In this episode of Serendipity Soup – the antidote to celebrity success podcasts – I talk to Nicole Shamier, Chief Economist of the island of St. Helena; one of the most remote places on the planet.

What would make you leave everyone you know to work on a tiny island a five-day boat journey from the nearest port?

How difficult is it when what you want from your career doesn’t fit into a neat box?

What it’s like when your boss can call the local hospital to find out why you didn’t come into work? 

The answers to all these and more are covered by Nicole as she gives a wonderful account of her career to date.

As ever, here are some notes in case there’s anything in this episode you want to dig into a bit more:

• Six degrees of separation - Wikipedia
• The Wealth of Nations: The Economics Classic - A Selected Edition for the Contemporary Reader: Adam Smith
• You might also be interested in Smith’s lesser-known sister book to ‘The Wealth of Nations’ in which he sets out why cold, economic calculations are not the only things that drive society. The Theory of Moral Sentiments: Adam Smith
• For more on the problems with and solutions to narrow, mathematically abstract economics, this is a great starting point: Rethinking Economics
• Nudge: The Final Edition: Richard H. Thaler
• Useful and informative, despite its bias towards free market economics: The Economist - World News, Politics, Economics, Business & Finance
• The Environment Agency
• Thames Estuary 2100
• Paul Tyson’s blog about living on St. Helena: Two Years in the Atlantic
• Nicole’s awesome podcast: An Irish Girl And English Girl Walk Into A Bar
• For more on how different people across the world have experienced the Covid pandemic, I’d really recommend BBC iPlayer - Pandemic 2020, especially episode 2.

Huge thanks to Nicole for her time and tech patience, to Julian Holmes for his awesome cover artwork and to Anna Gunn for her editing super skills.

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