The world's wetlands store carbon and can help us tackle some of the impacts of climate change. Are we overlooking their importance? And what can we do to protect them more?

Graihagh Jackson travels to wetlands near her home in East Anglia while Qasa Alom reports from the Bay of Bengal. And The Climate Question catches up with an old friend of the show, Dr Musonda Mumba, Secretary-General of the Convention on Wetlands.

This programme was first broadcast in 2024.

Production team: Osman Iqbal, Octavia Woodward, Brenda Brown, Simon Watts

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Twenty years ago, Hurricane Katrina devastated America’s Gulf coast and overwhelmed the city of New Orleans. The destruction and the response to the storm became infamous and are debated to this day.

Climate scientists warn that the warming world is likely to make typhoons, cyclones and hurricanes more intense and so even more dangerous.

Graihagh Jackson and Jordan Dunbar ask what the world has learned since the disaster in New Orleans, and how we can build cities that can stand up better to more extreme weather events.

They chat to Prof Reggie DesRoches, an engineer who was on the ground in the aftermath of Katrina to help find out what had gone wrong. His work specialises in adapting infrastructure for natural disasters, including developing innovative materials and practical techniques that might just help us adapt to more violent storms.

Can we build a world where hurricanes can't kill?

Guest: Prof Reggie DesRoches, President, Rice University, Houston

Presenter: Graihagh Jackson with Jordan Dunbar

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This week Host Graihagh Jackson grabs a chat with the BBC’s correspondents in two countries that will shape our future climate.

Brazil is about to host the giant COP climate conference in the Amazon, but the pace of reducing deforestation has just slowed and there are concerns about potentially weaker environmental standards. Ione Wells in Sao Paulo also talks Graihagh through proposals for oil exploration in the mouth of the rainforest.

Plus, China has just started work on the world’s biggest hydroelectric dam. It’s a huge 167-billion dollar project to bring power from Tibet to Hong Kong. The dam will increase Beijing’s use of renewable energy, but comes with a potential environmental cost, as well as the risk of creating tension with China’s neighbours. Laura Bicker gives us some staggering facts and figures about the dam – as well as an explanation of how fish can use “ladders”.

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Presenter: Graihagh Jackson with Jordan Dunbar

Climate change is melting thousands of glaciers in the Himalayas and having a devastating impact on the people who live there. In 2024, the BBC's Caroline Davies visited the Pakistani side of the world's highest mountain range: she told Graihagh Jackson how villagers are coping, and how they are determined to stay put despite the risks of floods and the disruption to their traditional way of life.

You can watch Caroline's reporting from Pakistan here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m00246nx/from-above-melting-glaciers

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Presenter: Graihagh Jackson

Bill Gates, the tech billionaire turned philanthropist, has been combating poverty, disease, and inequity around the world for decades. However, in recent years he has shifted focus and resources towards the climate crisis.

Gates believes fighting climate change and fighting poverty are two sides of the same coin. Food, health and economic crises will last longer and become more severe as climate threats escalate, disproportionately impacting the most vulnerable communities.

But the billionaire remains optimistic and believes the power of human ingenuity will win out with a technology-driven approach to reducing carbon emissions and dealing with the impact of global warming.

In 2023, Graihagh Jackson sat down with Bill Gates to talk about his positive outlook and the billions he’s investing in tackling climate change.

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Presenter: Graihagh Jackson

From coral reefs and mangroves to raising the land itself, how small island nations are using natural and innovative techniques to adapt to rising sea levels and extreme weather events linked to climate change.

Jordan Dunbar chats to Tina Stege, climate envoy for the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and Dr. Rosanne Martyr, senior scientist on coastal vulnerability and adaptation, Climate Analytics.

Plus, Anna Holligan, the BBC's correspondent in The Hague, has the latest on a landmark climate case brought by Pacific Islanders at the International Court of Justice.

Got a comment or a question you’d like us to answer? Send an email to: [email protected] or whatsapp us on +44 8000 321 721

Presenter: Jordan Dunbar

Rare earths have been described as the oil of the 21st century, incredibly valuable both economically and in the fight against climate change. There's a battle underway around the world to mine and control these minerals - a battle that is currently being won by China.

As demand rises, the problems with rare earths are also becoming clearer because getting them out of the ground requires strip mining and the use of poisonous chemicals.

BBC China Correspondent Laura Bicker has seen this environmental impact first hand on a visit to the rare earth hubs of Bayan Obo in northern China and Guanzuo in the south. She's been speaking to locals about the benefits this booming industry brings and the damage that it can cause.

BBC Climate and Science Reporter Esme Stallard also joins Jordan Dunbar to chat about why rare earths are so valuable and the state of greenhouse gas emissions in China. Plus, she's got an update on a climate satellite that's gone missing in space!

Presenter: Jordan Dunbar

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Could changing weather patterns due to climate change make a difference to where and when we travel, or to the cost of our holidays?

It was the hottest June on record for Western Europe, according to the EU’s climate service, Copernicus. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that heatwaves in Europe will become more frequent, more intense and longer-lasting.

Extreme heat and drier weather can lead to wildfires, while retreating snow lines can put pressure on winter skiing trips. For their part, popular destinations in the Caribbean and the Pacific face another challenge - from rising sea levels.

Host Graihagh Jackson asks how holiday-makers and the travel industry can adapt to a changing climate.

Contributors:

Presenter: Graihagh Jackson

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Delhi’s roads are being taken over by electric mopeds, scooters and rickshaws. More than fifty per cent of two- and three-wheelers are already electric, and the market is expected to continue growing. It’s good news for the fight against climate change. Why has the transition to green vehicles been so swift in India and what can the rest of the world learn from it?

Graihagh Jackson speaks to reporter Sushmita Pathak, who’s been chatting to those who’ve made the switch to electric as well as those who haven’t.

Akshima Ghate from the RMI Foundation and Louise Ribet of C40 cities explain why these small vehicles are so popular and what countries like India and others gain from encouraging electric uptake. From better air quality and healthier children to energy security and manufacturing expertise, there are many benefits beyond mitigating climate change.

Got a comment or a question you’d like us to answer? Send an email to: [email protected] or whatsapp us on +44 8000 321 721

Presenter: Graihagh Jackson

Got a question you’d like us to answer? Send an email to: [email protected]

Climate change is having major health impacts around the world - which are only expected to increase as our planet gets warmer. These impacts range from heat stroke to the spread of tropical diseases, from hospitals losing power during extreme weather to the effect on our mental health. In this week's show, Graihagh Jackson talks to two doctors from Malaysia and Egypt about the challenges the medical sector faces, as well as possible solutions and how healthcare must also address its own emissions problem.

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Guests:

Presenter: Graihagh Jackson