Restore with Eoin Walker

In this episode we look at law, order and mental health with one of the U.K.s top QCs.

Born and bred in Sheffield Gul Nawaz Hussain was the first QC to be appointed in Sheffield for over 15 years and the first ever BAME QC from South Yorkshire. Within the first 3 years of practice he was ranked as a leading barrister by the premiere legal directories The Legal 500 & Chambers Guide to the Bar. Naz has defended in some of the countries most serious criminal trials involving terrorism, war criminals, gang land murders, international drug trafficking, million-pound frauds and serious & historic sexual offences. After 17 years and having consistently demonstrated excellence in his field Naz was appointed Queen’s Counsel, also known as taking Silk, cementing his position at the very top of his profession.

In this episode we talk about his childhood and relationship with Father. We also look at Naz’s mental focus from a young age & how his experience of visiting a steel works & being told he couldn’t be a barrister sharpened his focus. We look at imposter syndrome & the interplay between not feeling enough vs acceptance of success/achievement and worthiness. We also examine Naz’s history with Thai boxing & the ensuing self-discipline & how this translates to his practice of law. We look at sweating the small stuff’ and his attention to detail. We also get Naz’s perspective on some of the country’s most high-profile cases in terrorism, murder, gang-land violence and sexual offences. We examine what Naz has learnt as a consequence of some extremely difficult cases & mental tribulations in life.

I hope you enjoy the episode 

You can find out more about Naz here:

https://www.33bedfordrow.co.uk/people/hussain-gul-nawaz#content/introduction

Please enjoy this wide ranging conversation with Jerome Fontana is the new Head of the ICRC delegation in Cairo. Since joining the ICRC in 1998, Mr Fontana has worked in thirteen different countries (Rwanda, India, Uganda, Uzbekistan, Indonesia, China, Palestine, Bangladesh, Nepal, Lebanon, Ivory Coast, Cameroon and Switzerland). Initially he worked as a protection delegate and then as a program coordinator before receiving higher responsibilities in the management of all ICRC operations and security in various countries. Mr Fontana is experienced in supporting Red Cross and Red Crescent societies and national authorities diverse humanitarian fields, including on migration topics and the promotion of international humanitarian law in their respective countries.

In this conversation we explore Jerome’s background and how he has navigated his own mental well-being. We begin with his origins as detention delegate in Kamembe Rwanda and examine Jerome’s appointments around detention, security & protection, and communication & how they have fashioned him as a leader within the organisation. We also explore the importance of situational awareness through horizon scanning, security reports and the contemporary economic markers of stability.

Please enjoy this fascinating conversation with a guest that has seen the depths of human suffering, the heights of humanitarian care and a spectrum of war torn stories throughout his life. 

In this wide ranging conversation with Claire McNulty European Director of the National Geographic Society, we look at current pandemic & how this has personally impacted on Claire & life/relationships around her. We also look at mental health and the outdoors and what the balance between nature and work looks like. We then explore the link between mental wellness and ecological wellness, together with the current problem on marine plastic pollution and carbon footprint with the resultant disequilibrium. We also look at the Impact this is having & how Claire see’s this from National Geographic explorers on the ground and the diversity of projects seek to shine a collective light on the multi-factorial problem of global ecological health. We then examine the practical steps people can take and a brief tool kit approach to both mental health in the outdoors & restoration of equilibrium within the planet’s health.

Claire McNulty is the Senior Director for Europe at National Geographic Society, with a remit to identify, support and grow the community of National Geographic explorers and grantees in the region. She joined National Geographic in July 2017 and prior to this she was the Global Director of Science for the British Council. She has a degree in Chemistry and Biochemistry from Leeds University, and a Ph.D. in heart development from the Randall Institute, King’s College London. She worked as a post-doctoral researcher on neural development at the Hubrecht Institute for Developmental Biology and has published articles in this area and in the field of science diplomacy. She has also worked in scientific publishing for Excerpta Medica, an Elsevier company, and as a part-time senior science policy adviser for the Royal Society, where she worked on the Pfizer-Royal Society African Academies Programme. She is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.

I hope you enjoy this episode with an insightful and engaging guest.

In this wide ranging conversation with Will Duffin - a passionate GP, educator, adventurer, innovator and polymath we define the current problem around depression and then examine different states of depression. We also look at why people get caught in the cycle of depression and current modalities of treatment for depression (chemical intervention, groups, social prescribing, referral pathways). 

We then look at the concept of micro-adventure & the benefits of these together with Will’s perspective on optimising mental health and balance (work/life). We look at how do Will achieve's balance in his life and regimes that works for him. We also examine ways in which he has changed his mindset and approach to mental health over the past 10 years both as a GP and as an adventurer.

We dig down into some of the statistics on Mental Health and why this is such an important topic - such as (Figures from MIND and MHFA England 2020):

I hope you enjoy this conversation with an insightful and thoughtful colleague and friend. 

In this episode we look at how individuals perform under high stress circumstances. Today I'm speaking with Ben Watts a critical care Paramedic who frequently has to perform under various levels of stress and difficulty. We examine how to get the best out of yourself under this stress by limiting human factors. Ben defines human factors and then gives examples of how these can infringe on our clarity of thought and action. Most importantly how we can mitigate human factors to consistently rise to the challenge of the task in hand.

Ben also looks at bias and heuristics and the integral relationship between these, we also examine the fragility of life and how to reframe life in a way that allows you to achieve balance and gratefulness.

I hope you enjoy this wide ranging conversation with an interesting friend and colleague. 

In this conversation I talk with Tim Archer. Tim is a former Group Captain, he held a number of senior appointments in the RAF during which time he gained an MA in Leadership Studies from the Centre for Leadership Studies at Exeter University, a Post Grad Certificate in Executive Coaching from Lancaster University Business School and was awarded a full-time 12-month Fellowship back at the Centre for Leadership Studies.

After a spell as Director Public Sector at the Leadership Trust in the UK, he moved to the United Arab Emirates for 8 years where he was a government advisor during which time he developed, designed and taught experiential leadership development and coaching programmes. He currently works for Cardiff University developing their leadership modules for the MSc in Public Health. 

We have a wide ranging conversation that touches on:

I hope you enjoy this episode with a fascinating guest and friend.

This is a conversation I have been wanting to record for a while; the inextricable links between money problems and mental health. Marie Ellis is the founder of blog Broke girl in the City a blog that started in 2016 when she was made redundant on the morning of Brexit. Marie got herself into 35k worth of debt and through the process of small incremental good practices and positive habits managed to climb out of hot with a lot of learning along the way. She founded Broke Girl in the City on a career spanning entertainment, bars & nightclubs, film, music and TV. 

In this conversation we talk about Marie's top tips on navigating debt and the power of micro habits in getting back on track with the finances. We also look at how money matters can spiral out of control and then dissect how Marie beat the problem with her healthy approach to financial practices. 

I hope you enjoy this episode with an inspirational and refreshingly honest guest.

You can find her blog here:

https://brokegirlinthecity.com/broke-girl-in-the-city-about-us/

Duncan joined the Royal Marines at 18, 1974, passing the commando training. Within 6 weeks due to a freak of incidences that will probably never be repeated he found himself on SBS selection and managed to pass the course just after his 19th birthday becoming the youngest SBS operative within the special forces. Duncan left the SBS in 1986 and spent 13 years in Los Angeles as a screenplay writer, then took to books in 2001 when returning to UK and joined a company that provided former SF advisors to news network organisations (CNN) and spent the next 15 years operating mostly in conflict zones.

In this conversation we examine how Duncan has navigated conflict throughout has career from his time in the SBS to his time spent throughout the MiddleEast. He also talks candidly about near death experiences in Africa and how he negotiated some life-threatening situations he came up against. He also talks about some of the fundamentals of hostile environment training and the principles that are necessary in this domain.

I hope you enjoy this episode with a fascinating guest.

More can be found about the guest here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Falconer

In this episode I interview a senior Detective Inspector within the police who works within the Modern Slavery and Child Exploitation Unit in London. English born and raised, of African decent and operating for 14 years within the police through the hierarchy of leadership he has a unique perspective into the contemporary climate. I first met Henk as a friend about 8 years ago and have valued his perspectives and insights as a friend and colleague battling shift-work, the reality of London and everything in-between.

We discuss some of the fundamental assumptions, biases and racism within society and aspects of law that need to be re-considered. We also discuss his standing as a leader within the institution and how we can all model progress and address the bias and racism. We also talk about representation of black and ethnic minorities within the emergency services and how this can be addressed. We also talk about the institution of the police and how the concepts of trust and of 'Non-maleficence' (do no harm) needs to be restored from the community towards the police. 

I hope you enjoy this episode. 

Stephen left the military in 2012 after serving 14 years in the Royal Marines and the SBS. At the age of 27 Stephen was awarded the Military Cross (MC) by Her Majesty the Queen for his work in Afghanistan in 2008. The MC is granted in recognition of "an act or acts of exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land" to all members of the British Armed Forces of any rank. Since 2015 he has mentored youth in schools, executives, budding sports stars, professional athletes and delivered the Limitless Programme to diverse audiences, veterans charities and public services.

In this conversation we have an honest talk about his challenges with mental health through his military service and beyond. Stephens honest and open recital of his challenges with self harm and victim mindset and how he broke this are both insightful and refreshingly honest. Through his revelations of seeking like minded community he recently started an online community (10,000) of military and blue light personnel to support, encourage and offer opportunities to like minded individuals. 

His story is both encouraging and a voice of hope that despite the depths of suffering you can overcome any level of adversity with healthy community and a healthy mindset. 

Please find the charity that is fundamental to Stephen's story here:

rock2recovery.co.uk

The online community of OpSpartan can be found here:

https://www.opspartan.com

More on Stephen can be found here:

https://www.wioh.co.uk/about