The Climate Pivot

In this episode, I talk with sustainable sport expert and founder, Chris Broadbent. Chris’s career in sport has seen him work at every level, from local youth organisations to the Olympic and Commonwealth Games. Following a background in sports marketing and communication, he realised the need for more sustainable sporting events, and established Planet Earth Games.

More about Chris and his work:

• Planet Earth Games
• Chris’s LinkedIn
• His Twitter

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution (https://ko-fi.com/benwh) or get in touch at [email protected]

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In this episode, I talk with writer, storyteller and professor Lâle Davidson. Her second novel Against The Grain is described as an environmental thriller with a mystical twist, and takes place against the backdrop of the Redwood Summer of 1990, when activists took extraordinary steps to protect California’s old-growth redwoods.

More about Lâle and her work:

• Lâle’s website
• Her Instagram
• Against The Grain on Red Penguin Books

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution (https://ko-fi.com/benwh) or get in touch at [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I talk with landscape architect Matthieu Mehuys. Raised on his family’s farm, Matthieu has carried a lifelong fascination for how nature works. And after pivoting from a job he found unfulfilling, he now runs a landscape design business, while empowering others to transform their outdoor spaces using a nature-centric approach.

More about Matthieu and his work:

• Matthieu’s Instagram
• His LinkedIn
• His TikTok:
• His company, Paulownia Landscape Architects
• Paulownia’s Instagram
• His advice and support for those creating gardens
• His book website

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution or get in touch at [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I talk with coach and activist Laura Hartley. Combining her passions for asking good questions and climate activism, Laura founded her school for changemakers, Public Love Enterprises. Through her courses and coaching, she helps people to unlearn and dismantle systems that inhibit our thriving, while working towards a more just, regenerative and loving world.

More about Laura and her work:

• Laura’s website
• Her LinkedIn
• Her Instagram
• Her Facebook page

Links to topics and people discussed and further reading:

• Rob Hopkins, writer and Transition co-founder
• Mark Fisher’s Capitalist Realism, which draws on the quote that ‘it is easier to imagine an end to the world than an end to capitalism’ (attributed to both Slavoj Žižek and Fredric Jameson)
• Kelly Diels, thinker, teacher and coach for culture makers
• Ella Saltmarshe, co-founder of the Long Time Project
• Phoebe Tickell, biologist and systems thinker
• Two books that Laura recommends – How to Be Alive: A Guide to the Kind of Happiness That Helps the World by Colin Beavan and Active Hope: How To Face The Mess We’re In Without Going Crazy by Joanna Macy

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution or get in touch at [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I talk with tree science consultant and writer Harriet Rix. Harriet’s diverse career has taken her from the biochemistry lab, to landmine clearance efforts in Iraq, to advocating for Britain's treescape. Her first book, Earth, Wind and Fire: How Trees Mastered the Elements and Conquered the World, will be published in summer 2025.

More about Harriet and her work:

• Harriet’s Twitter
• Her LinkedIn
• Her Instagram
• Her author page at Pew Literary Agency
• News about her upcoming book
• Just some of her writing in the LRB, the TLS, and The Fence

Links to topics discussed:

• The Tree Council
• More about Ash Dieback
• Hasar Climate Action Organization, of which Harriet is a Trustee

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution (https://ko-fi.com/benwh) or get in touch at [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, I talk with Vedantha Kumar. Following a degree in philosophy, several years in the UK civil service, and a law conversion, Vedantha now works in the third sector. Based at the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, he manages a portfolio of grants to address climate change. For our conversation, he is speaking in a personal capacity

More about Vedantha:

• Vedantha’s LinkedIn

Links to further reading and viewing:

• An explanation of Ikigai
• Loretta J. Ross’s TED Talk: ‘Don’t call people out – call them in’
• The research of Kris De Meyer
• This foreword, which Vedantha was recently inspired by

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution or get in touch at [email protected]

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In this episode, I talk with Emily Swaddle. She’s a freelance podcaster, coach, storyteller, nature connection facilitator, and more besides. Among other projects, she also works with me as part of the team that puts together Apple chart-topping podcast The Carbon Removal Show. Much of Emily’s work deals with the question of how to communicate climate issues to different audiences, as well as how we can all better connect with the wild.

More about Emily and her work:

• Emily’s website
• Her LinkedIn
• The Carbon Removal Show
• Happy Porch Radio: The Circular Economy Technology Podcast

Links to topics discussed:

• The Green Office Movement

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution or get in touch at [email protected]

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In this episode, I talk with Elphège Barthe. He’s a senior visual designer, based at strategic design firm Designit, and he’s worked with globally-recognised clients across a range of different industries. Recently, he’s been focusing on ethical and environmentally responsible projects, and acting as an advocate for these values in both his professional and personal life.

We talk about Elphège’s career journey, his personal climate awakening, and the complex relationship between individual, collective and corporate responsibility. I found his whole approach to improving his climate impact really unique and inspiring, and I think his story is a perfect illustration of why we need people of all working backgrounds to take on this challenge. 

More about Elphège:

• Elphège’s website
• His LinkedIn
• His Instagram
• This recent post about slow travel

Links to topics and resources discussed:

• Shame Plane – emissions estimates for flights
• The Palau Pledge

If you’d like to support The Climate Pivot, please consider making a contribution or get in touch at [email protected]

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.