Fix The News

Malaria is one of the deadliest diseases of all time - responsible for more deaths than all of humanity's wars combined. That means that the arrival of not one, but two malaria vaccines has the potential to change the future of our species.

In this first episode, we’ll show you what’s at stake for millions of families across Sub-Saharan Africa, explain the economic and personal cost, and describe how the world’s first vaccine for a parasitic disease made it out of the lab, through trials, and into the lives of mothers and babies across the continent.

Here’s who you’ll meet:

Angus Hervey: Founder of Fix The News.

Teresa Chirwa-Ndanga: Journalist & human rights activist.

Dr Mary Hamel: Team Lead, Malaria Vaccines at WHO

Zacharia Kafuko: Director of 1Day Africa

Dr Rose Jalang'o: Head of the National Vaccines and Immunization Program, Kenya

Alanta Colley: Public health worker & science communicator

A Shot At History was produced by Fix The News.

Series & Story Producer, Amy Davoren-Rose, Fix The News

Associate Producer & Audio Director, Anthony Badolato, Hear That?

Research Producer, Marcus Costello and AudioCraft.

If you want to know more about this series or are interested in sharing it with your networks, send us an email: [email protected]

Over a year ago, we decided that we wanted to tell the storyof the malaria vaccine; one of the most important yet hidden stories of progress in the world right now. We knew that this would be a massive undertaking, but it turned out to be more epic that we could have possibly imagined. Over three episodes, we’re going to show you what it takes to develop and roll out a new vaccine, why this one matters so much and how it could change the trajectory of human history. First episode drops Friday 5th September. 

If you want to find out more about our work, go to fixthenews.com

What do KPop Demon Hunters and Bluey have to do with stories of progress? Well, you’ll hear the answer in this ‘Ask Us Anything’ episode. From controversial opinions on the climate crisis, to our very first News Fix bulletin, Gus and Amy dive into a range of topics and answer some big, burning questions from subscribers. Other topics discussed: Why solar energy is such big news, the role of solutions journalism in Gaza, good humans everywhere, individual action versus systemic change, the question of scale and the launch of our audio documentary about the malaria vaccine, A Shot At History.

What did you think of our News Fix? If you want to send us a question, feedback or nominate a potential guest for the podcast, go to our website or email [email protected]

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.

Meet Rutger Bregman, a Dutch historian, bestselling author andour first repeat guest on the podcast! In this episode we chat with Rutger about his new book Moral Ambition and why it’s time for people to stop wasting their talent and start making a difference. From his early midlife crisis to what we can learn from the abolitionists and why the world needs to redefinesuccess, this is a conversation for our times. Topics discussed: Why the biggest waste of time is the misallocation of talent, the ‘mother of all movements,’ what it takes to build a wildly better world, on taking the long view, the problem with online activism, money is not a dirty word in creating social movements and why the School for Moral Ambition is paying people to quit their jobs.

 Find out more:

https://www.moralambition.org

https://rutgerbregman.com

https://www.givingwhatwecan.org

Don’t forget to ‘Ask Us Anything’ – email yourquestion to [email protected] or leaveus a voice note here. You have until 9am Wednesday 27th September AEST.

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from Fix The News and sound design by Anthony Badolato from Ai3 - Audio & Voice.

Meet Paulie Stewart, an Australian punk rocker who teamed up with a group of nuns to help disabled kids in Timor Leste. From walking on the wild side, to almost crossing over to the other side – Paulie’s story is about full circles, second chances, and the one of the most unlikely and inspiring partnerships. Topics discussed: the deathbed encounter that changed Paulie’s life, why the Alma Nuns are more punk than Billy Idol, the impact of Paulie’s work in Timor, the power of faith and the unexpected twists that have defined his extraordinary life journey.

If you want to support the Alma nuns, you can donate through their funding platform, Myriad Australia.

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.

Meet Wawira Njiru, a nutritionist and social entrepreneur in Kenya who’s gone from serving lunch to 25 children out of a makeshift kitchen to establishing Food4Education, a nonprofit organisation that serves half a million hot, nutritious and affordable school meals every day. From the uncalculated cost of childhood hunger to powering an 'engine of potential', Wawira’s story shows how thinking big and starting small can change the world. Topics discussed: why the world's future leaders need a school meal today, the logistics of feeding half a million kids, the power of scaling a simple idea, why optimism matters, the ripple effects of school meals on communities and how a well-fed future could change Africa.

You can support Wawira’s work at Food4Education.org and for more inspiration, check out her 2025 TED talk here.

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.

Meet Boyan Slat, founder of The Ocean Cleanup - the world’s largest cleanup in history. After starting as a high school project in the Netherlands in 2011, Boyan’s mission has gone global, removing tens of millions of kilograms of plastic from oceans and rivers. It’s an epic job and with plastic pollution on the rise, the cleanup is doubling down on its goal to remove 90% of ocean plastic by 2040. From the recent launch of the cleanup’s 30 Cities program to dealing with critics on social media, Boyan’s 'engineering energy' might just change the way you think about the world. Topics discussed: mother nature vs human nature; why The Ocean Cleanup is not a lifelong project; behind-the-scenes of the cleaning up the world’s most polluted river; what motivates Boyan to keep going in the face of impossible odds and why addressing the root cause is not the best way to tackle our problems. 

For more information check out: theoceancleanup.com

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.

A new chapter begins on July 31st, 2025. 

Depending on where you get your news, 2024 probably sounded like a complete disaster. And while a lot of terrible things happened, not everything that happened in the world was terrible. From breakthrough treatments for HIV and obesity, to the rise in global happiness and the decline in deforestation in the Amazon – there were a lot of bright glimmers of progress that you just didn’t hear about.  

Go to our website to read the full list of our 86 Stories of Progress from 2024.

Other topics discussed: our word of the year (hint – it’s not "brain rot"); the surprising news about global reproductive rights; the good news for obesity; how 90 million kids got fed at school; the medical breakthrough of 2024; LGBTQ+ victories in Thailand & Greece; China’s 3000 kilometre green wall; the hidden stories of hope in Gaza and Ukraine; why 2025 is going to be a big year in the Amazon; how the clean energy transition is fuelling hope for future; the biggest environmental story of the year; incredible wins for animals; and why stories of progress matter now more than ever.

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.

Meet Steven Pinker, a cognitive psychologist and public intellectual who is one of the world’s greatest thinkers on the topic of progress. He is the author of 12 books,

Other topics discussed: why longstanding peace never makes headlines; the best metrics for human progress; the

This episode wraps up season three of this podcast. To celebrate, we’re offering new and existing subscribers a 30% discount on 12-month subscriptions to our weekly newsletter. If you want to make your inbox a more hopeful place: go to fixthenews.com and enter the code PINKER at checkout.

Find out more about Steven Pinker:

https://stevenpinker.com/

This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Fix The News⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.