Climate change is rapidly altering ecosystems around the world. This is resulting in many species becoming maladapted to the ecosystems in which they evolved.

How are organisms choosing their partners in such a rapidly changing world? Are the organisms able to predict what future ecosystem might be like? How would they do this, if they could? And, even if they could, would they be able to choose the “correct” mate accordingly?

This Linnean Future podcast episode asks Carlos Botero, assistant professor of biology who specializes in ‘Eco-evolutionary Dynamics of Extreme Environments’, how various organisms might cope with and adapt to repeated environmental change.

The Linnean Future Podcast Series is an initiative by The Linnean Society of London in response to the ongoing planetary emergency. This series brings you stories from around the world that explore the impacts of climate change on every aspect of our lives.

Through the series we will be meeting researchers, practitioners, activists, lawyers, and others who are studying these climatic changes, tracking their causes and impacts, and working on solutions.

The Linnean Society of London is committed to Net Zero (with offsets) by 2022 and reducing its carbon emissions by at least half by 2030.

Speakers: Asst. Prof. Carlos Botero

Interviewer: Padmaparna Ghosh

Producer: Ross Ziegelmeier

One size can never fit all. So, is it fair that all countries should have Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050? And if they have to, what is the most just path for the whole world to achieve Net Zero in the 28 years?

Join us as we discuss Net Zero 2050 with Prof. Navroz Dubash, who explores the complexities and specificities of different nations’ global efforts to reduce carbon emissions, and illustrates possibilities for innovation and collaboration within and between nations.

The Linnean Future Podcast Series is an initiative by The Linnean Society of London in response to the ongoing planetary emergency. This series brings you stories from around the world that explore the impacts of climate change on every aspect of our lives.

Through the series we will be meeting researchers, practitioners, activists, lawyers, and others who are studying these climatic changes, tracking their causes and impacts, and working on solutions.

The Linnean Society of London is committed to Net Zero (with offsets) by 2022 and reducing its carbon emissions by at least half by 2030.

Speakers: Prof. Navroz Dubash

Interviewer: Ross Ziegelmeier

Producer: Ross Ziegelmeier

Tags: Justice, Climate justice, Net Zero, Carbon Neutral

Hindsight is 20/20. In retrospect, we could have always done things better. But how does this play out in the case of climate change. Does our recorded history hold lessons for us? What and how did our ancestors do when faced with climatic changes and disasters? What can we learn?

In this episode, we chat with Dr. Dagomar Degroot who takes us all the way back to 1560, bridging the humanities and sciences to explore how societies have suffered – sometimes thrived - in the face of environmental changes.

The Linnean Future Podcast Series is an initiative by The Linnean Society of London in response to the ongoing planetary emergency. This series brings you stories from around the world that explore the impacts of climate change on every aspect of our lives.

Through the series we will be meeting researchers, practitioners, activists, lawyers, and others who are studying these climatic changes, tracking their causes and impacts, and working on solutions.

The Linnean Society of London is committed to Net Zero (with offsets) by 2022 and reducing its carbon emissions by at least half by 2030.

Speakers: Dr. Dagomar Degroot

Interviewer: Padmaparna Ghosh

Producer: Ross Ziegelmeier

About 20,000 heads of state, diplomats and activists will convene a critical conference in the Scottish city of Glasgow – popularly known as COP26 (Conference of the Parties).

In our launch episode of our Linnean Future podcast series, we hash out the long history of climate negotiations with Prof. Mark Maslin. We chart the political journey of international environmental negotiations, the challenges that COP26 faces, and what it hopes to achieve.

The Linnean Future podcast series is an initiative by The Linnean Society of London in response to the ongoing planetary emergency. Twelve episodes over twelve months will bring you stories from around the world that explore the wide-ranging impacts of climate change.

Over the series, we will be bringing you vivid interviews, sharp opinions, current research and field science that we hope will help explain the complex and deeply intertwined relationship between us and the planet.

The Linnean Society of London is committed to Net Zero (with offsets) by 2022 and reducing its carbon emissions by at least half by 2030.

Speakers: Prof. Mark Maslin

Interviewer: Padmaparna Ghosh

Producer: Ross Ziegelmeier

For most of us we have never seen a sea snake or even perhaps heard of such a creature but in actual fact they are an incredibly diverse group of animals.

Dr. Jenna Crowe-Riddell from the School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide is helping us to understand these mysterious creatures. With terrestrial environments being entirely different from marine based environments one of the first questions to be answered about these water dwelling snakes is, how do they sense their world?

Interviewer: Ross Ziegelmeier

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Speaker: Dr. Jenna Crowe-Riddell

Why have whales evolved to have such incredibly large brains? This is a question that has puzzled researchers for a very long time. New research published in the Biological Journal of The Linnean Society has shed some new light on this question and perhaps got us a little closer to the answer. In this podcast we will hear from Matthew McCurry about this research, and dive a little deeper with Hal Whitehead, into some of the more complex behaviours of whales that have contributed to these incredible creatures large brains.

Interviewer: Ross Ziegelmeier

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Speaker: Prof. Hal Whitehead, Dr Matthew McCurry

Octopoda appear to be from another planet with their entirely unrelatable anatomy and way of being, yet, we are uncontrollably drawn to them. In this podcast we explore what makes them "human", why we relate to them and discover that they are far older than we might have ever previously thought.

Interviewer: Padmaparna Ghosh, Ross Ziegelmeier

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Speaker: Sy Montgomery, Dr. Adiël Klompmaker

Every month Padma, our Events and Communications Manager, will highlight a historical object, personality or quirky tale from our Collections as the "Pick of the Month" episode. The full stories can be found on our website in “News” section. We hope that these short narratives will serve as trailers to the longer essays that are meticulously researched put together by our Collections staff.

This month Padma goes in search of Edmond Albius (1829–80), who ought to be remembered and honoured for his critical contribution to the production of vanilla - a plant many of us know, love and can't do without!

Presenter: Padmaparna Ghosh

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Lord Howe Island is a tiny dot in the Tasman Sea. But home to a curious bunch of beetles. Come and scan the forests of this island with Professor Alexey Solodovnikov and our new host, Padma. Alexey helps us trace the history of beetle study on this island and how important island biogeography is to understanding evolution.

Presenter: Padmaparna Ghosh

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Guest Speaker: Prof. Alexey Solodovnikov

Sounds are used by animals for a large variety of purposes, from finding prey and recognising mates to communicating with each other about food, threats and territories. Many animals, from mammals, birds and fish to insects and numerous groups in between, use acoustics, vocalisation and other ways to make and hear sound. It is without doubt that sound is an important driver in evolution, but has often been overlooked in taxonomy for the simple reason that it does not preserve well in traditional natural history collections.

We still wonder what the song of the dodo would have been like.

With increases in video and sound recordings of animals and the study thereof, sound plays an increasing role in distinguishing between different species. Thus, in this age of extinction the recording of animal sounds has never been more important. What you are about to hear is a number of field recordings, all collected for the purpose of evolutionary research. Some of the sounds you will hear are from bats, birds, cicadas, crickets and frogs.

Produced by: Ross Ziegelmeier

Presenter: Padmaparna Ghosh