Climate Curious

Climate communicators are quite frankly, terrible at talking to each other. Or that’s what new research just published by the Talking Climate Collaborative shows. Climate Curious invited the study’s lead researcher, sociologist and professor Dana R. Fisher to jump on the podcast during New York Climate Week to break down the results, and chat all things communication, democracy, and climate. In conversation with Climate Curious’ co-host Ben Hurst, this Apocalyptic Optimist shares how climate communicators can link arms and momentum share, why she thinks VIP climate shocks are a good thing (but can still feel sorry for Nicolas Cage), her theory on the Luigi Mangione case, and her climate clapback to the age-old (and incorrect!) “it only takes 3.5% to change the world” rule.

Learn more about the Talking Climate Collaborative: https://talkingclimate.com/

Read the new research on climate communication: https://talkingclimate.com/landscape-assessment/

Check out Dana’s work: https://danarfisher.com/

Listen to Dana’s podcast, Apocalyptic Optimist: https://open.spotify.com/show/12FU52C6c9kIZWEk1nOyPK

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

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LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“It seems quite counterintuitive to wade in with our chainsaws, but we are replicating a natural process that we're missing,” says National Trust woodland advisor and author, Luke Barley. Whilst one side of the battle for our world's forests involves protecting trees from destructive deforestation, Luke shares that British woodlands are actually suffering from the opposite problem, being left entirely alone. For thousands of years during what some have called ‘The Wood Age’, humans didn’t just live alongside forests, but actively shaped them, echoing the activities of wooly mammoths and other large animals from prehistoric times. Luke busts the myths of untouched, pristine, dark forests, and reveals why responsible and active forest management is essential to revive Britain’s biodiversity, by reconnecting us to our woodland roots.

Enjoyed this short? Listen to the full length interview with Luke Barley on Climate Curious here: https://youtu.be/Gm0c0KKiKFI?si=bt9tB5r8Ueq38J50

National Trust plant a tree campaign: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/support-us/plant-a-tree

Find Luke’s book ‘Ancient’ just won the 2026 Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing and is available here: https://www.waterstones.com/book/ancient/luke-barley/9781805222231

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

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TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A solar panel in Shanghai and a wind turbine in Brasília might sound worlds apart, but the people installing renewables around the globe are breaking similar barriers and achieving the same wins: cheaper bills, cleaner energy, and better jobs! After last week's trip to Oxfordshire's Westmill Solar and Wind Farm, TEDxLondon's Deesha Chandra sits down with three global renewable energy leaders to compare and contrast energy independence lessons from around the world. Featuring: Victoria Santos from Brazil's Institute for Climate and Society, Dr. Yongping Zhang from Energy Foundation China, and Sahele Fekede from the Africa Climate Foundation. Tune in to hear how local clean energy is going global, from Brazil to China and Ethiopia. Helping bring these people together is ReNew2030, building community to share learnings and spread the renewable from local to international.

Listen to the Westmill episode on Climate Curious: https://tedxlondon.com/podcasts/how-a-community-can-build-its-own-renewable-energy-with-westmill-energy/ 

Learn more about ReNew2030: https://renew2030.org/

Learn more about Westmill Energy: https://westmillenergy.coop/about/our-story/

Institute for Climate and Society: https://climaesociedade.org/en/who-we-are/

The Energy Foundation: https://www.efchina.org/ 

African Climate Foundation: https://africanclimatefoundation.org/about-us/

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fancy making over a million quid for your community and beyond from shared renewable energy resources? Climate Curious spent a day in sunny Oxfordshire with the fine folks at Westmill Energy to hear how they took clean shared renewable energy generation into their own hands! 17 years, 3,000 members, and a flock of sheep later; discover how this pioneering energy co-operative got off the ground, and is inspiring communities all around the world to do the same. TEDxLondon's Deesha Chandra spoke with the founding farmer in question, Adam Twine, as well as the chair of the wind farm co-op, Mark Luntley, and ex-engineer turned volunteer tour guide, Nick Boulter. Tune in to get a closer look at how a group of determined locals set up a cooperative, took on opposition, and created a true home grown clean energy success story.

Learn more about Westmill Energy: https://westmillenergy.coop/about/our-story/

How the community used its million pounds: https://westmillenergy.coop/news/westmill-1million-community-funding/

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“AI can do a lot of good things, but I'd like to see it out-drink a room of 30 people” jokes the founder of Small99 and People Planet Pint, Adam Bastock. From sleepless heatwaves to un-lit candles melting, Adam joins Climate Curious’s Ben Hurst to share  how saying cheers to the climate has helped galvanise thousands of people at hundreds of pub meetups to get involved with local climate action.  Encouraging folks to sip on solutions (as opposed to drown in doom), tune in to learn how Adam has cracked the code of connecting pub culture with climate community. Cheers to that!    

Find a People Planet Pint meetup near you: https://peopleplanetpint.co.uk

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"I literally took out my notes app, and I wrote an amendment," says 21-year-old climate activist and Director of the Federal Climate Amendment Institute, Lake Liao. Tune in to Climate Curious to hear how an AOC video he watched on a bus ride home changed everything, why court wins in Montana and Hawaii show what's possible locally when Washington won't move, and what's next for the student-led grassroots movement working to make a liveable planet a constitutional right. 

Find out more about FCAI: https://federalclimateamendmentinstitute.org

ActBlue donation link: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/climateamendment

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“The private sector entering the Amazon is most often flanked by soldiers, allowing the extractive companies to come in,” says impact investor Michelle Arévalo-Carpenter. But many of the Amazon’s new threats are also being driven by an illicit private sector, particularly illegal mining. Tune in for how private-sector tactics and market incentives make conserving the Amazon more profitable than exploiting it. Michelle’s impact investment fund is moving money directly to the people on the ground, ensuring responsible stewardship over the land and its rich biodiversity, as well as a sustainable and lucrative path forward in protecting the Andean Amazon. Recorded live at TED 2026 in conversation with TEDxLondon Director Deesha Chandra.

For more on illegal mining check out Claudia Vega’s TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojfZMid20iA

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"When you ask a young indigenous man to give up all of his land for $20,000, he'll say no way, because what grows in there is gold, cacao is gold!" Michelle Arévalo-Carpenter tells Climate Curious, breaking down how investing in the companies that bring Amazon-grown products to market is key to protecting the rich biodiversity of the Andean Amazon. Michelle explains why current public sector strategies are not enough to beat private sector actors like illegal gold mining operations, and instead how investing in businesses that pay smallholder and indigenous producers more for regenerative products, cacao and beyond, can provide sustainable and profitable alternatives to deforestation. Recorded live at TED 2026 in conversation with TEDxLondon Director Deesha Chandra.

For more on illegal mining check out Claudia Vega’s TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojfZMid20iA

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“Games can go into spaces where sometimes it's hard to have these conversations,” say game designers Nathan Harrison and Mel Frances, as they unpack how gaming and scenario roleplay can help us reveal our inner climate priorities! Nathan and Mel break down key moments of their ‘Future for Beginners’ game with Climate Curious host, and game participant, Maryam Pasha. From high stakes Prisoners Dilemma challenges to short-term win vs long-term resilience decision making under pressure, we find out how playing through systemic controls can build empathy, reveal our own psychological blindspots, and provoke deep and existential discussions Recorded at TED 2026.

Enjoyed this short? Listen to the full conversation with climate game strategists Mel and Nathan: https://tedxlondon.com/podcasts/are-you-ready-to-lead-your-town-through-an-extreme-weather-event-with-the-game-designers-behind-the-future-for-beginners/

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper and Issey Gladston

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If global shipping was a country, it would be the world's sixth largest greenhouse gas emitter. But help is on its way. Joojin Kim tells Climate Curious we can sink shipping's dirty old habits by following the money. "It's common sense. The alternatives are all there. It's just the policy, regulations and finance," he tells TEDxLondon's Deesha Chandra at TED2026. Hear how the CEO of Solutions for Our Climate and a grantee of The Audacious Project got his start in climate action – taking on coal financing in South Korea –and how that fight led him to shipping, one of the world's dirtiest industries, and one that happens to sit right in his backyard.

Learn more about Solutions For Our Climate: https://forourclimate.org/

Check out this year’s The Audacious Project grantees: https://www.audaciousproject.org/news/building-what-lasts-welcoming-the-audacious-projects-newest-cohort 

Join the Climate Curious conversation on socials:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/climatecuriouspod/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@climatecuriouspod

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCtF6xzNkVIczlDmVcH8FCMA

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/10996041/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TEDxLondon

Website: https://tedxlondon.com/podcast/

All other links: https://linktr.ee/climatecuriouspod 

Created by TEDxLondon

Executive produced by Josie Colter

Produced by Ben Beheshty

Curated by Deesha Chandra

Hosted by Maryam Pasha and Ben Hurst

Communications by Tara Cooper and Issey Gladston

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.