From diving with bubble-loving manta rays in Indonesia to wrestling off nibbly seals in the Bristol Channel, Madeline St Claire’s tales of life underwater are full of unexpected twists and turns.

The marine biologist and underwater filmmaker has travelled the world exploring and even restoring some of our ocean’s most precious ecosystems.

For many, her job is the stuff of childhood dreams, but it was the loss of one of her close friends at the age of 16 to cancer that set her on this path: ’It’s a weird thing to look back and see this tragedy as having anything other than sadness, but I'm forever grateful that it’s the legacy of my friend’.

Now 15 years on, Mads is a fierce advocate for protecting marine life at home and overseas. In this episode, she shares the highs and lows of ocean conservation, demonstrates (quite literally) what a healthy coral reef really sounds like, and explains how she founded Women in Ocean Science to elevate women’s voices and tackle gender inequality head-on.

🌍 Connect to Nature Season Two is sponsored by the Fairtrade Foundation

If you care about nature, climate change and where your food comes from, Fairtrade's Do It Fair campaign is calling for a future that's fair on the planet. You can help by choosing Fairtrade products and adding your voice to Fairtrade's petition calling for stronger laws to protect people and the planet.

Find out more and sign the Fair on the Planet petition at https://action.fairtrade.org.uk/page/186243/petition/1?ea.tracking.id=fair-on-the-planet-connect-to-...

Together, we can help build a future that's fair to people and fair to the planet.

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Who gets to be British? Writer, broadcaster and DJ Zakia Sewell wants you to look beneath the surface and discover the ancient stories, folk traditions, and seasonal customs that offer a radically different answer

In this episode, Zakia joins Katrina and Amy to explore her book Finding Albion, why folklore offers an inclusive alternative to traditional British identity, and how Morris dancing, May Day celebrations, and winter solstice festivals can reconnect us to the land and to each other

🌍 Connect to Nature Season Two is sponsored by the Fairtrade Foundation

If you care about nature, climate change and where your food comes from, Fairtrade's Do It Fair campaign is calling for a future that's fair on the planet. You can help by choosing Fairtrade products and adding your voice to Fairtrade's petition calling for stronger laws to protect people and the planet.

Find out more and sign the Fair on the Planet petition at https://action.fairtrade.org.uk/page/186243/petition/1?ea.tracking.id=fair-on-the-planet-connect-to-...

Together, we can help build a future that's fair to people and fair to the planet.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Ecologist and entomologist Connor Butler joins Connect to Nature to challenge our ideas of what nature really is. From dung beetles and cockchafers to queer ecology and the hidden wildlife beneath logs, this thought-provoking episode explores how looking closer at the small, strange and overlooked parts of nature can change the way we see the world.

🌍 Connect to Nature Season Two is sponsored by the Fairtrade Foundation

If you care about nature, climate change and where your food comes from, Fairtrade's Do It Fair campaign is calling for a future that's fair on the planet. You can help by choosing Fairtrade products and adding your voice to Fairtrade's petition calling for stronger laws to protect people and the planet.

Find out more and sign the Fair on the Planet petition at https://action.fairtrade.org.uk/page/186243/petition/1?ea.tracking.id=fair-on-the-planet-connect-to-...

Together, we can help build a future that's fair to people and fair to the planet.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Connect to Nature is back for a second season, with hosts Amy Chapman and Katrina Ridley exploring fresh and inspiring ways to deepen our relationship with the natural world. Through conversations with a diverse range of guests, the series uncovers practical, hopeful and imaginative approaches to living more sustainably, discovering urban wildlife and creating greener futures for people and the planet.

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In this episode of Connect to Nature, we’re joined by climate justice advocate, writer and speaker Dominique Palmer. Dominique shares her journey into activism, from discovering a deeper connection to the natural world to speaking at the UN and championing change on a global stage.

We explore the link between slow fashion and sustainability, how the fashion industry impacts people and the planet, and why embracing your personal style can be a powerful form of activism. Dominique also talks about rejecting perfectionism, finding joy in secondhand fashion, and making climate action more accessible for everyone.

Plus, we share simple, practical ways you can start connecting with nature in your everyday life, no matter where you are.

💚 “We are nature - and when we remember that, everything changes.”

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In this episode of Connect to Nature, we’re joined by Joshua Ademi (Tales by Josh), adventurer and founder of Black Scottish Adventurers. From growing up in Lagos to exploring the Scottish Highlands, Josh shares how discovering the outdoors changed his life—and how he’s helping others do the same.

We explore how nature can improve mental wellbeing, reduce loneliness, and build stronger, more meaningful connections. Josh also shares practical advice on getting started, why you don’t need big adventures to feel the benefits, and how small, local walks can have a powerful impact.

In this episode:

Whether you’re new to the outdoors or looking to deepen your connection with nature, this episode will inspire you to step outside and start small. 🌿

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Climate justice campaigner and author Tori Tsui joins Connect to Nature to share how growing up by the sea in Hong Kong shaped her love for the natural world, why cold-water swimming keeps her grounded, and how music can be a powerful tool for climate action.

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In this episode of Connect to Nature, hosts Amy Chapman and Katrina Ridley sit down with environmental campaigner and lifelong birdwatcher Dr Mya-Rose Craig, also known as Bird Girl, to talk about how we really connect with nature.

From defending misunderstood animals to rediscovering playfulness outdoors as adults, this conversation explores why birds might just be the most accessible (and joyful) gateway into nature. Mya-Rose shares how growing up loving wildlife shaped her activism, why she started Black2Nature at just 13, and how simply paying attention to the birds around us can support wellbeing and mental health.

Together, they discuss:

You don’t need to know bird names.
You don’t need binoculars.
You just need curiosity.

🎧 Tune in and let nature take up a little more space in your life.

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No time, no money, no idea where to start: YoungWilders once asked why reconnecting with nature seemed so complicated... Then they went and changed it.
YoungWilders is, in their own words, a 'matchmaking service connecting young people with landowners who want to do ecological good'. But that doesn't mean their conservation work is boring. Far from it. Just ask them about the time they 'stole Christmas' in Grinch outfits (there were a lot of spruce trees, we're told) or spent the day running around fields digging holes in pig masks 🐷.

On this episode of Connect to Nature, Amy Chapman and Katrina Ridley are joined by Noah and Molly from YoungWilders to learn more about the nature connection gap facing 18-30 year olds, why the conservation sector needs a serious shake-up, and how their youth-led rewilding projects are changing both land and lives.
👋 Make sure to follow along on Instagram and TikTok @connect2naturepod
Season 1 is brought to you in proud partnership with the Woodland Trust 🌳

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Joycelyn Longdon grew up surrounded by London's concrete cityscape, feeling isolated from traditional environmental movements, but now she's rewriting that narrative and connecting to nature in ways many could barely imagine.

An award-winning environmental justice researcher, founder of Climate in Colour, author, and part-time DJ, Joycelyn is currently pursuing a PhD at Cambridge University, investigating the justice implications of conservation technologies.
Her work sits at the intersection of AI, nature, and racial equity. From using eco-acoustics to monitor biodiversity in Ghanaian rainforests, to challenging the colonial history baked into conservation science, Joycelyn's perspective is both urgent and radical: that the environmental movement's biggest problem isn't what it's doing, but who it's doing it for.

In this episode of Connect to Nature with Amy Chapman and Katrina Ridley, we explore:

🌍 Why environmental movements have historically excluded communities of colour

🎙️ How eco-acoustics is changing the way we listen to and protect ecosystems

⚡ Why urgency might actually be harming climate action — and what to do instead

🤝 What real community trust looks like when working on environmental justice

🌿 How people of colour are reclaiming their ancestral connection to nature

Whether you're an activist, a nature lover, or just curious about the politics of the planet, this conversation will shift how you think.

Season 1 is brought to you in proud partnership with the Woodland Trust 🌳

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