The Climate Ambassador Podcast The Climate Ambassador Podcast

It was such an honour to chat with Professor Mike Berners-Lee, of the Institute for Social Futures at Lancaster University and director and principal consultant of Small World Consulting. Mike is the author of environmental books including The Burning Question, How Bad are Bananas?, There Is No Planet B, a contributor to Greta Thunberg’s The Climate Book, as well as numerous speaking, radio and TV appearances. 

We covered a lot of ground, with brilliant insights all the way. Topics discussed include carbon footprints, carbon-offsetting, Greenwashing, the rebound effect - and more - with Mike always delving into the reasons why things are so and what solutions are required, as well as how having a change of mindset and a real look at our values are much more important than any of the global decarbonising efforts underway. This is an entertaining chat, honestly looking at where we are, while offering valuable insights for lasting and meaningful change.


Links:
https://www.sw-consulting.co.uk
https://howbadarebananas.com
There Is No Planet B (theresnoplanetb.net)
www.burningquestion.info
https://theclimatebook.org
https://twitter.com/MikeBernersLee

Laura Burke is the Director General of the Environmental Protection Agency Ireland. Laura is also the chair of the European Environment Agency and member of the Climate Change Advisory Council. In this wide-ranging discussion, we cover many environmental themes – including how Ireland is performing, the issues and solutions. With agriculture, we discuss the importance of looking at the ‘how’, as well as the significance of the Food & Drink industry’s emissions. Laura calls for the ceasing of continued illegal industrial peat extraction, alongside the need to speed up and scale up the reduction of carbon emissions across every sector.

With transport, adding to the mantra of avoid, shift and improve, Laura discusses the importance of looking at freight transport, which will have different requirements to travel solutions. In regard to thoughts and opinions in Ireland, we explore some surprising results, while links are made to what we can do and how action leads to hope and well-being. A thought provoking and inspiring chat with Laura, a very experienced leader of climate action in Ireland.


Links:
EPA Ireland website: https://www.epa.ie
Twitter: @EPAIreland
Instagram: @epaireland
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/epaireland
EPA Ireland on LinkedIn: search “Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Ireland”
EPA State of Environment Report (2020): State of Environment Report | Environmental Protection Agency (epa.ie)
Climate Opinion Maps | Environmental Protection Agency (epa.ie)
Climate Change in the Irish Mind | Environmental Protection Agency (epa.ie)
Laura Burke - Session 2: Climate Change in a broader Environmental Context - EPA Ireland - YouTube
European Environment Agency European Environment Agency's home page (europa.eu)
Climate Change Advisory Council Climate Change Advisory Council (climatecouncil.ie)

Looking at ways to enhance, restore or rewild our biodiversity, although crucially important for many ecosystem services that we depend upon for survival, they should not be seen as separate issues to actions to adapt or mitigate against any impacts of climate change.

In this engaging discussion from two very experienced, passionate and eloquent voices, we hear from Ray O’Foghlu, a Nuffield scholar, Wild Atlantic Rainforest Project Lead & Farm Programmes Coordinator at Hometree. We are also joined by Rob Gandola, a Legacy4Life Pond Development Officer, Senior Science Officer of The Herpetological Society of Ireland, Wildlife Consultant and occasional TV presenter.
In this open and honest discussion, Ray spoke about the need of getting communities on board with any work on land to enhance, restore or rewild it and listen to their genuine concerns. Also, the need for getting the basics rights, enacting and enforcing what we should be doing now, is a crucial first step in improving our biodiversity in Ireland.

Rob also spoke about the importance of getting buy-in from all stakeholders, through awareness raising, while listening to the concerns of the local people impacted on any biodiversity enhancements or rewilding, thereby building trust and enabling a much better outcome for all concerned.

Both Rob and Ray would love to see a National Wetland Restoration Scheme set up, which could go a long way to restoring lost wetlands, while providing many ecosystem services, such as improving habitats and enhancing our carbon sink capabilities.


Links:
Hometree website - https://www.hometree.ie
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/hometreecharity/
Twitter – @hometree__
Instagram - @hometreecharity
Legacy4Life website – https://www.antaisce.org/legacy4life
Facebook – Legacy4Life_An Taisce
Twitter – @Legacy4LIFEAnT
Instagram - @legacy4lifeantaisce
The Herpetological Society of Ireland website -  https://thehsi.org

Ever wondered what actually causes our climate to change or what’s the difference between weather and climate? Head of Climate Services Keith Lambkin and Meteorologist Joanna Donnelly, whom you might recognise from RTÉ weather forecasts, join us to do what we all love to do – talk about the weather. We cover links of weather to climate change as you might expect and amongst other things, we debunk some of the common myths surrounding climate change and explore what work MET Éireann are doing to react to and prepare for extreme weather events.

Links:

MET Éireann website: Climate Change - Met Éireann - The Irish Meteorological Service
MET Podcast: The Met Éireann Podcast - Met Éireann - The Irish Meteorological Service
Twitter: @MetEireann
Instagram: @meteireann
The Great Irish Weather Book: Gill Books - Children's - The Great Irish Weather Book
Science Blast: Home - ESB Science Blast
Professor Brian Cox podcast: BBC Radio 4 - The Infinite Monkey Cage - Downloads

Informing ourselves is one of the most important and effective ways of figuring out what climate actions we can take, while also helping to understand the bigger picture and how we can hold decision makers to account.

Niall Sargent is a very knowledgeable journalist, with compassion and a deep sense of fairness, which comes across in his work with Noteworthy.ie and also shines through in this podcast about some of the important work Niall and his team carry out. We cover a lot of the big-ticket items like agriculture, forestry, peatlands, land use, biodiversity, energy, politics and storytelling, with Niall sharing in-depth knowledge, insights and solutions across a wide range of topics.


Links:
Twitter: @Niall_Sargent & @noteworthy_ie
www.noteworthy.ie
www.kateraworth.com/doughnut/#
https://degrowth.info/degrowth

In this air quality podcast, we first hear from Dr Clare Noone, Senior Postdoctoral researcher at ICARUS, Maynooth University, giving an overview of air quality in Ireland and the interconnectedness of air quality to other issues such as climate & biodiversity breakdown. Clare talks about her work with the EPA on Five-Year Assessment Reports for Ireland, the importance of Methane and how that could be the best way for some quick wins with air quality and climate action, while also sharing some of her approaches to communicating the science.

In the second part, we hear about the incredible work Aileen Bright, Sabrina Moore and the GLOBE team are achieving around Ireland with air quality, through citizen science, measuring and communicating with local schools and communities. They share stories behind the statistics, highlighting some success anecdotes and the power that has for both themselves and the schools and communities involved.

Links:



Dr Clare Noone on twitter: @clarenoone

Purple Air makes sensors that empower Community Scientists who collect hyper-local air quality data and share it with the public: https://www2.purpleair.com/


EPA Ireland 5-Year Assessment Report on Climate Change:

https://www.epa.ie/our-services/monitoring--assessment/climate-change/5-yar/

Angry Weather book: https://earthbound.report/2021/06/07/book-review-angry-weather-by-friederike-otto/


Trevor Noah Tackles Climate Change: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-PSR_OutuIw





GLOBE

Email: globe@eeu.antaisce.org


GLOBE Ireland Air Quality Campaign https://www.globe.gov/web/ireland/home/overview-of-air-quality-campaign/about#:~:text=The%20GLOBE%20Ireland%20Air%20Quality,pollution%20at%20schools%20in%20Ireland.

Clean Air Together: https://www.cleanairtogether.ie/


Twitter - @GLOBEIreland

Instagram & Facebook – ‘GLOBE Ireland’

EPA: https://www.epa.ie/take-action/in-the-community/citizen-science/clean-air-projects/#d.en.90888


New Zealand’s well-being budget: https://www.centreforpublicimpact.org/insights/new-zealands-wellbeing-budget-worth-hype-contributor-michael-mintrom


Bike2Work scheme: https://www.biketowork.ie/