ClimateGenn hosted by Nick Breeze

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with Eden Project founder, Sir Tim Smit about the stories that need to be told to create the future we want to have. Please consider supporting this work via a small subscription via https://patreon.com/genncc Sir Tim sees the now as a moment of great revolution that is emerging from what he calls the new green enlightenment. With world leaders of low-calibre and backward thinking, it is right to ask from whence will these great game-changers emerge? If you have just got your head around exponential climate change then why not have a go at exponential biosphere healing? With 20th century style aggression erupting in Europe, it will take a leap of great faith and hope to keep the lantern burning in these dark dystopian times. Some key quotes: i. “I am at a real sea change with Eden." ii. “A very rapid reappraisal is necessary of the whole world of science, of scientific research, the way it is funded…” iii. “Our disrespect for biology has led to many of the pickles we are now in.” iv. “I think we are living at a time of great revolution… in twenty years time we will be looking at this as the start of a new green enlightenment.” v. “I know many many top business people who feel they would not like to do anything other than have a shower after they have been with many bankers!” vi. “I have met very few leaders who are champions of citizenship. They see leadership as being about being decisive!” Vii. “I see us a shop window on a future that is still ours to make!” Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn where we explore the reality of what to do, and how to come to terms with such a severely changing world. You can support this work via https://patreon.com/genncc or by subscribing on any major podcast channel and Youtube. Please also consider sharing any episodes of interest.

In this episode of ClimateGenn I am speaking with Dr Minnie Go about her recent book ‘Rethinking Community Resilience’ looking in detail at how the city of New Orleans emerged from the destruction of Hurricane Katrina. Support ClimateGenn on Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc and visit our website at https://genn.cc Minnie’s work looks at how the dynamics between civic groups and governing bodies can determine very different outcomes. Distrust of government by those most impacted communities meant they worked hard and fast to repair the damage to the same standards experienced before Katrina hit. A better-informed approach would have looked at what was necessary to protect them against future impacts that the science tells us are increasing in power and frequency. Minnie’s work gives us insight into how civic groups and communities are likely to become more resilient based on the characteristics and efficacy of regional government. In the next episode, I am speaking to Sir Tim Smit, who created the Eden Project in Cornwall, UK just over 20 years ago. Sir Tim discusses how the Eden Project has developed and become a shop window for initiatives that are going to be key to our survival in the coming years as climate closes in. Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn - please do consider supporting the series via Patreon and/or following on any of the podcast channels or Youtube. Feedback is always welcome too so don’t hesitate to get in touch. I will try my best to respond.

In this episode of ClimateGenn I am speaking to Dr Paul Behrens about the complexity of population, consumption and climate change. Support this channel on Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc (website: https://genn.cc) In his book, ‘The Best of Times, The Worst of Times’ Paul addresses population, presenting both a pessimistic potential outcome, and also a more hopeful outcome based on a set of choices that we, especially those of us in wealthier high emitting countries, can make to improve the chances for a better future. One big barrier to a better future is the growing narrative that stokes fears about migration. The propagating of these myths falls under the title of econativism, a term that Paul both defines and discusses in some detail. Population and migration are critical and controversial issues and when placed in the context of continually rising emissions and consequent impacts, they stress the need for reflection on how we value our own life and the lives of all those around us. In the next episode I am speaking to Dr Min Hee Go in South Korea about her recent book ‘Rethinking Community Resilience’ that looks at the politics of disaster recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. Minnie’s research highlights the necessity to not just build back from catastrophe but also how we must ensure community resilience, as the frequency and extremity of these events increase. Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn. You can follow this series on all major podcast channels, on Youtube, on my website at GENN.cc and you can follow and support on Patreon.

Please do subscribe on https://genn.cc and be sure to comment or send me your feedback by email. You can also support this series via https://patreon.com/genncc.   In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to author and chief scientist at the Nature Conservancy, Professor Katharine Hayhoe about how her recent book ‘Saving Us’ addresses issues relating to personal agency.    2022 has advanced out of the gate with threats of war, massive volcanic eruptions, economic and political upheavals, conspiracy theories, and the worsening accelerating degradation of the biosphere upon which we are all entirely reliant.   Awareness is growing and people from all walks of life are awakening to the need for emergency action. It now feels like we are simply being held back by an adherence by the few to the value systems and aspirations of the last century.   Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn, we have a programme of interviews for this year looking at the multi-faceted problem of rebalancing life in the biosphere.  Please do subscribe and be sure to comment or send me your feedback by email.  You can also support this series via https://patreon.com/genncc.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I speak to Dr Ye Tao at Harvard University who is head of the Mirrors for Earth Energy Rebalancing (MEER). You can follow/support/get in touch via https://genn.cc + back via https://patreon.com/genncc Addressing climate threats With global agriculture across the world at high risk from rising temperatures and associated impacts, Ye’s team are proposing increasing the Earth’s reflectivity in order to reduce the temperature within the biosphere. In this interview we go into some detail about how it works, resource requirements, where it would be deployed and the pathway to scaling up. Social response is critical Ye also highlights the need for more understanding of psychology in order to be able to align the growing numbers of people around the world who are realising that our future is in a perilous state. By bringing people together, putting our wellbeing and safety before profit and extractive endeavours, only then do we really stand a chance of seeing these grand ideas tested and eventually deployed. So much to lose, all to play for A special thank you this week to Marion Troia who sent in a transcript of my last interview with Dr Tero Mustenon. This is interview received terrific feedback and resonated with a great many people, not least myself, so I am really grateful for this support. Thank you to all my new Patrons who are supporting this series and to everyone for listening, commenting and getting in touch.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking Dr Tero Mustonen who is based within the Arctic Circle about the enormous changes happening there today and that are going to cascade across the globe impacting every one of us. Follow and support at: https://genn.cc and https://patreon.com/genncc Tero works with indigenous peoples inside the Arctic Circle and beyond, utilising what is called Traditional Knowledge Systems that include the linguistic, cultural and natural environments that are complex and holistic. These ancient ways of understanding the world also hold the key to solving many of our systemic problems and yet they are being extinguished, along with the broad swathe of life on Earth. This is all a result of centuries of extraction and consumption, that underpin our contemporary experience of living in developed nations. Despite Tero’s despairing message, he also suggests a pathway to planetary repair through rewinding and by deepening our custodial relationship with nature. Thank you for listening. Please do subscribe if you want to stay up-to-date. You can also support ClimateGenn via Patreon and please do leave feedback which I am always interested to receive.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with author Tom Rosenstiel about his new political thriller, The Days To Come. Tom has switched hats from journalist to fiction writer, possessing a depth of insight into how both disciplines interact with the public and our experience of reality? Please visit https://genn.cc for series information, or https://patreon.com/genncc to support my work. The Days To Come is a thriller with a climate change theme that touches on many of the complex factors that can either accelerate or undermine our progress in tackling the climate crisis. In this interview we discuss how the book intersects with contemporary reality and also how fiction and journalism contribute to shaping the narrative we internalise that helps us for envision the future. In the next episode I am speaking with indigenous Sámi scholar Dr Tero Mustonen, who is based in the Finnish Arctic, about the climate changes that threaten his communities existence and by extension, our own. We will also discuss what we can do to try and reverse the extreme nature of change in these critical and vulnerable regions of the world. Thank you for listening. Please do subscribe, comment or send feedback because I do read as much as I can and try to respond where possible. Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to professor Peter Wadhams from the University of Cambridge about his recent research for a book he is writing on the viability of greenhouse gas removal from the atmosphere.   Subscribe at https://Patreon.com/genncc Visit https://genn.cc for more information.   Some of these proposals are also referred to as negative emissions technologies, or ‘nets’  and are widely included in national emissions reduction plans despite none being proven at scale today.  We discuss the viability of various proposed techniques including tree planting, bioenergy capture and storage as well as direct air capture and ocean proposals including farming kelp and the use of diatoms for large-scale sequestration.  In the last segment we discuss the risks posed by Arctic methane releases and two proposed techniques for dealing with a potential methane emergency, whereby multiple   billions of tonnes of the potent greenhouse gas are released at once.   These are controversial proposals despite policymakers assuming they will work in the future. The danger of these suppositions is compounded by the fact that many research projects are embryonic and underfunded.   Thank you for listening.  In the next episode, I speak with author Professor Tom Rosenstiel about his new political thriller, The Days To Come. In this interview, we discuss fiction writing and journalism and how these both intersect with reality to shape our world.  You can subscribe on all major podcast channels or Youtube and you can also support my work via https://Patreon.com/genncc Visit https://genn.cc for more information.  Thanks for listening.

Political elites in the UK have never looked more out of touch than they do today. Despite this, in Scotland, we see a Climate Citizens Assembly that is working with experts to come up with ideas for achieving a lower carbon, cleaner and fairer society. back my work and access more content at https://patreon.com/genncc and https://genn.cc In this episode, I am speaking with the Secretariat of the Scottish Climate Assembly, Susie Townend, who has overseen the creation of the first report to the Scottish Parliament guided by experts but very much created by ordinary folks from across the country. The Scottish Parliament is reviewing the report submitted by the assembly and will respond with feedback by the end of this year. Given the Scottish government’s positive signals given during COP26 in Glasgow, on their commitment to Loss and Damage funding for vulnerable nations, there is some confidence that they are taking the assembly’s input seriously. This kind of informed approach, places empathy, justice, and inclusion at the heart of the policymaking process. It also acknowledges that involving citizens increases momentum towards shaping a world we actually want to live in. Thank you for listening. This whole project is now under the name of ClimateGenn and the archive of work can be seen at genn.cc. You can support this work via patreon.com/genncc - you can also subscribe on Youtube and all of the main podcasts & social media channels.

In this ClimateGenn podcast episode, I am speaking to Dr Saleemul Huq about the true outcome of COP26 highlighting how the UK Presidency abandoned the world's most vulnerable nations in order to tow the line of the USA. Follow on https://genn.cc | Become a Patron at https://patreon.com/genncc Saleem also makes it clear that 1.1ºC, where we are today, is the new 1.5ºC - climate impacts are here and they are devastating lives and also taking lives. We must stop thinking about climate action in the future tense and start taking action in the present before it is truly too late to adapt to what we now know is coming. Once highly regarded as a nation that wielded great strength in diplomacy, COP26 will be remembered for the British government's disastrous inability to manage events of global importance. As we move away from Glasgow the threat of extreme impacts grows all the time around us and in response we commit to increasing greenhouse gas emissions that are driving us off the cliff. The pledges made cannot be trusted on the basis that previous pledges have been broken. If as Saleem says, the rich countries continue to bully the poorer nations while consuming the remaining carbon budgets, then our own moral integrity is what is in question. At what point do we say 'no more'? Thank you for listening to the ClimateGenn podcast - you can catch up with my work on my website at genn.cc or support it via Patreon.com/genncc.

In this episode, recorded in Glasgow, I speak to Dr Paul Behrens from Leiden University about how, regardless of what choices we make, humanity is now committed to passing through the eye of the metaphorical needle. What we can expect on the other side may well be in our gift to decide but with each strike of the clock, the forecasts for humanity get bleaker. In his new book, ‘The Best of Times, The Worst of Times’, Paul presents realistic outcomes based on the best case and worst-case scenarios. As he says, the worst case does not necessarily mean a 4ºC world. Tragedy can come long before this and in many parts of the world, it already has. To illustrate this point further, I have put an excerpt of Sir David King speaking about why we must take climate repair seriously, at the end of this podcast. I am planning to catch up again with Paul in the near future to record a population special, based on his research that is also profiled in the book. These are important perspectives worth grasping in an ever more complex and treacherous world. Thanks for listening to this COP notes mini-series. In the next episode, I will be speaking to Dr Saleemul Huq as we look forward from the wreckage of COP26. I will also be publishing my interview with Scottish Climate Assembly Secretariat, Susie Townend. Susie has overseen the creation of the Climate Assembly report to the Scottish parliament that is currently in review. This is an exciting insight into how citizens, experts and policymakers could shape a fairer, more equitable, landscape for change. Please do consider subscribing to patreon.com/genncc. You can also view my whole archive on https://genn.cc.

In this special podcast edition, I have combined the two interviews with Sir David King and Professor Kevin Anderson to create a wrap-up commentary on the COP that I think is insightful and multifaceted. https://patreon.com/genncc | https://genn.cc | genn.cc/yt Both interviewees come with a wealth of insight and experience and whether you agree or disagree with what they say, there is no doubt that both scientists force us to think deeply about the way forward from this crisis point in the human journey. Both speakers also touch on common themes about how we think of the COP process and what a successful or failed COP actually looks like. If the politics is failing then what are the positive aspects that we should keep or even exponentiate? Hopefully, guidance towards those answers emerges from these interactions. Thank you for listening. We are nearing the end of COP26 specific content. I have one more interview to upload with Dr Paul Behrens where we discuss some of the themes in his fascinating new book, ‘Best of Times, Worst of Times’. I am also scheduling another call with Dr Behrens to discuss his fascinating chapter on population dynamics as they apply to the Earth’s carrying capacity. If you enjoy this series then please consider joining via patreon.com/genncc - where more subscriber-only content will be published.

Welcome to the shortened edit of the Adaptation panel that I moderated during COP26 in Glasgow with Pooran Desai. Main links: gene.cc + patron.com/genncc + https://www.youtube.com/c/NickBreeze/videos On the panel we had Professor Alice Hill and Professor Sir David King, as well Namibian ‘Fridays 4 Future’ Activist Jakapita Kandanga, as well as Professor Kevin Anderson. In this session we are focussed largely on the UK, USA and Namibia and delve into the complexity of social change, education, building resilience in our cities and how the global middle classes have an obligation to consume less and lead by example as millions more are lifted out of poverty. Other subjects such as greenhouse gas removal, electrification and the role of nuclear also enter the discussion. We were very grateful to such an engaged audience and to the panel and partners who made this happen. The unedited film version is on my Youtube Channel at Nick Breeze ClimateGenn. There are two more COP26 focussed podcasts to upload in the next couple of days which I think offer unique insights. I will also be recording the next round of forward looking interviews with special guests starting this week. Please do subscribe on all the main channels including Youtube where these can be watched. You can also support my work via Patreon or subscribe at genn.cc.

After filming the Greenland interview on the Denamrk pavilion in the Blue Zone at COP26, we recorded this short segment on Jason's view on how Denmark, his adopted country, is doing on their climate pledges. Follow my work in more detail at https://genn.cc or support my work (and stay up to date on https://patron.com/genncc

Discussing the critical drought situation in Europe with a focus on Italy. Visit https://genn.cc for more information. View more in the water series by backing this channel on Patreon or by becoming a Youtube member.  Quote by Dr Francesco Avanzi: “Droughts are often called the creeping disaster because at the very beginning, you don't realise that it's coming up. And when you realise that it's often too late. And in that the dynamic is somehow similar to how the COVID pandemic played out in the early months. That awareness came when somehow it was already too late.” “what we also see is a shift towards earlier snow seasons. So a later start, earlier melt out date. There are data from some colleagues of ours from CIMA, that have just showed that the duration of the snow season right now is unprecedented over the last 600 years in the Alps. So that's also part of the problem. So this means that, on the one hand, we have to cope with less water from snow, coming earlier than usual during spring. This means that we will have to rethink, to some extent, some of our practice in terms of where and when we store water, and when and how we use it. Last year gave us already quite a lot of lessons and I think to some extent it raised our awareness of changes that are happening. We will have to continue that adaptation and mitigation.” Nick Breeze: This reminds us, as Francesco said at the outset, that drought is a creeping disaster. The water is stored as snow in the mountains. It runs down into rivers, into the soils and is stored beneath as groundwater. It is a mechanism that we regard as an infinite cycle. Human made climate change is interrupting the cycle by erasing the source of the water. Dr Francesco Avanzi “…snow that is not accumulating in a mountain during winter is water that we are not going to have during summer. That's when we need water the most for agriculture, for freshwater supply, and that translated into significant streamflow deficit… “Groundwater is a savings account. We can take from that to cope with a single dry year. But then when we look at several dry years in a row, that reserve may dry up.”

In this miniseries of podcasts, I am uploading a selection of the recordings that I took from COP26 starting with this one with 3 ice scientists, Professor Jonathan Bamber, Professor Jason Box, and Professor Matthias Huss. LINKS: https://genn.cc | Patreon for support: https://patreon.com/genncc | Twitter: @ClimateGenn + @NickGBreeze The Cryosphere pavilion in the blue zone at the COP provided the context I needed to be able to understand whether the word ‘Ambition’ truly correlated to the safety of the citizens that negotiators were tasked to defend. It worth noting that we are now decades into the COP process that aims to prevent a catastrophe on Earth but the process itself appears to be broken. The COP where the scientists discuss climate and ecological threats is a solar system away from the jargon in the surrounding rooms that eventually formed the Glasgow Pact. In the next episode, I will upload the audio of the Adapt Now Panel session that I moderated with guests Professor Alice Hill, Professor Sir David King, Professor Kevin Anderson, as well as special guest, youth activist from Namibia, Jakapita Kandanga. This session was co-hosted by Pooran Desai OBE from One Planet. Thank you for listening to Shaping The Future - please subscribe or follow my work on genn.cc - all the links and socials are in the notes.

In this episode of Shaping The Future, I am inside the COP attending talks and speaking mainly to scientists but also half listening to the pledges and commitments being made. What is striking is the sense of foreboding from people who have followed these negotiations for many years. Contents: 00:00 Intro by Nick Breeze 01:00 John Kerry speaking to C40 mayors 01:23 Professor Richard Bamba (excerpt) 02:09 Kevin Anderson discussing ‘inside the cop’ The noise of the globetrotting political class presents an image of absolute urgency and seemingly sincere desire to do something about it, however, the pledges being put forth, not only fall short of the level of action the science says we need, it also is non-binding. ‘Mission' accomplished? History has shown us that what is said at COP stays at COP. The fanfare and celebrations that many are seeking at the end may well and UK Prime Minister Johnson may well get his opportunity to smirk at the cameras and declare his mission accomplished. Ironically, the word ‘mission’ is attached to lots of initiatives in the climate action sphere but perhaps submission is a more worthy moniker, as the much-vaunted ambition slumps into a commitment that will see ice sheets and glaciers succumb to rising temperatures in the atmosphere and the oceans. Eyes & ears on the science More interviews discussing the science will follow and serve as a brief intro into the reality that we are facing. If we don’t radically change direction then society will enter a phase of chaos and collapse in the face of destabilised weather and rapidly rising seas. What this may look like has been widely speculated and everyone has their own version of the nightmare to contemplate. Who possesses the agency to act? This being the case, now is the time to question the direction that our leaders and the powerful in society are taking us. Failure is not assured and the angry voices of people outside the COP are starting to be heard. Currently, the politicians and the powerful control the narrative and possess the agency of divination but is anyone truly listening anymore? We have heard for decades, the promises that are founded on urgency and deception. The agency that has been taken away from people in terms of a top down ruling of society, with people clambering up the greasy pole to wag their fingers at those below, has now had its day. Every one of us is in a position to contemplate the agency that we possess in our daily lives and in the communities we inhabit. It is essential now that we use that agency in whatever way we see fit to raise the level of real action to a point where apocalyptic visions of the near-future can be consigned to fiction. Find out more on Genn.cc or back my work on Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc

In this episode of Shaping The Future, I am speaking to professor Rupert Read on the eve of his trial that has since taken place resulting in a guilty verdict and a very modest fine handed down. Links: Live Event 8 Nov '21 in Glasgow https://youtu.be/ItixWfasssk - Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc My site: https://genn.cc Here we discuss the role of disinformation organisations like the Global Warming Policy Foundation who have spent the last decade denying the threat that climate change poses to ordinary people. As we head to COP26 Glasgow, many politicians, let alone climate scientists are calling this summit: 'a last chance to save the future of humanity'. Despite this, pundits and mainstream media outlets such as The Economist are warning us to prepare for disappointment. This should come as no surprise, thus confirming the successful work of climate denialism over the last decades. The job ahead is too unpalatable for policymakers to sell to civilians despite the growing eco-anxiety among us all. From Sunday I will be reporting from the COP speaking to many people who I have interviewed for this podcast and many more. We will also be live-streaming an event on the 8th of November titled Adapt Now - on my Youtube Channel, so please do join us. I have 2 more interviews to present very shortly but time is making it hard to turn these around but I’ll do my best. Thanks for listening to all these interviews and sharing your feedback which I always try to read. You can subscribe on Youtube or any major podcast channel. You can also support my work via Patreon.

In the run-up to COP26 we face a new onslaught of mainstream media coverage of how this conference will decide the fate of humanity. The truth is that even the best outcome being sought by policymakers is far short of what the science tells us is needed to stabilise the global climate. Since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, where the accelerating decline of planetary systems was acknowledged and leaders expressed the need for change, nothing has been achieved to stop the catastrophic circumstances that we are facing today. In this episode of Shaping The Future I am speaking with Professor Kevin Anderson about his (and colleagues) new paper to be published on the 17th October titled, Three Decades of Climate Mitigation: Why Haven’t We Bent the Global Emissions Curve? In this analysis also emerges potential opportunities that could shift the locus of where we are in entrenched greed by a powerful few, towards a better prepared and resilient future for the majority of us. In the next episode, I am speaking with Jakapita Nanganda on her struggle to oppose oil drilling and the contamination and destruction of forests in Namibia, and the struggles her family is confronting in the face of severe drought. Jakapita will be traveling to COP26 as part of Fridays For Future International to demand a brighter future for her generation. You can subscribe to Shaping The Future on all major podcast channels and Youtube and you can also support my work via Patreon. Please visit GENN.cc for more information.

Support channel on: https://patreon.com/genncc or visit: https://genn.cc Dr Saleemul Huq is a highly respected climate scientist from Bangladesh who has worked for decades to progress the safety of the most vulnerable people up the climate policymaking agenda. Traditionally the most vulnerable people have been from places like Saleem's own country, Bangladesh, but in this interview, he stresses that we have crossed a new threshold. What we have been seeing in the US and Northern Europe clearly shows that the most vulnerable could be ourselves, our neighbors, or our loved ones. Global climate extremes have arrived at our door and the time to adapt and build resilience is now. As an expert in this field, Saleem gives us some pertinent insights into what makes resilience really work. It is not technology and it is not wealth. Thanks for listening to Shaping The Future, there are many more episodes being produced in which we are striving to increase our own understanding and help create a future that we all want to live in. Subscribe on any podcast channel or Youtube and you can also back my work via Patreon.