In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with Queen's University Belfsat, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Laura Lundy, professor of children’s rights and co-director of the Centre for Children’s Rights at Queen’s University Belfast, and Deirdre Reidy, assistant principal officer of the Participation, Play and Recreation Unit in the Irish government’s Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth.

They discuss why it's critical to listen to children's and young people's voices when making decisions that affect them, and how policymakers can better engage with children.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the University of Liverpool, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Katie Atkinson, associate pro vice-chancellor of the University of Liverpool and director of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Sustainability Research.

They discuss the centre's ambitious mission to tackle the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, exploring how it will foster collaboration among experts from diverse disciplines.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the University of Sheffield, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Mohamed Pourkashanian, director of the Energy Innovation Centre at the University of Sheffield, Luke Ervine, head of sustainability at Virgin Atlantic, and Steve Gillard, regional sustainability director at Boeing.

They discuss the far-reaching benefits of sustainable aviation fuel, the impact of Flight 100 on the field, and the radical collaboration required to make sustainable aviation fuel a global success.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with Queen's University Belfast, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Iain Styles, a professor in the School of Electronics, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Queen’s University Belfast. Iain is also the director of the Centre of Intelligent Sustainable Computing.

They discuss the challenges of integrating AI into healthcare settings, ongoing debates about the ethics of AI in healthcare and engagement with local communities.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the National University of Singapore, host Sreethu Sajeev speaks with Koh Lian Pin, associate vice-president and chief sustainability scientist at the National University of Singapore.

They discuss how sustainability education can be used to foster innovative solutions to pressing environmental and social challenges – upskilling learners in the process.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the University of Sheffield, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Tim Chico, professor of cardiovascular medicine at the University of Sheffield.

They discuss the South Yorkshire Digital Health Hub, exploring the ways the hub uses cutting-edge research to develop digital technologies for disease diagnosis and treatment.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the University of Liverpool, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Tara Shears, a professor of physics and frontier lead for particle physics, Monica D’Onofrio, professor of physics and head of research, and Christos Touramanis, a professor of experimental particle physics at the University of Liverpool.

They discuss the university's involvement in cutting-edge research and innovation at the European Organisation for Nuclear Research.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with Queen's University Belfast, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Richard English, a professor of politics and director of the Senator George J. Mitchell Institute for Global Peace, Security and Justice at Queen’s University Belfast.

They discuss how universities can contribute to analytical discussions on terrorism, replacing fear-driven narratives with research-backed solutions and perspectives.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with the University of Sheffield, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with Dan Blackburn, a senior lecturer in neuroscience, Heidi Christensen, professor in computer science, and Caitlin Illingworth, a neuroscience PhD student at the University of Sheffield.

They discuss their work on CognoSpeak, an online tool harnessing AI to analyse speech patterns and cognitive cues. CognoSpeak can identify subtle markers of cognitive decline that might be missed during routine evaluations, improving the dementia diagnosis experience for patients from all backgrounds.

In this episode of the THE Connect podcast, produced in partnership with Queen's University Belfast, host Ashton Wenborn speaks with John Barry, a professor of green political economy and director of the Queen’s Centre for Sustainability, Equality and Climate Action.

They discuss the ideologies that underpin green politics, the way it challenges capitalist growth models and the importance of radically rethinking widely accepted economic paradigms.