Join us to check in on the refugee situation in Northern France in the chaos of 2020. Maya and Clara tell us all about their work distributing non-food-items with Collective Aid, and how coronavirus and the shifting political landscape has affected this work. “In the first lockdown, police brutality went up so much, the police were using it as an excuse to be more violent here... The states response is all kinds of bad really... It’s pretty unbelievable the lengths that they will go to make things difficult" “When the state charity that normally provides water decides not to turn up, people aren’t able to wash their hands” Listen in to see how the indomitable people and organisations on the ground in Calais and Dunkirk have adapted to continue their work saving lives and supporting some of the worlds most vulnerable people, all whilst combating the danger of Covid-19. Maya and Clara share the story of their 2020, the challenges they're confronting, and how they themselves are coping. To donate, go to: calaisdonations@collectiveaidngo.org To volunteer, go to: calaisvolunteers@collectiveaidngo.org Instagram: @collectiveaidorg Website: https://www.collectiveaidngo.org/
A podcast about global cultural explorations. We venture into the unknown to discover more about the world and fill in some blanks in our atlas of culture, art, history, entertainment, literature, technology and much more. Each episode we choose a new theme to inspire our explorations.
Season 2 has arrived! In these strange and uncertain times we’ve found ourselves turning to the alternate realities and projections of our future through Dystopian fiction. How can we frame our existence by examining the hypothetical extremes in which our world could go? Should we be afraid or is there hope? We’ve brought PhD candidate Kate in as a guest to discuss the influences of Dystopia and Utopia upon activist movements in the modern world. Together, we look at the ideas explored by writers like Ursula K. Le Guin, Octavia Butler and Margaret Atwood.
"Exercise, Endorphins & Escapism" with Brittany the founder of REFUGYM. Join us for a fascinating look into the wonderful work they do at a refugee camp near Athens, Greece. Check out the episode to discover just how REFUGYM lives and breathes its motto, and cares for the mental and physical health of people in the camp. Brittany shares the story of how Refugym got started, how exactly it helps people, and what challenges they face going forwards. "Why shouldn't we empower people to use their own skills and knowledge to run this project by themselves - for their own community... REFUGYM was set up to be run by refugees for refugees" W: https://www.refugym.org/ I: @refugym_ F: https://www.facebook.com/refugym1/
"We want to live by each other’s happiness - not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone" In this episode we discuss what we've learned from all of the people we've interviewed about the refugee series in Northern France. We also discuss the effect on the refugee situation that coronavirus is having. We bring on our friend Dom to discuss the series too, and embrace the new world of socially connecting remotely. We hope you're able to do the same. A huge thank you to everybody who has contributed, and we hope that you continue to support their work at this time. Audio clip taken from The Great Dictator (1940)
In a warehouse in Calais, we chat to Otis from Project Play, a charity that organises play sessions for refugee children, whatever situation they are in. They seek to address the developmental needs of children, giving them moments of fun that are also educational and social. Otis tells us how they got started, what challenges there are for children in Northern France and we even have a little sing along at the end! Follow their work through these links: W: http://project-play.org/ I: @projectplayfrance F: https://www.facebook.com/projectplayfrance/
"Ultimately these are people who have not chosen to leave home"... "A refugee is a product of a broken system" Even in Coronavirus affected times throughout the world, there are still several thousand refugees without shelter in Northern France. In February before the virus struck, we spoke to Maddy - the incredible Field Manager for Help Refugees in Calais and probably one of the foremost experts on the situation in Northern France. She shares the history of Help Refugees, the political reality, and the human reality of life for refugees in Northern France. As France is in lockdown, children are still sleeping in tents in unsanitary environments. "There is nothing that separates us other than the privilege of where I was born." W: https://helprefugees.org/ I: https://www.instagram.com/chooselove F: https://www.facebook.com/HelpRefugeesUK/ T: @chooselove
"A lot of the issues that we come across aren't just related to the fact that these are migrant women, it's also related to patriarchal structures in European countries that they travel through, and home countries that they come from. And so everything that has lead to women - or to people in general - being here, is often part of much broader global social issues that people should scrutinise and continue to be aware of." In a hut in rainy Northern France, we chat to Alanna, Francis and Serena from the Refugee Women's Centre, who spend their days trying to support refugee women in the area. We discuss the specific situation for refugee women and the unique challenges they face, as well as the wonderful work of the Womens Centre. Follow their work through these links: W: https://www.dunkirkrefugeewomenscentre.com/ I: https://www.instagram.com/refugee_womens_centre/ F: https://www.facebook.com/refugeewomenscentre
Continuing the look at the refugee situation in Northern France, we chat to Sam, one of the founders of RCK. We discuss how RCK came to be and the phenomenal people who came together to share their skills. We look at their current challenges, and why exactly there are thousands of people in need of food in Northern France. if you’re moved by what you hear and want to get involved, you can find them on the following links, and donate to help their efforts via this link: https://www.justgiving.com/refugeecommunitykitchen W: refugeecomunitykitchen.com I: instagram.com/refugee_community_kitchen/ F: facebook.com/RefugeeCKitchen T: @RefugeeCKitchen
James speaks to Sylvie, a local resident in Calais. She has been living there with her children for a number of years. She tells us about her life, living in Calais, and her view on the situation.
In this first In Brief interview of the Northern France series, James speaks to Bean, one of the Woodyard co-ordinators in Calais. They distribute around 50000 kilos of firewood every month to refugee camps in Calais. We talk about how Bean came to be there, why firewood, and how the situation seems to them currently.
Welcome to our new format! "In Time" episodes will react the events in the moment. "In Depth" will continue our thematic explorations into culture, and "In Brief" will be bursts of short form content: interviews and audio moments. In this first "In Time" episode, we start a special mini-series on Northern France. James is between Calais and Dunkirk, working with refugee organisations and taking a look at the situation there, and reporting back directly to Wolf, and also to you, dear listener. In this episode, James sets out how he came to be there - involving some theatre (of course), a little chance, and a message on a toilet wall. Listen in to hear the full story, and and to find out about what's coming next in this special mini-series. À bientôt!
In the final episode of Season 1, we explore the intense physical world of Contact Sports. We hung up our boots shortly after realising we weren't cut out to be bashed around, so we sit in the studio and muse on others who put their bodies on the line in the name of sport. We chat to Alex, the founder of LFC - Lesbian Football Club, and how she and her team-mates embrace physicality at a community level. Plus a little science behind aggression in sports, and a look at some sports new to us: Kabbadi and Roller Derby. Tune in and have your ears pummeled by the physicality of our mighty podcast! We'll be back later in 2020, with some new topics and new ideas!
Bonus pod time! Announcing Episode 6: Contact Sports, and how you can get involved, plus rounding up some feedback from episode 5.
In this episode we explore alcohol. Don't worry it's not just us jabbering away after a few drinks, we have been looking into the complex cultural role alcohol has around the world. Plus, Homer Simpson, Terry Pratchett, Homer's Odyssey, Moldovan wine cellars, and the World Health Organisation. We explore the history of alcohol, how human beings discovered it and developed it. We look at how important alcohol is socially, whilst looking into the health costs of alcohol and how dangerous it can be, as well as what different societies are doing to counteract that. How do we choose to live alongside? Let's find out.
In this episode, we explore what Time means to us, by looking at science, and the practical side of time, and then exploring real time in the moving image, by looking at Christian Marclay's legendary video installation 'The Clock', as we all Run Lola Run and High Noon. We also explore To The Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf, a novel that explores the incredibly minute details of life in time, and contrasts them with huge events in world history. We look at perceptions of time in the Denis Villeneuve film Arrival, and in T.S. Eliot's 'The Four Quartets'. Plus! The Cricket World Cup, Gojira, and Bernard's Watch for a fully eclectic episode. Join us to explore Time, and share your feelings on Time with us!
In the third episode, we explore A.I. past, present and future. We run through a brief history, and a cultural history to take us up to the present day. We speak to Sheila Hayman, a documentary film-maker who has been making films and conducting research about A.I. since 1985. We explore the limits and the possibilities of AI currently and things to watch out for in the future. We take in Asimov's I, Robot, Blade Runner, Ghost in the Shell, Her, Metropolis and much more. We take an in depth look at gendering of Voice Assistants. Plus a quick catch up on Mountains, a visit to the U.K. from one D. Trump, and a few of our favourite robots. Happy listening! Theme music by Thore Yaw Go to our website: https://thegreatunknown.podbean.com/p/episode-3-artifical-intelligence/ to explore our research more.
In this months episode we will travel the globe examining the link between Mountains and us. We are very lucky to have the wonderful Te Arahi, from New Zealand, on the show talking about the bond between people and Nature. We also discuss the Romantics and the Sublime, the religious significance of Mount Kailash, the process of measuring mountains and lastly examine the seven highest summits on the seven continents. Join us as we marvel at the majesty of Rock and let us know which mountains mean the most to you and which you’d most like to visit or climb in the future?
In the first episode of The Great Unknown, Wolf and James explore the theme of fire, by looking at fire watch towers in the U.S.A. Arcade Fire music videos and the 2018 Korean film Burning, directed be Lee Chang Dong. Written and Produced by The Great Unknown Theme for The Great Unknown composed and performed by Thore Yaw