The People's Countryside Environmental Debate Podcast

We explore a question from one of our listeners during this episode. This came from Jaryd in Ireland, "What are our top 5 stupid moments making the podcast?"

This is part 3 of a 3 part series where William looks back at classic installments of the podcast. William listened back to this past episode to see how his point of view have maybe altered since the recording. For this episode we’re travelling back to Christmas of last year  (2019), and and a discussion about David Attenborough’s series, Seven Worlds, One Planet. This selected classic episode was originally released on the 26th December, Boxing Day (2019). William chose this episode as it has been overall one of most listened to shows. We talk about the potential impact of Attenborough's series, comparing it his previous Blue Planet program which had such a big effect on the public psyche. We both felt at the time that we didn’t need to watch it to understand the impact we are all having on the natural world. We invite you to enjoy this classic episode, and do you think we're right in not watching it? Let us know, we like to be challenged in our own assumptions.

This is part 2 of a 3 part series where William looks back at classic installments of the podcast. William listened back to this past episode to see how his point of view have maybe altered since the recording. The second in this mini series takes us back to March this year, and an episode that marked the last time Stuart and William recorded together in the same room. It has also been one of our best performing episodes in recent times, which is why William singled it out. The episode we released on the 27th March 2020, however the more important date was when we recorded it, which was the 16th March 2020, a week before the UK went into full lock down due to the Corona Virus. We invite you to enjoy this classic episode, and would particularly like to hear what you think about what we discussed, and how we can make sure we don’t get entrenched in our own opinions.

This marks the dawn of a 3 part series where William looks back at classic installments of the podcast. William listened back to this past episode to see how his point of view have maybe altered since the recording. This first in this mini series takes us back to our very first edition of the podcast, which is why William singled it out. It's when we welcomed journalist Pete Hughes of the Oxford Mail, and originally released on this platform on the 21st July 2019. We explored three tough environmental questions; How much effect do humans have on other animals survival? Are we causing more extinction than before? AND Is human existence always at a cost to nature? This was very much the starting point of this podcast's concept and format, and was originally recorded in 2018. This will in fact be the 3rd time this episode has been publicly released, as this podcast was originally only released through Soundcloud before we found Anchor. Who now host and distribute our material. We were very much finding our feet with the format, though from the outset we were not afraid to tackle big questions. It’s great to listen back to this episode as it shows the strength of the format. Also listening with fresh ears William picked up on different details, and also feels that his personal opinion has changed since then. We invite you to enjoy this classic episode, and while you’re listening, we’d like you to think how you would have answered the questions we posed, and do you think we covered the topic and themes we discussed thoroughly enough? Would you like us to maybe return to one of these questions in the future?

Part 12 - Progress : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 11 - Planning : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 10 - Development : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 9 - Adaptation : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 8 - Finding New Structure : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 7 - Taking Stock : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 6 - Shock : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 5 - Fear : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 4 - Disbelief : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 3 : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 2 : Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

Part 1: Stuart and William share insights, tips and ideas on how they're adapting to the current situation, and give you the listener actions to occupy some of your time.

 In this episode we welcomed Oxford University scientist, Dr Alexandra Moral. The three questions, which once again inspired an interesting debate, are; - How would we be acting differently if we recognised nature as a separate/sovereign nation?" Not that we should necessarily, but I would be interested to explore how different or not society might be? - People are working behind the scenes on things like locking away carbon within algal blooms that sink and form rock, and also drilling into rock and storing it there within Limestone etc. Should we be focusing our efforts in these mitigation measures or the processes we as individuals are given to live and work by? Or both? - Is there such a creature as an urban animal?

We’re a veteran podcast, two surprise listener questions per episode, zero prep—cold takes, hot chaos.Ryszard, from Bydgoszcz, Poland offers up the first question - ”How did life evolve from nonliving matter?”Stuart feels after eons of cosmic boredom, water shows up, algae crash the party, oxygen gatecrashes, and then life takes a billion-year nap before evolution finally stumbles in. He squints at the universe and asks, “What nudged that first awkward step?”William shrugs, points to Earth’s comfy orbit, a clingy Moon that keeps our tilt polite, and Jupiter—the hulking bouncer—scooping up space junk. Together they made a cozy stage for chemistry to improvise, even if the opening line remains a mystery.Dmitry, from Novosibirsk, Russia has set todays second listener question - “The poor in the UK seem to hate poor immigrants, yet it's the rich taking the money the world over. Divide and concur, yes? Interestingly, many people who don’t like migrants heading to the UK are supporters of your royal family, who many say are immigrants, don’t work, and have a suspect pedophile amongst them!l”William jokes that the tabloids seem less like news outlets and more like fear factories run by mystery billionaires with a fondness for stirring the pot. Stuart suggests that many struggling Brits oddly resent struggling immigrants—because that’s the script they’ve been handed—while the real resource-hoarders are sipping champagne in mansions. With a smirk, Stuart notes the irony that some of the loudest anti-immigrant voices wave flags for the royals, who, if you trace the family tree, are basically the original foreign imports. William adds that the word “immigrant” is a blunt instrument, lumping everyone from his EU-born wife to refugees into one box, while “expat” magically makes Brits abroad sound like glamorous adventurers—even when they’re just in Spain refusing to learn “hola.” He points out that the loudest anti-immigrant towns often have no immigrants at all, yet still bought into Farage’s “breaking point” drama. Stuart suggests imagining Dmitry’s outsider lens, while William advises popping the bubble and sampling news beyond the usual echo chamber.What do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by sending an email to ⁠thepeoplescountryside@gmail.comWe like to give you an ad free experience. We also like our audience to be relatively small and engaged, we’re not after numbers.This podcast's overall themes are nature, philosophy, climate, the human condition, sustainability, and social justice. Help us to spread the impact of the podcast by sharing this link with 5 friends podfollow.com/ThePeoplesCountrysideEnvironmentalDebatePodcast , support our work through Patreon patreon.com/thepeoplescountryside⁠. Find out all about the podcast via this one simple link: linktr.ee/thepeoplescountrysideSign the Petition - Improve The Oxfordshire Countryside Accessibility For All Disabilities And Abilities: change.org/ImproveTheOxfordshireCountrysideAccessibilityForAllDisabilitiesAndAbilities

Trigger warning, this episode includes a discussion around a sensitive topic that you might find distressing. Listener discretion is very much encouraged.Criticism of the Catholic church, the concept of existence, and whether infinity is real. They are the three big topics for this episode of The People’s Countryside Environmental Debate Podcast, the place where you the listener send in questions for co-hosts Stuart ‘The Wildman’ Mabbutt and William Mankelow to discuss, dissect, deliberate, sometimes dispute, but very rarely debate, even though that word is in the podcast’s title! The first question for this episode comes from Ryszard in Bydgoszcz, Poland - ”If everyone in the world suddenly forgot you existed, did you ever truly exist?”William notes that countless people have lived and died, and that thousands more are dying at this very moment. Many of them pass without anyone knowing or remembering them.Stuart considers whether a person truly exists if everyone forgets them. He notes that actions and thoughts create ripples that persist regardless of memory. Reflecting on identity, he suggests “you” may be an illusion, with the soul merely electrical brain activity, meaning existence could be just a consequence of the bodily functions. He concludes the question remains fundamentally uncertain.William’s action: He reflects on mortality by considering two types of death: the physical death of oneself, and the death of the last person who remembers you. He encourages using this perspective to guide actions in life, aiming to leave a positive influence and be remembered meaningfully. Through the podcast, he and Stuart model this by addressing big issues and challenging listeners to think deeply.Stuart’s action: whether being unacknowledged or forgotten diminishes a person’s impact, and what the nature of “you” truly is. He struggles with the idea of existence tied to memory and suggests it may be possible to be remembered without truly existing. His focus is on examining the concept of self.The second question for this episode comes from Zbigniew in Chorzów, Poland - ”Is infinity real, or is it a mental construct?” William considers the limits of human knowledge about the universe. He notes that the universe’s accelerating expansion and the finite speed of light prevent us from fully knowing its size. Despite observing distant regions with telescopes like Hubble and James Webb, much remains beyond our reach.  We never really know if infinity is real. This could all be a simulation. Stuart examines the concept of infinity, suggesting it may or may not be real. He emphasizes that what is certain is that our understanding of it is a human mental construct, shaped by our interpretation of what infinity might or might not be.What do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by sending an email to ⁠thepeoplescountryside@gmail.comSign the Petition - Improve The Oxfordshire Countryside Accessibility For All Disabilities And Abilities: change.org/ImproveTheOxfordshireCountrysideAccessibilityForAllDisabilitiesAndAbilitiesWe like to give you an ad free experience. We also like our audience to be relatively small and engaged, we’re not after numbers.This podcast's overall themes are nature, philosophy, climate, the human condition, sustainability, and social justice. Help us to spread the impact of the podcast by sharing this link with 5 friends podfollow.com/ThePeoplesCountrysideEnvironmentalDebatePodcast , support our work through Patreon patreon.com/thepeoplescountryside⁠. Find out all about the podcast via this one simple link: linktr.ee/thepeoplescountryside

Should we shift to electric in all motor sports? Are we too sensitive these days? These are the two big questions your co-hosts Stuart ‘The Wildman’ Mabbutt and William Mankelow discuss in today’s episode of The People’s Countryside Environmental Debate Podcast. On this podcast we never see the questions before we press record. They are presented to us on the spot, often challenging and always unexpected. We like to give you an ad free experience. We also like our audience to be relatively small and engaged, we’re not after numbers.Our first of two listener questions for today’s episode comes from Elodie, Brittany, France - “Do you think that all forms of current motor racing, including motorcycle racing, develop into and be replaced by electric versions in the pursuit of environmental sustainability?”Stuart states he has no objection to electric racing and sees it as an interesting experiment, noting that Formula One already uses hybrids. He argues though, that introducing electric or hybrid alternatives would likely draw a different, and maybe even new audience, with only some current fans switching over, as they can feel something is being lost from their experience, and not being replaced or enhanced within the electric versions.William questions whether using finite resources to power motorsport is justified at all, noting that fuels like methanol likely still come from oil.Stuart feels that with few young fans being attracted to some of these current sporting models anyway, they must become more interactive and engaging too. Removing the visceral experience as you are with electric versions, makes it even less attractive to some people, so electrification is not enough on its own.The second listener question comes from Paul, Queensland, Australia - “Is it wrong for comedians to laugh and ridicule the disabled, vegans and environmentalists? Are we too sensitive these days? Is something not funny because we don’t like the person telling it or is the essence funny whatever?”William states that people can be overly sensitive, treating feeling offended as more significant than it actually is. He observes that if someone is offended, then they are simply experiencing that feeling, nothing more.Stuart questions whether laughing or using humour is inherently wrong, noting that humour can highlight the absurdity of situations rather than ridicule people. He illustrates this with a café incident where he joked about not being able to “run away” in his wheelchair, showing that humor can simply acknowledge reality, without mocking anyone.William explains that he challenges his own bias by listening to favourite musicians as if they are new to him and approaching unfamiliar musicians as if he already knows their work. He applies the same mindset to comedians he dislikes, giving them fair attention to see whether it is the material or his own bias shaping his reaction.During this conversation, William mentions a stand up routine by British comedian Peter Kay talking about the British TV series Crimewatch, here a link to that video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPsu-PCubvsWhat do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by sending an email to ⁠thepeoplescountryside@gmail.comThis podcast's overall themes are nature, philosophy, climate, the human condition, sustainability, and social justice. Help us to spread the impact of the podcast by sharing this link with 5 friends podfollow.com/ThePeoplesCountrysideEnvironmentalDebatePodcast , support our work through Patreon patreon.com/thepeoplescountryside⁠. Find out all about the podcast via this one simple link: linktr.ee/thepeoplescountrysideSign the Petition - Improve The Oxfordshire Countryside Accessibility For All Disabilities And Abilities: change.org/ImproveTheOxfordshireCountrysideAccessibilityForAllDisabilitiesAndAbilities