Rare Earth

BBC Radio 4
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  • EARTH SCIENCES
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Environmental journalist Tom Heap and physicist Helen Czerski tackle major stories about our environment and wildlife, celebrate the wonder of nature and meet the people determined to keep it wonderful.

  1. 19/12/2025

    Love of a Cold Climate

    What does the arrival of winter mean for plants and animals? In this programme Tom Heap and Helen Czerski find out how wildlife survives the freezing temperatures and short days of the winter months. In a time of climate change, they also ask how warmer weather patterns are affecting the natural world at this time of year. Do we have to get used to the idea of winters without snow and ice, and will winter scenes of robins on snowy branches and children sledging down hillsides only exist on Christmas cards? Panel: Hugh Warwick, John Hammond, Val McDermid Producer: Emma Campbell Assistant Producer: Toby Field Produced in association with the Open University

    53 min

  2. 12/12/2025

    City Transport: Faster, Cheaper, Greener

    How we get around town has never been more political, with controversies over low traffic neighbourhoods and 15 minute cities, and rows about congestion charging and public transport breaking out all over the country. Tom and Helen are in search of the kind of consensus that makes things faster, cheaper and smoother for all of us. What works and what’s been a complete flop? Should we all stop moaning and get on our bikes? Who is the reshaping of traffic flows working - and not working - for? And could Milton Keynes have all the answers? With contributions from: Chris Boardman, Commissioner of Active Travel England. Stephen Potter, Emeritus Professor of Transport Strategy at the Open University Karen Lucas, Professor of Human Geography at the University of Manchester and Director of the Manchester Urban Institute Natalie Ashton. Senior Engagement Officer (North) at Transport for All Presenters: Tom Heap & Helen Czerski Producers: Beth Sagar-Fenton & Alasdair Cross Assistant Producer: Toby Field Editor: Alasdair Cross Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University.

    53 min

  3. 05/12/2025

    Hiding in Plain Sight

    We tend to think of wildlife as something which exists in the countryside or in nature reserves, but in fact there are plenty of plants and animals which thrive in an urban environment. In this programme Tom Heap and Helen Czerski explore the species that live alongside us in our towns and cities - finding out what makes a good habitat for them, asking why they're important, and discovering what advantages they bring to the human population. They're joined by a panel of experts: Professor Dawn Scott from Nottingham Trent University, writer Chris Fitch, and founder of Rewild My Street Siân Moxon, who's also Associate Professor Sustainable Architecture at London Metropolitan University. Producer: Emma Campbell Assistant Producer: Toby Field Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University

    53 min

  4. 01/12/2025

    The Evolution of Evolution

    190 years ago Charles Darwin stepped ashore in Falmouth at the end of a five year voyage that would transform the way in which we all think about nature. But how does his work and that of his fellow evolutionary theorist, Alfred Russel Wallace stand up in a world of climate change and habitat destruction? To find out, Tom Heap and Helen Czerski are joined by Sandra Knapp of the Natural History Museum, naturalist and broadcaster Mike Dilger and by Armand Marie Leroi, professor of evolutionary developmental biology at Imperial College, London. Producer: Alasdair Cross Assistant Producer: Toby Field Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University

    52 min

  5. 21/11/2025

    Fashioning the Future

    Whether you love to express yourself through fashion, or find getting dressed a chore, clothing isn’t optional - and every choice has an impact. So how do our fashion choices affect the environment? Who's paying the price? And - most importantly - how can we do things differently? Can individuals and business rethink how we see clothes to prioritise the planet? Tom Heap and Helen Czerski get beneath the surface on this huge subject with Patrick Grant, presenter of The Great British Sewing Bee, hugely influential professor and author Kate Fletcher, and Simon Platts, a sustainability consultant with decades of industry experience. After you listen to this you might never see your clothes the same way again. Featuring: Patrick Grant - Presenter and entrepreneur Kate Fletcher - Professor of Sustainability, Design and Fashion Systems in the Manchester School of Art at Manchester Metropolitan University Simon Platts – Sustainability consultant Skye Pennant Julian Ellis-Brown & Finlay Duncan Presented by Tom Heap & Helen Czerski Produced by Beth Sagar-Fenton & Toby Field Mixed by Ilse Lademann Editor: Alasdair Cross

    53 min

  6. 14/11/2025

    COP30: A New Hope?

    For thirty years world leaders have been gathering to negotiate the planet's route away from climate disaster. For thirty years carbon emissions have been rising and hopes have been fading. Is it time to admit defeat and search for a new strategy to persuade corporations and individuals to cut their pollution and save the planet? As the COP30 summit begins in Brazil, Helen Czerski and Tom Heap will be joined by an expert panel eager to come up with fresh solutions that could accelerate climate action and bring a unified, international response to the existential crisis of our time. With them are Nigel Topping, Chair of the UK Climate Change Committee, Corinne Le Quéré, professor of climate change science at the University of East Anglia, Anna Åberg from the Chatham House think tank and Georgina Rannard, BBC Climate and Science correspondent. Producer: Alasdair Cross Assistant Producer: Toby Field Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University

    53 min

  7. 26/09/2025

    Trains on Trial

    It's 200 years since the first passenger rail journey saw George Stephenson’s Locomotion No.1 travel 26 miles between Shildon, Darlington and Stockton. Environmentalists love trains - making a journey by rail can be up to 80% greener than doing it by car - and there are exciting new inventions hoping to make train travel even greener. But can we pin part of the blame for global warming on the invention of the railways in the first place? Presented by Tom Heap and Helen Czerski Produced by Beth Sagar-Fenton Assistant Producer: Toby Field Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University

    54 min

  8. 19/09/2025

    Great Migrations

    New technology gives fresh insights into the great animal migrations. Tom Heap and Helen Czerski discuss the great spectacles of the bird, mammal and insect worlds and consider how they're changing in an era of climate change and habitat destruction. They're joined by insect migration expert, Will Hawkes, David Barrie, author of Incredible Journeys and the leader of the ICARUS satellite monitoring project, Martin Wikelski from the University of Konstanz. Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent reports from the dangerous songbird migration route over Cyprus while ecologist and concept developer Mark van Heukelm reveals the secrets of the extraordinary fish doorbell and Martha Kearney visits Britain's migration hotspot, Fair Isle. Producer: Alasdair Cross Assistant Producers: Toby Field and Georgia Christie Rare Earth is produced in association with the Open University

    53 min
See All (53)

About

Environmental journalist Tom Heap and physicist Helen Czerski tackle major stories about our environment and wildlife, celebrate the wonder of nature and meet the people determined to keep it wonderful.

Information

  • Creator
    BBC Radio 4
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2025
  • Episodes
    53
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © (C) BBC 2025
  • Show Website
    Rare Earth

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