Free Thinking programme on BBC Radio 3, just ahead of World Environment Day. The series comprises 26 episodes, the majority of which are 26 minutes long, and will run through to COP26 in November.

The series will be available via BBC Radio 3’s Arts and Ideas podcast feed, with some broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

The first episodes cover the future of work in a post-Covid-19 world and the implications for our environment, and whether global warming increasingly to blame for conflict and disputes over land and resources?