52 Insights Podcast

It is one of the most important health topics of our time, yet hardly anyone is aware that it is happening. A subset of chemicals that have penetrated everybody on earth is called PFAS, more commonly known as forever chemicals. How did they get there, and why are they so persistent? That is the focal point of today's crucially important interview with Pete Myers, the founder of Environment Health News.

He has spent his life trying to uncover answers to these questions and, more importantly, how our environment is affecting our bodies. Coming away from this interview, it feels like the stuff made up on the internet is controlled by the dark state or major conspiracy theories, but it is not. This is a global health issue that is affecting every one of us. From sperm rates declining at a catastrophic speed, causing a major decline in fertility, to an acceleration in fatal chronic diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases like dementia and Alzheimer's.

We wanted a modern, hygienic, and comfortable system. We got one, but it has brought a flood of chemicals into our marketplace—in fact, 350,000 of them. Only a handful of those chemicals have gone through substantial toxicity testing, which should alarm any government. Listen to this interview to get an inside view of how this health crisis emerged and what each of us can do to minimize our exposure to these harmful elements.

Political scientist and bestselling author Ian Bremmer has emerged as one of the most trusted voices on the global affairs circuit; relied upon for his sharp insights, he helps make sense of the fractured world around us. If you want to understand where AI and the current geopolitical flashpoints are taking us, tune in to my latest episode.

To witness a Tomás Saraceno exhibition is to truly understand the value that art can have in awakening your senses. Words used to describe his work include ethereal, profound, and brave. One well-known gallery owner even went as far as saying he was "the artist most likely to change the world."

But setting hyperboles aside, Tomás is simply someone who wants to relay a very important message to us. Employing techniques such as installation, sculpture, and photography, he carries an urgent message from the world of the arachnids – which is if we don't learn about our humble place in the universe, we face a highly untenable situation as a species.

Saraceno transcends mere spectacle, using his work as a powerful instrument to inspire, educate, and influence. His relentless pursuit has led him into a partnership with the mysterious, at times otherworldly, and ancient species—the spider—revealing profound insights about our delicate place within the cosmos. It would be an understatement to emphasise just how much he shares a love for these odd, otherworldly creatures.

If you haven't yet experienced one of Saraceno's expansive exhibitions, you are truly missing out. During our chat, Tomás delves into his new science developed around spiders, his experiences with Ayahuasca, his childhood reflections, and thoughts on ChatGPT and technology, and passionately discusses why our perception of the green economy is fundamentally flawed.

One of the more fearless filmmakers operating in Europe right now, Tarik Saleh, is intent on having another type of discussion with you. One that doesn't revolve around stereotypes or prejudices. His latest film Cairo Conspiracy is a well-scripted thriller which examines the fraught relationship between church and state.

Since September 11, stories emerging from the Arab world have all too often been neglected and pushed aside, especially at a time when the sentiment of the Islamic world in the West remains low. And where polarisation and anger have become knee-jerk reactions for many.

Saleh started out as a well-known graffiti artist on the streets of Stockholm, Sweden; he had his break out in 2009 with his debut feature film Metropia which starred Vincent Gallo and Juliette Lewis. From then on, his star has risen steadily, with back-to-back films based in Egypt both have earned him high praise and accolades in elite film circles from Sundance to Cannes.

A deeply thoughtful filmmaker,  in this discussion, we delve into:

– His uncomfortable background growing up in Sweden
– Why the Arab world still attracts such negative connotations in the West
– Why Egypt refuses to allow him into the country
– What the West doesn’t understand about the Islamic world
– We talk about the red line, free speech and having the courage despite those dangers.
– What went wrong with the Arab Spring?
– And his optimism and hope for the world at large

What would you do if a wealthy and powerful tyrant decided you were a direct challenge to his power? This is the dilemma that Bill Browder, best-selling author and human rights activist, has faced over the last fifteen years.

Earning the ire of Vladimir Putin, in 2009, his lawyer Sergei Magnitsky was tortured and murdered in cold blood; this heinous act set off a chain of events that would lead Browder to work both ends of the candle to raise a stunning piece of legislation called the Magnitsky act. Now enacted in 35 countries, it allows governments sweeping powers to freeze the assets and visas of foreign government officials deemed to be human rights offenders. 

At 58, this American native, in this latest episode of 52 Insights, recounts his incredible tale of survival with me. His chilling story,  documented in his bestselling novels Freezing Order and Red Notice, read like omens leading up to the gravest geopolitical conflict in Europe since WW2.

Browder's story isn't just about one man's endless fight to dismantle a sociopathic regime but a tale built on protecting his virtues - justice, perseverance and a higher calling. It's hard not to be inspired by his story.

In this discussion, we delve into the following:

Browder's personal history

Russia's erratic journey to the present day

Examining the relationship between Browder's sanction work and Putin's War with Ukraine

Trump's collusion with Russia

Putin's personal vendetta against Browder

The war in Ukraine and its eventual conclusion

Browder's legacy

If the idea of Mark Zuckerberg crafting the next stage of our digital world sounds ominous, then you’re not alone. Big tech has wielded unearthly powers, often at the cost of disrupting our democracies. Now with the promise of this new digital world, the metaverse, on our doorstep, it is clear we need new ethical actors in this space to lead to take charge.

My next guest on the 52 Insights podcast is Herman Narula, the CEO of the British unicorn startup Improbable is one of those, an earnest 34-year-old CEO who wants to change our perception of the metaverse for all of us.

His company, Improbable, has been quietly building the piping of the metaverse for several years. Leading a global company of 1000 people, Narula has enormous plans for this space, including the vision of bringing millions of people into one space at any one time at the cost of enormous processing powers.

After graduating from Cambridge as a computer scientist in the 2010s, his principled vision of the metaverse took shape after surrounding himself with influential mentors and early colleagues. He has now become one the leading figureheads of this first metaverse quake – a space that also includes the CEOs of Meta, Nvidia, Niantic and Roblox.

In his debut book Virtual Society which has just been released, he shares with us a unique vision, a tech kaleidoscope full of otherworldly visions that he says will make our lives not only more comfortable but enriching in every way, however, with so much scepticism out there, we need to take a step back and ask some uncomfortable questions about this new realm.

Who will own what? How will it affect our social lives? How will it change our behaviour? And most importantly, will it further disrupt the fabric of society? If you're even slightly interested in the intersection between politics, technology and the future of our species, then this chat is for you.

Please note: I'm also running a giveaway for this episode; I have two copies of Herman Narula's book Virtual Society to give away. If you want one, please send me a direct message with your name and one line explaining why you think the metaverse will be good or bad for humankind.

Virtual Society by Herman Narula is out now on Penguin Random House

Photograph by HANNAH MCKAY / REUTERS via Alamy Stock Photo.

This week I am sitting down with one of the more interesting and prolific hop hop artists working today Denzel Curry. His fans range from Billie Eilish, Thundercat and Glass Animals, they are, as I am, enamoured with his sense of passion and clarity.

A 27-year-old rapper and singer who hails from Florida. He emerged as a pioneer of what was called the SoundCloud rap genre in the early twenty-tens, synonymous with artists such as XXXTentacion (with which Denzel used to live with), Tekashi 6-9 and Lil Uzi Vert. His mixtapes garnered huge acclaim early on, followed by several critically lauded albums. Now with his 2022 record Melt My Eyez See Your Future firmly in hand for many best of 2022 lists, he takes his very personal brand of rhyming to the next level.

This chat is about two people from very different backgrounds finding common ground and finding a way to speak about pain and catharsis. It took us a while to find our footing, but when we did, some beautiful moments of honesty were shared. Make sure you listen to the end, where I'm privileged enough for him to share his favourite flow with me.

Subscribe to the 52 insights podcast on Apple and Spotify, and sign up for my newsletter to get notifications of when my next interview will drop. Leave a comment on the 52 insights Apple podcast page, or hit me up on social media. Your comments help keep this platform alive.

This week I sit down with the legendary photographer Brazilian/French photographer, Sebastião Salgado. A true icon of the visual world, he has inspired countless generations of adventurers, humanitarians, conservationists, policymakers and photographers everywhere.

His work is able to raise awareness around some of the most pertinent issues of our time including the debilitating effects of industrialisation on the developing world, the destruction of our natural world and the unflinching tales of human suffering. His magnum opus includes Genesis, but The Other Americas, Workers, and Migrations; are all mammoth projects that have taken a scrutinising yet awe-inspiring look at our species.

As someone who is almost 80 years old, he has lost none of his gumption to fire into some of the most uncompromising places on earth. In this exclusive chat, we talk about his own mortality and the imminence of death, he describes his own harrowing moment when he came incredibly close to dying. We also talk about his hopes for humanity. There are clear messages throughout his work none more so than in his latest work, Amazônia, where through profiling the indigenous peoples and their landscapes, he is telling us we must act now before it's too late.  

All you can do is sit back and listen to Sebastião describes his philosophy and ideas about life, his character and heart are as enormous as the books he produces. If you have not I urge any of you to sit down and watch Salt of the Earth an incredible documentary from 2014 which follows Sebastião from Econ student to photographer/adventurer.

Every major democracy in the world right now is experiencing some kind of teething problems. From rising inflation to some very deep soul searching in a post-pandemic world, issues that are interconnected that look increasingly intractable.

But all of these challenges are what make democracy such an exciting project to live in – it's ours alone to craft. Within this tug of war, new ideas and concepts arise. Enter renowned American-German political scientist Yascha Mounk, a passionate defender of the liberal order, his work documents the bitter challenges we face as citizens of our democracies but also the enormous opportunities we inherit if we pull together. In his latest work, The Great Experiment, he has put together a rallying thesis outlining a bold vision, one that requires a macro overview, he is 'pessimistic about our political discourse, and anxious about a civil war of the elites, but insists that progress in the heart of society are reasonably good.'

An Associate Professor of International Affairs at Johns Hopkins University in Washington D.C., a contributing editor at The Atlantic, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, and the founder of Persuasion. Mounk is Someone who can distil even the most complex of problems we face in a straightforward way.

As Yascha and I get into the weeds of these problems, Russia makes a renewed advance into Ukraine, aiming to disrupt the calm which we have all fought so hard to preserve.

Let me know your thoughts on the discussion, email me or comment at me on our social media and please subscribe to my newsletter to get notified of my next podcast.

How did we become so incredibly unhealthy? How did obesity and diabetes become some of the most prevalent diseases of our civilisation? It is now estimated that cases of autoimmune diseases are rising between 3% and 9% a year because of our westernised diet. As soon as the western diet started leeching off white flour and sugar, people across the world became inordinately unhealthy as a consequence.

How should we then, in 2022, think about health? Science journalist Gary Taubes has been reporting on the inadequacies of the nutrition science industry for decades. A bestselling author behind the recently rereleased The Case For Keto and The Case Against Sugar. Rather than take the word of science at face value, he tends to see nutrition and health science being littered with methodological sinkholes.

For decades his hunch behind the causes of obesity has attracted the intense ire of the scientific community. But the nutrition and health community can at least agree on one thing with Gary; sugar has captivated us for all the wrong reasons. It has become the cornerstone of our deterioration.

At the dawn of the new year, this being the first interview for 52 Insights, it is fitting to look at our health and what we put into our bodies.

In this fascinating discussion with Gary, he reveals the mechanisms that lie behind the food industrial complex, how it shaped the way we eat and think and its many attached conspiracies that go with it.

Ultimately many of us face a myriad of chronic illnesses if we don’t change our behaviour, and Gary gives us a glimpse of what we can do to fix this. Gary says the most important thing is not what about you put in your body but getting your thought environment right. Tune in to my latest podcast with best selling author behind the Case Against Sugar, Gary Taubes who takes me on a whirlwind tour of the sugar industry of the 20th century and what the full picture of obesity really is.