Our Broken Planet

Surveys show that most of us are really worried about climate change and we want something to be done. But what?

This series, we've explored many ways in which nature is changing in response to human activity and the dangers posed to people and planet as a result. In this final episode, Tori and Khalil explore how people are taking action in the face of the planetary emergency. Along the way, you'll find out:

• When has activism been effective?
• How do scientists feel about climate change?
• One thing everyone can do to start making a positive change

Contributors:

• Dr Erica McAlister - Senior Curator for Diptera and Siphonaptera (flies and fleas) at the Natural History Museum
• Professor Tristram Wyatt - Senior research fellow in the Department of Biology at the University of Oxford and Honorary Research Fellow at the Centre for Biodiversity and Environment Research at UCL
• The Tyre Extinguishers - A nameless group who deflate the tyres of SUVs in criminal acts of protest
• Alessandra Korap Munduruku - Member of the Munduruku group of Sawré Muybu, an indigenous territory in northern Brazil, and President of the Pariri Indigenous Association
• Dr Rim Saab - Social psychology lecturer at the University of Sussex, who specialises in the psychology of political action

Have your say:

Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us:

Instagram: @natural_history_museum Twitter: @NHM_London TikTok: @its_NHM

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

 

 

A more sustainable future lies within reach. One where human societies are powered by wind and solar energy, leaving behind dirty, climate-changing fossil fuels in the past. Sounds good right?  

But with many tonnes of rare earth metals needed to manufacture just one wind turbine, switching to this greener way of life likely means more mining – and lots of it – at least in the short term. But where and how could we get these metals while causing the least possible harm to people and planet? 

Khalil meets scientists and campaigners to find out: 

• Why are some people so interested in mining the deep sea?  
• What lives on the ocean floor and what would happen to it if mining got the green light? 
• How can science help reverse the long-term damage caused by mining? 

Contributors: 

• Richard Herrington, research lead for resourcing the green economy at the Natural History Museum 
• Adrian Glover, Natural History Museum Merit Researcher specialising in deep-sea biodiversity 
• Louisa Casson, Global Project Leader for Greenpeace's Stop Deep Sea Mining campaign 

Have your say: 

Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: 

Instagram: @natural_history_museum 

Twitter: @NHM_London 

TikTok: @its_NHM 

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

Nigeria has some of the highest levels of unhealthy air across the African continent – a leading cause of inflammatory illness and premature death. Could its huge and growing cohort of young people have the solution?

Tori & Khalil head to the “Giant of Africa” to find out how one of the world’s fastest growing nations – by economy and population – is dealing with rapidly accelerating energy demand and what might happen next.

Join us and find out

• What’s the cause of Nigeria’s dangerous air pollution – and what can be done about it?
• How can African countries avoid some of the environmental mis-steps made by more industrialised nations? 
• What can Lagos teach us about building greener, more liveable megacities of the future?

Contributors

• Dr Rose Alani, head of the Air Quality Monitoring Research Group at the University of Lagos
• Oludayo Yusuf, Consulting Embryologist at Origene Health Services in Lagos
• Joshua Gabriel Oluwaseyi, environmental activist and founder of LearnBlue
• Dr Mofoluso Fagbeja, air quality specialist and co-author of the World Bank-funded report Development of an Air Quality Management Plan for Lagos
• Desmond Appiah, country lead for The Clean Air Fund in Ghana

Have your say:

Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us:

Instagram: @natural_history_museum

Twitter: @NHM_London

TikTok: @its_NHM

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

As modern human societies have tried to dominate and organise nature, we have been interacting with other species in some dangerous ways. From encroaching on the territory of wild creatures, to industrially farming other species in unnaturally cramped conditions, human actions are increasing the likelihood of animal nasties jumping the species barrier to infect us.

Tori & Khalil ask whether our extractive relationship with nature could be making us sick and what we can do about it. Along the way, you’ll find out:

• Why are bats so full of viruses?
•   Could the next pandemic start on a factory farm?
• Which single behaviour has an outsized impact on helping keep nature healthy?

Contributors:

·       Dr Emilia Skirmuntt, Evolutionary virologist with the Oxford Vaccine Group, Oxford University. 

·       Dr Rajib Ausraful Islam, Veterinary researcher with the International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research in Bangladesh 

·       Pak Warman, fisherman and local bat protector with the Alliance for Tompotika Conservation, based in Sulawesi, Indonesia

·       Dr David Redding, Biodiversity and health research lead at the Natural History Museum

·       Ed Winters (AKA Earthling Ed), vegan educator and co-founder of Surge Activism

Have your say: Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: Instagram: @natural_history_museum Twitter: @NHM_London TikTok: @its_NHM

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

What’s brainless, heartless, eyeless and thrives in a warming ocean? Hint: it’s wobbly and it could be coming to a dinner plate near you.

Tori & Khalil investigate the effects of rising sea temperatures, from changing food sources to the perilous state of coral reefs – home to one quarter of all marine species. They’re joined by scientists and campaigners to help explain the changes we’re seeing and how we can help nature and humanity adjust. Join us and find out:

• What happens to animals living in a more acidic sea?
• How do you regrow a coral reef?
• Will we all be eating jellyfish soon?

Contributors

Sanne Tuijten, marine biologist with the Reef Renewal Foundation Bonaire

Dr Sebastian Hennige from the University of Edinburgh

Dr Lucas Brotz, from the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of British Columbia

John Hourston, founder of the Blue Planet Society

Megan Randles, global political lead for Greenpeace’s Protect the Oceans campaign

Have your say

Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: Instagram: @natural_history_museum Twitter: @NHM_London TikTok: @its_NHM

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

 

Breathe in. Breathe out. The oxygen flowing through your body is the result of photosynthesis: the natural process through which living things convert sunlight into energy. About 30% of land-based photosynthesis happens in tropical rainforests: the lungs of the earth. Rainforests are also great at sucking up excess carbon from the atmosphere- something we know we’ve got to do more of. But in recent years, these lungs have been getting constricted: shrinking in size and choked up with smoke. So grab your mosquito net and join Tori & Khalil on a trip through the tropics to find out what's going on - and how we can help rainforests breathe deeply again. Contributors: Mardi Minangsari - Campaigner with Indonesian conservation group Kaoem Telapak Dr Helena Varkey - Professor of Environmental Politics, Universiti Malaya Dr Thomas Smith - Geographer and environmental scientist, London School of Economics Dr Michael Pashkevich, Marshall Sherfield Fellow, University of Cambridge Dr Rico Fischer, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, UFZ Leipzig Have your say: Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: Instagram: @natural_history_museum Twitter: @NHM_London TikTok: @its_NHM Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

We all know that plastic isn't great for our planet. But how much do scientists really know about how it's affecting nature - including our own species?

Tori and Khalil try to get their noodles around 'nurdles', the tiny plastic pellets that are used to manufacture all manner of everyday objects, discovering that millions are ending up in our oceans, with unknown long-term consequences. Plus, join Natural History Museum researcher Alex Bond on Lord Howe Island, a remote paradise in the Tasman sea and mecca for nesting seabirds, where chicks are falling prey to an ominous new disease: plasticosis.

You'll find out:

-What caused Sri Lanka's worst maritime disaster? -How much do we know about how microplastics affect human health? -Can we get to a global agreement on ending plastic pollution?

Contributors:

Muditha Katuwawala - Founder of The Pearl Protectors Dr Alex Bond - Principal curator in charge of birds at the Natural History Museum Dr Fay Couceiro - Head of the microplastics research group at the University of Portsmouth Heather Mcfarlane - Senior project manager at Fidra   Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: 

Instagram: @natural_history_museum Twitter: @NHM_London TikTok: @its_NHM 

Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

Resources for this episode: 

The chicks choking on a toxic diet of ocean plastic https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/the-chicks-choking-on-a-toxic-diet-of-ocean-plastic.html

Plastic diet could be causing seabird chicks to shrink https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2023/march/plastic-diet-could-be-causing-seabird-chicks-to-shrink.html

Plasticosis: a new disease caused by plastic that is affecting seabirds https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2023/march/plasticosis-new-disease-caused-by-plastic-affecting-seabirds.html

Ocean plastic is changing the blood chemistry of seabirds https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2019/july/ocean-plastic-is-changing-the-blood-chemistry-of-seabirds.html

What is a glacier? And what happens when they melt? Glacier ice is the world’s largest freshwater reservoir. About 1 in 5 people depend on them as their main source of drinking water, as do countless animals and plants. As they melt, it's a boom time for nature, with plenty of water to go around. But what happens if glaciers disappear completely and the water stops flowing ? To investigate the past and present impact of glaciers, and what they mean for the nature, culture and communities that depend on them, Tori and Khalil meet with trusted scientists, artists and activists, from Austria to Pakistan. Along the way, we'll find out: -How did a glacier carve Britain into an island? -What's a GLOF and why are they so dangerous? -How did one man stop a glacier being levelled for a ski resort?

Contributors:

• Bethan Davies - Glaciologist from Newcastle University

• Duncan Quincey - Professor of Glaciology

• Gabriel Wolken - Cryosphere researcher

• Saba Khan - Pakistani artist

• Matteo Spagnolo - Professor of geography, University of Aberdeen

• Gerd Estermann - Retired teacher-turned-activist from Austria

Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us:  Instagram: @natural_history_museum  Twitter: @NHM_London  TikTok: @its_NHM    Learn more about how you can take action for nature and find additional resources at www.nhm.ac.uk/podcast

Are we living in a new age of fire? What would that mean for people, plants and animals?    Take a trip back in time to find out how our planet's history has been shaped by fire, and peer into the future as we ask how nature will adapt to a new era shaped by flame. Tori and Khalil search for answers from nature, science and activism.     Along the way, we'll ask:  -How did a fire in Australia set off smoke alarms in New Zealand?  -How do forest fires affect global weather?  -What can we learn from Indigenous people's use of fire?    About this episode:    As our planet heats, the risk of fire is increasing around the world and affecting lives thousands of miles away from the blaze. At the time of recording, fires burning in Canada were shrouding the East Coast of the U.S in smog. Presenters Tori and Khalil ask if this is the new normal, while contemplating our planet’s past relationship with fire. How can we make our voices heard while remembering what our ancestors knew about coexisting with fire?    Contributors this episode:  Dr Sandy Knapp - Botanist and merit researcher of plants at the Natural History Museum  Professor David Bowman - Fire researcher, University of Tasmania  Nerilie Abram - Paleoclimatologist from the Australian National University Elizabeth Azzuz - Traditional fire practitioner from California    Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us: Instagram: @natural_history_museum  Twitter: @NHM_London  TikTok: @its_NHM    Learn more about how you can take action for nature at nhm.ac.uk/podcast   Resources for this episode:    How are climate change and biodiversity loss linked? https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/how-are-climate-change-and-biodiversity-loss-linked.html    How do forest fires affect plants and animals? https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2019/august/experts-explain-the-effect-of-the-amazon-wildfires.html    Indigenous people call for cooperation to save the world's biodiversity: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/indigenous-peoples-call-for-co-operation-conserve-worlds-biodiversity.html

How much are sea levels rising by? What does it mean for us and for the generations to come? And what can we do about it?    Take your ears on a round-the-world trip, from the icy polar north to the lush tropical paradise of the Marshall Islands, to find out how we got here and ways to fix it.     Along the way, we'll ask:  -Is Greenland turning into Swiss cheese?  -Who is most at risk from rising seas?  -Could mangrove forests save the world?    About the episode:    As polar ice sheets melt our sea levels are rising - over 20cm globally since the start of the industrial revolution and the rate is accelerating. What does this mean for the half of us globally who live within a few kilometres of coastline? Tori & Khalil speak to scientists and activist Selina Leem from the Marshall Islands - forecast to be uninhabitable within a decade due to sea level rise - to find out what’s happening and how we can support nature to fight back the rising tides.    Contributors this episode:  Selina Leem - Climate activist from the Marshall Islands  Laura Tenenbaum - Climate expert and former NASA scientist  Dr. Mark Spalding - Senior marine scientist with the Nature Conservancy and mangrove expert  Dr Bethan Davies - Glaciologist from Newcastle University Iris Moeller - Professor of Geography at the University of Dublin    Join the conversation on social media using #OurBrokenPlanet and tag us:  Instagram: @natural_history_museum  Twitter: @NHM_London  TikTok: @its_NHM    Learn more about how you can take action for nature at nhm.ac.uk/podcast   Resources for this episode:    What you can do to help the planet: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/what-you-can-do-to-help-the-planet.html    How does climate change affect the ocean? https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/quick-questions/how-does-climate-change-affect-the-ocean.html    How to cope with eco anxiety: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/how-to-cope-with-eco-anxiety.html