The Optimist

The Optimist

What's that next innovation that's going to change the world? This podcast is brimming with ideas that'll that'll revolutionise how we produce energy, learn, restore and care for the environment, and so much more! Hosted by Jack Sheeran, each episode will explore a solution or idea which could change our lives forever.

Episodes

  1. S2/EP5: Making Batteries Renewable - Aceleron Energy

    10/09/2021

    S2/EP5: Making Batteries Renewable - Aceleron Energy

    It’s official, we’re going electric in a bid to combat Climate Change. If this is going to work we need somewhere to store all the power that’s going to be generated from Nuclear and Renewable energy sources. However, there must be a better solution out there than the batteries we currently use to store electricity, which often fail and have to be thrown away. Jack chats to one of the founders of Aceleron Energy, a clean technology company that’s created a renewable lithium-ion battery which can be upgraded, repaired and recycled - meaning it never has to be thrown away. Want to discover more about Aceleron Energy? Take a look at their website here: https://www.aceleronenergy.com/ Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    26 min
  2. S2/EP4: The Passive Housing Solution - EcoVert Solutions

    03/09/2021

    S2/EP4: The Passive Housing Solution - EcoVert Solutions

    According to the UK Government the residential sector accounted for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions in 2019. But there must be alternative ways of building housing that will help us cut this figure down to almost zero? Jack chats to the founder of EcoVert Solutions, one of the few builders in the UK certified to design and build ultra-low energy Passive Homes - a form of housing which requires very little heating and cooling. Want to discover more about EcoVert Solutions? Take a look at their website here: https://www.ecovertsolutions.co.uk/ Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    29 min
  3. S2/EP3: The Future Of Satellites Is Micro - Open Cosmos

    27/08/2021

    S2/EP3: The Future Of Satellites Is Micro - Open Cosmos

    Space is no longer the final frontier and could soon be a place which humans are visiting regularly. But what opportunities does space offer for helping to solve issues and challenges back here on Earth? Jack chats to one of the team at Open Cosmos, a company which offers entrepreneurs, researchers, governments and companies the ability to use microsatellites in a bid to solve some of Earth’s biggest challenges. Want to discover more about Open Cosmos? Take a look at their website here: https://www.open-cosmos.com/ Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    31 min
  4. S2/EP2: Capturing Our Carbon - Treeconomy

    20/08/2021

    S2/EP2: Capturing Our Carbon - Treeconomy

    Figures from the World Meteorological Organisation show that the human race has emitted about 375 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere since the start of the industrial revolution. If we’re going to have any chance of tackling climate change then we need to start removing the emissions we’ve added to the atmosphere using the latest solutions available to us. Jack chats to one of the founders of Treeconomy, a nature based carbon capture company which aims to incentivise landowners and offset buyers to harness the power of trees. Want to discover more about Treeconomy? Take a look at their website here: https://www.treeconomy.co/ Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    32 min
  5. S2/EP1: Making Stuff From Potato Waste - Chip[s] Board

    13/08/2021

    S2/EP1: Making Stuff From Potato Waste - Chip[s] Board

    According to the Food & Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations, nearly a third of all food produced in the world is thrown away. But there are solutions out there to make sure that the food we don’t eat doesn’t go to waste. Jack chats to one of the founders of Chip[s] Board, a company which creates a revolutionary bio-plastic from food we throw away. Want to discover more about Chip[s] Board? Take a look at their website here: https://www.chipsboard.com/ Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    35 min

  6. SEASON 2 TRAILER

    S2 Trailer: The Optimist Podcast is back with a Second Season

    Jack Sheeran is back with season two of The Optimist Podcast and this time he’s been joined by an exciting array of guests who are at the forefront of their industries creating the solutions which are going to help us tackle some of the biggest issues facing us today. Make sure you subscribe so you don’t miss out on this exciting new season! Want to get in touch with Jack? Drop us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com

    1 min

  7. 23/06/2020

    S1/EP3: Work - Smart Offices, Universal Basic Income & Robots

    Lockdown has meant that many of us have had to work from home. But what if companies and organisations took this as an opportunity to adopt new technologies & working practices that could change how we work forever? This time Jack Sheeran explores the smart offices of the future, giving all adults a universal basic income, and the rise of robotics within the workplace Get in touch by dropping us a voice message at: https://anchor.fm/the-optimist or send us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com.  The Future of Work; Jobs and Skills in 2030: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/303335/the_future_of_work_key_findings_edit.pdf Majority of UK workers sit at their desks: https://workplaceinsight.net/uk-office-workers-may-sit-at-their-desk-for-up-to-nine-hours-a-day/ Five Trends Shaping the Future of Work: https://www.ie.edu/insights/articles/the-five-trends-shaping-the-future-of-work/ How have robots changed manufacturing? https://science.howstuffworks.com/robots-changed-manufacturing.htm World Economic Forum; Eight Futures: http://www3.weforum.org/docs/WEF_FOW_Eight_Futures.pdf Will a robot take my job?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2aocKWrPG8 UK’s furlough scheme: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-52819591 Women in the Workplace: https://wiw-report.s3.amazonaws.com/Women_in_the_Workplace_2019.pdf Finland’s basic income experiment: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2019/02/the-results-finlands-universal-basic-income-experiment-are-in-is-it-working/ Did Finland’s basic income experiment work: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nPQM54oPMg TU Simple Promo Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXm7336Wtcw Chinese startup TuSimple: https://futurism.com/chinese-startup-tusimple-to-challenge-teslas-driverless-trucks-in-arizona Universal basic income: https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190719-universal-basic-income What does the future workplace look like: https://www.raconteur.net/business-innovation/office-design-future Smart offices: https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20190719-smart-offices Pepper Robot: https://www.softbankrobotics.com/emea/en/pepper Pepper Robot promo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjHqCq9orRU Double Robotics: https://www.doublerobotics.com/ Robot Journalists: https://techcrunch.com/2016/07/03/ap-sports-is-using-robot-reporters-to-cover-minor-league-baseball/ Will robots take my job - clip from start blurb: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f2aocKWrPG Elon Musk on robots: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OIgWYXZbSw Robots to create jobs: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5JsWnW9H1E Universal basic income: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yzs9IljUZiU Unemployment & lockdown: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F_1YUksgZnQ Amazon Alexa promo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=137&v=ViB3XhsTLuo&feature=emb_title  Andrew Yang on Universal Basic Income: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhArPPmHjCs UNimate News Report: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxsWeVtb-JQ

    23 min

  8. 20/05/2020

    S1/EP2: Energy - Decentralised Energy, Mini Nuclear Power Stations & People Power

    Half of all our electricity in the UK was generated from low carbon sources in 2019 - but what can we do to increase that? In episode 2 Jack Sheeran takes a look at innovations that could change how we produce and consume electricity, including: decentralised energy grids, mini nuclear power stations, energy generating roads & nano generators.  Get in touch by dropping us a voice message at: https://anchor.fm/the-optimist or send us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com. Want to know more? Check out these sources we used to make this episode: Invention of electricity: https://sciencestruck.com/history-when-was-electricity-invented History of the water wheel: https://www.thoughtco.com/history-of-waterwheel-4077881 WHat is electricity: https://www.thoughtco.com/what-is-electricity-4019643 UK electricity in 2019: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/875400/Electricity_Q4_2019.pdf 100% renewable by 2050: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/09/countries-100-renewable-energy-by-2050 Pavegen: https://pavegen.com/about/ Energy generating pavement in london: https://futurism.com/energy-generating-pavement-just-became-a-reality-in-london Developing roads that can generate power from passing traffic: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/09/170918111830.htm How Nanogenerators work: https://electronics.howstuffworks.com/nanogenerator.htm History of electricity: https://www.instituteforenergyresearch.org/history-electricity/ https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2017/jul/03/hinkley-point-c-is-22bn-over-budget-and-a-year-behind-schedule-edf-admits Rolls-Royce plans mini nuclear reactors by 2029: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-51233444 UK small modular reactors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnD4Js5m0pE&t=2s Miniature Nuclear Power Plants in the US: https://www.sciencealert.com/miniature-modular-nuclear-power-plants-are-being-implemented-in-the-us Democratisation of energy: https://medium.com/electron-blogchain/the-democratisation-of-energy-four-key-technologies-to-follow-it-through-d51eff224b7d SOLshare: https://www.me-solshare.com/ Would you buy electricity from your neighbour (Australia): https://www.news.com.au/finance/would-you-buy-electricity-from-your-neighbour/news-story/31d16e54e7547db49f3d1042d4371d69 Can emerging economies leapfrog the energy transition: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/01/can-emerging-economies-leapfrog-the-energy-transition/ Trump on coal: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XnSlzBcLLGs Trump on fossil fuels: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo0yBzzX5Jg Australia & fossil fuels: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qUrdBPnfhuA Bernie sanders on fossil fuel companies: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXIycmnWBZo Air pollution in india: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9E-aJeRLmW8 Electricity advert: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQe20w5cS3g Pavegen promo brand video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-DIqceN3stQ&t SOLshare: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iATxyo-NQK8 NuScale Promo Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LVLImWGCQQ NuScale video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jt1UQggqA0

    23 min

  9. 01/05/2020

    S1/EP1: Food - Vertical Farms, Insects & Veggie Meat

    Food production is going to have to increase by more than 70% by the time we reach 2050, according to the United Nations.  So for the first episode of The Optimist Jack Sheeran takes a look at innovations that could revolutionise what food we eat and how it's produced, including: vertical farming, vegetarian meat and insects & bugs. Get in touch by dropping us a voice message at: https://anchor.fm/the-optimist or send us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com.  Want to know more? Check out these sources we used to make this episode:  World’s population expected to hit 8.5 billion by 2030: https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/blog/2015/07/un-projects-world-population-to-reach-8-5-billion-by-2030-driven-by-growth-in-developing-countries/  How to feed the world by 2050: http://www.fao.org/fileadmin/templates/wsfs/docs/expert_paper/How_to_Feed_the_World_in_2050.pdf How much food does the world need? https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/05/food-how-much-does-the-world-need/ Food Loss & Food Waste: http://www.fao.org/food-loss-and-food-waste/en/ Vertical Harvest: https://www.verticalharvestjackson.com/ BBC Vertical Farming: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20170405-how-vertical-farming-reinvents-agriculture Underground mushroom farm: https://www.businessinsider.com/underground-farm-paris-grows-vegetables-cycloponics-la-caverne-2017-12?r=US&IR=T Aerofarms: https://aerofarms.com/ Why vertical farming is growing in the UK: https://www.fwi.co.uk/arable/crop-management/why-vertical-farming-is-growing-in-the-uk Number of vegetarians in UK: https://vegsoc.org/info-hub/facts-and-figures/ Impossible foods: https://impossiblefoods.com/heme/ Quorn: https://www.quorn.co.uk/company Quarter of evening meals vegan/vegetarian: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42973870 Ultra-processed fake meat: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2018/feb/12/quorn-revolution-rise-ultra-processed-fake-meat Third of Britons have stopped/reduced eating meat: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2018/nov/01/third-of-britons-have-stopped-or-reduced-meat-eating-vegan-vegetarian-report Modern Entomophagy: https://people.howstuffworks.com/entomophagy2.htm Edible Insects Farming: https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/insect-farming IKEA tries out insects: https://www.businessinsider.com/ikea-making-burgers-hot-dogs-meatballs-bugs-2018-3?r=US&IR=T#the-flavors-include-coriander-basil-and-mint-theyre-sweetened-with-apple-juice-fresh-apples-and-lemon-juice-space10-also-makes-popsicles-for-dessert-10 Bug burgers in Switzerland: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2017/08/16/bug-burgers-switzerland-says-insects-whats-dinner/572553001/ The Grub Kitchen: http://www.grubkitchen.co.uk/ Growth in number of insects being eaten: https://www.foodmanufacture.co.uk/Article/2016/04/21/Insects-as-human-food-set-for-tasty-growth What is Quorn: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3wlprJOfNDA Heme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=53&v=n6U4H8WC9jg&feature=emb_title Quorn Mince: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQ7Nfyt0qkw Subpod: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v_3VUDXbGH0 Aerofarms: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VgH3HGqJqFY

    22 min

  10. TRAILER

    Introducing The Optimist!

    What's that next innovation that's going to change the world? This podcast is brimming with ideas that'll revolutionise how we produce energy, learn, restore and care for the environment, work, keep healthy, and so much more! Hosted by Jack Sheeran, each episode will focus on a different theme and highlight a couple of innovations which could change our lives forever. Get in touch by dropping us a voice message at: https://anchor.fm/the-optimist or send us an email via: theoptimistpodcast@gmail.com.

    1 min

Trailers

About

What's that next innovation that's going to change the world? This podcast is brimming with ideas that'll that'll revolutionise how we produce energy, learn, restore and care for the environment, and so much more! Hosted by Jack Sheeran, each episode will explore a solution or idea which could change our lives forever.

Information

  • Creator
    The Optimist
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2021
  • Episodes
    10
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The Optimist
  • Show Website
    The Optimist