The Geographical Podcast Geographical

In this episode, Andrew Brooks of King's College London explains why using historical comparisons when contemplating African hospitals is lazy and misleading; we hear some good news from the world of conservation; and Bryony Cottam charts the adventures of botanist Chris Thorogood and his hunt for rafflesia, the world's largest and smelliest flower. 

In this weekly edition of the Geographical podcast, we read out three articles from the magazine or website.
In this episode, we hear how climate change is impacting the world's northernmost rivers; we learn about traditional Indigenous fire practices; and we meet the founder of a new group helping travellers connect with ordinary people in Iraq.

In this bonus episode of The Geographical Podcast: Editor's Picks,  associate editor Katie Burton speaks to Tommy Trenchard about his article on treating clubfoot.

In this weekly edition of the Geographical podcast we read out three articles from the magazine or website.

In this month's podcast, we visit some of the driest parts of the world, where ecosystems and the communities that depend on them face a growing threat: desertification. Human activity and our warming climate are driving changes in these regions, but some scientists are working on solutions to help restore degraded landscapes. 

This month we return to a country that no longer dominates headlines, but where the reality of war, and its impacts, are still very much felt. 
Syrian infrastructure, and its economy, have been devastated by the conflict that began in 2011. Though ISIS has now been largely defeated, and the Assad regime has regained control of much of the country, the conflict still continues and life in Syria is still extremely tough. 
In the first half of the podcast, we listen to an article from the August issue of Geographical magazine in which Nick Redmayne returns to the country for the first time in 10 years. Nick travels from Aleppo to Palmyra, Homs and Damascus, recording the sights and sounds of a country struggling to forget its past and to move towards a better future. 
In the second half of the podcast, we speak to Dr Rim Turkmani, a research fellow and director of the Syria conflict research programme at the London School of Economics, to find out more about the situation in Syria today, and the reality of life there out of the headlines. 
The long-read is read by Nick Redmayne.