Declarations: The Human Rights Podcast

Over the last few years, thousands of students have begun campaigns calling their universities to divest their endowments from fossil fuels. What is the case for fossil fuel divestment? How do these campaigns relate to human rights issues? And is there any hope of mitigating the future impacts of climate change, given the unwillingness of some governments to even acknowledge fossil fuel dependency as a legitimate problem?

This week's guests are Chris Galpin and Emma Bryan (Cambridge Zero Carbon Society) and Carys Goodwin (former New Zealand Green Party staffer).

In our first holiday special, Max, Matt, and Scott explore the many debates around Christmas and cultural rights. Why does Fox News always talk about a 'War on Christmas'? Are the holidays a sacred time for avoiding political topics, such as Trump or Brexit? And if we do talk politics with family, how can we do so in a productive manner?

Who has the power to remake cities? We ask Dr Graham Denyer Willis about security, democracy, and development in urban environments in places like Brazil and America. Human rights have transformed modern cities — but do they empower the people who live there?

In an age where states and even ordinary people have the power to produce fake news, how do we verify whether a supposed human rights abuse is real or staged online? Human rights and digital media expert Dr Ella McPherson explores this problem and her work to address it.

(NOTE: Dr McPherson is currently on maternity leave, but she graciously agreed to be on this episode. This interview contains some minor background noises from Ella's baby.)

Where do rights come from, and what's the point of talking about them? In our very first episode, the panel meets with Dr Sharath Srinivasan, director of Cambridge's Centre of Governance and Human Rights. No one understands these important, foundational questions of human rights better than him. Trust us, we've checked.