Earth Ideas

Dr Elizabeth Tasker is an astrophysicist who studies exoplanets: extra-solar planets - those worlds that exist, function and potentially support life outside of our own solar system.    

We talked about methods & theories in discovering and learning about exoplanets, the search for a planet similar to Earth, and the very exciting near future of space technologies & discoveries.   

0:00 Elizabeth's career journey 

9:51 First exoplanet discovery 

17:00 Detecting their compositions 

29:24 How to we detect & guess? 

34:52 Searching for water 

36:53 Searching for life 

44:29 The $.5bn Question 

52:07 JAXA's next missions  

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.     

 We hope you enjoy.    

Leave us a comment :)    

SHARE SUBSCRIBE!    

And come back next week for more.     

 If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)    

Refs & Links:  

Hayabusa 2 Asteroid samples landing: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-55201662

The Planet Factory: https://www.elizabethtasker.com/planetfactory

Elizabeth's Links:   

https://twitter.com/girlandkat 

https://twitter.com/nexssmanyworlds 

https://www.elizabethtasker.com/ 

Our Socials:    

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://twitter.com/llcmahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

Dr Lindsay Morcom (Ardoch Algonquin First Nation) is a linguist and researcher of aboriginal languages and teaching. She works actively in language revitalisation techniques and advocates for decolonising education. Indigenous languages hold knowledge, histories & ways of thinking about their lands and culture that do not easily translate into western vocabularies and, as hundreds of languages die out every year, people like Lindsay work to make sure they are received by their heirs.   

0:00 Introduction to Lindsay 

5:07 Urban language revitalisation 

12:46 How do you think First Nation Canadians feel about their language? 

19:06 Can we have true direct synonyms or translations? 

25:42 Isolate languages 

28:19 Reconstructing languages 

33:24 Lindsay's approach to revitalising & teaching languages 

42:00 How are indigenous languages changing & updating?  

44:10 Lindsay's latest research  

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.      

We hope you enjoy.    

Leave us a comment :)    

SHARE SUBSCRIBE!    

And come back next week for more.      

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)    

Refs & Links:  

https://www.ted.com/talks/lindsay_morcom_a_history_of_indigenous_languages_and_how_to_revitalize_them

Lindsay's Links:   

https://educ.queensu.ca/lindsay-morcom https://educ.queensu.ca/atep 

Our Socials:    https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://twitter.com/llcmahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

Prof Matthew Cobb is a zoologist and researcher into animal behaviours through their sense of smell (including ours!) On the side, he explores further his work in science with writing books on the history of science. His newest, The Idea Of The Brain: A History, explores how we come to define & thus attempt to understand the brain and all its complexities, and how we must continually reinvent our approach to doing as we learn more & more about how the brain works. 

We talked about historical understandings of the physical human brain and our cognitive abilities, the metaphors used over time for the brain, and new research & research methods that are revealing the limitations of our previous discussions on the brain.

The 1st half of this podcast focuses on Matthew's research into the sense of smell, so is available separately in the previous episode :)  

0:00 How did you get inspired for your new book?  

6:05 Comparing the brain to a computer 

10:15 Do we need a new metaphor for the brain? 

14:45 Smell in the brain 

20:40 How is the brain divided up?  

26:30 What are you writing now?

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.    

We hope you enjoy.   

Leave us a comment :)   

SHARE SUBSCRIBE!   

And come back next week for more.    

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Refs & Links: 

https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/cobb.html

Matthew's Links:  

https://twitter.com/matthewcobb

The Idea Of The Brain: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51719771-the-idea-of-the-brain

Smell: A Very Short Introduction: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52049783-smell 

Our Socials:   

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://twitter.com/llcmahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

Prof Matthew Cobb is interested in animal behaviour & psychology, and seeks his answers through research into the sense of smell.  

We talked about what effect Covid could be having which is causing a loss of smell and taste, how smell differs across the diversity of life, and what looking into smell can tell us about the effects of today's anthropogenic changes.  

0:00 COVID & loss of smell 

14:30 Can you regain loss of smell? 

18:20 How do you study smell? 

30:35 Pheromones 

40:50 Global & cultural differences in smelling 

48:25 Effects of anthropogenic changes

The 2nd half of this podcast focuses on Matthew's work in the history of science, so is available separately in the next episode.   

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.    

We hope you enjoy.  

 Leave us a comment :)   

SHARE SUBSCRIBE!   

And come back next time for more.    

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Refs & Links: 

https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/cobb.html

AS Barwich Smellosophy https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51579757-smellosophy 

Matthew's Links:  

https://twitter.com/matthewcobb

The Idea Of The Brain: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51719771-the-idea-of-the-brain

Smell: A Very Short Introduction: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/52049783-smell 

Our Socials:   

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://twitter.com/llcmahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

Dr Robert Wicks is a space physicist and specialist in natural and man-made hazards in our solar system. He is part of the team behind the ESA Solar Orbiter mission which aims to gather data about our sun's solar wind and polar regions, to better understand its magnetic fluctuations or 'seasons.'  

We talked about space weather, the newest attempts to predict it (like Solar Orbiter), and the risks posed by the solar storms & coronal mass ejections that we currently can't well predict. 

We then spoke about hot satellite real estate and the growing commercialisation of the space industry.    

0:00 How has your teaching been affected by lockdown? 

6:47 How has your research been affected? 

11:00 International cooperation in space industry 

17:20 Creating a space weather forecast 

28:35 Historical geomagnetic storms 

37:07 Effect of storms on satellites 

43:44 The Kessler Syndrome & space junk 

49:04 How do you feel about privatisation of industry? 

01:02:33 What new mission would you start with unlimited funding?

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.    

We hope you enjoy.   

Leave us a comment :)   

SHARE SUBSCRIBE!   

And come back next week for more.    

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Refs & Links: 

https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Solar_Orbiter 

https://www.nasa.gov/content/goddard/parker-solar-probe 

https://www.northumbria.ac.uk 

https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/our-staff/w/robert-wicks/ 

http://interstellarprobe.jhuapl.edu https://ambasat.com 

https://www.aac-clyde.space 

https://www.ucl.ac.uk/mssl/ 

https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/specialist-forecasts/space-weather  

Robert's Links:  

https://twitter.com/RobTWicks 

https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/about-us/our-staff/w/robert-wicks/ 

Our Socials:   

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://twitter.com/llcmahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Prof Deborah Gordon is a biologist at Stanford University and a world expert in the function and survival of ant colonies. Her research uses ant colonies to investigate and design other systems that also operate without central control such as the internet, the immune system, and the brain. 

She is also concerned with how ants are adapting their behaviour in the Anthropocene and our changing climate.  

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.  

Or you can WATCH this episode on Youtube at https://youtu.be/eIRhsL2C3Ck

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :) 

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.  

Deborah's Links: 

Lab https://web.stanford.edu/~dmgordon/ 

Ted Talk https://tinyurl.com/yyg3x2zw  

My Socials:  https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast

Professor Rebecca Earle is an historian of food & culture and is interested in all things of the everyday life of ordinary people - how their choices & activities have shaped and affected the global experience. She has written 2 whole books on the POTATO and how its glorious palatability in all kinds of dishes, and its brilliant caloric offering for a low land & water usage, changed the lives of people from Peru to China.

We talk about her determination to shine the light of history away from the usual characters and tell those other stories, and how concerns of the current days (ecological destruction, political & social division, human rights) must ultimately affect historical research.

0:00 Being a Food Historian 

5:51 Why were the Americas so blessed for crops? 

14:24 Potatoes head to Europe 

23:45 Potatoes take over the world 

34:25 A different view of history 

45:51 The $.5bn Question 

50:11 Future for potatoes

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.  

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube at https://tinyurl.com/y6akmj2p 

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :) 

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.  

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Rebecca's Links: 

https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/people/staff_index/earle 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Feeding-People-Politics-Rebecca-Earle-ebook/dp/B0868QFW2V 

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Potato-Object-Lessons-Rebecca-Earle/dp/1501344315 

My Socials:  https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast

Dr Brian Hare is an evolutionary anthropologist, founder of the Duke University Canine Cognition Center and NYT bestselling author of The Genius Of Dogs. His new book, Survival Of The Friendliest, challenges the famous notion of 'survival of fittest' and proposes that it is in fact our (and our domesticated companions') friendliness & cooperation that lead to our massive success as a species.  

0:00 Why should we study animal psychology? 

5:35 Physical changes in domestication 

12:13 Anthropological Group Identity 

19:54 When wolves become dogs 

27:05 Dog fashions through history 

33:43 Cognitive differences across breeds 

37:56 Human & dog relationships 

48:52 Brian's research methods 

56:47 The $.5bn Question

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.  

You can also WATCH the episode on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/FqbzYHlreEQ

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :) 

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.  

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Brian's Links: 

brianhare.net 

Survival Of The Friendliest book: http://www.brianhare.net/#books 

The Genius of Dogs book: http://www.brianhare.net/#books 

https://twitter.com/bharedogguy  

My Socials:  https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast

Dr Danna Staaf is a marine biologist, science writer, and powerhouse expert on cephalopods, who's on a mission to bring them the fame and wonderment they deserve.

0:00 Danna's career beginnings 

5:00 Have we forgotten about Cephalopods? 

9:49 Evolution of Cephalopod intelligence 

19:08 The shell question 

28:14 Surviving mass extinctions 

35:11 Ability to adapt  

42:50 What do we have in common? 

49:54 Cephalopod brains 

56:14 Variety of life on Earth 

1:13:24 The $.5bn Question

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.  

You can also WATCH this episode now on Youtube: https://youtu.be/h6aBXLsIKaY

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :) 

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Danna's Links: 

Monarchs Of The Sea book: https://bit.ly/MonarchsOfTheSea

https://twitter.com/DannaStaaf  

My Socials:  https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

Andrew Dobson is a Professor of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at Princeton University, and an expert in wildlife disease. Though disease is a part of everyday life, his research specifically focuses on infectious diseases in endangered & fragile ecosystems, including the Serengeti, Yellowstone & the world's rainforests, to better understand the risks that are posed to animals & humans as an environment is altered.   

0:00 Biodiversity is today's scientific question 

5:01 The study of Ecology 

9:49 Andy using maths in wildlife disease study 

12:34 How does habitat loss = wildlife disease? 

17:33 Differences in species 

21:56 How do bats give us disease? 

29:23 How do insects give us disease? 

33:18 How easy for viruses to jump species? 

35:54 Amazonian deforestation 

43:48 Conserving entire ecosystems  

53:13 Are people paying more attention to wildlife disease now?  

56:04 Wildlife disease & climate change 

1:02:03 Andy's next research

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube https://youtu.be/Yxwl4jkS-DY

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

Andy's Links: 

Lab https://dobber.princeton.edu/ 

https://twitter.com/andy2dobson  

My Socials: 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

Dr Leyla Acaroglu is an award-winning designer, 2016 UNEP Champion of the Earth, and founder of Disruptive Design Agency & the UnSchool. She is a powerhouse of innovation - a self-styled 'sustainability provocateur', who works to use design- and systems-thinking to activate social change.   

0:00 Leyla's start in Product Design 9

:50 Humanity's newest challenge 

15:46 The power to change something 

23:36 Recycling validates waste 

32:10 How products design us 

42:42 Leyla's UNEP Anatomy Of Action  

48:00 Leyla's pillars of work  

52:00 How does nature solve problems?

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode on YOUTUBE https://youtu.be/jh5n1RJ56zc

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Leyla's Links: 

unschools.co 

disruptdesign.co 

coproject.co (The Farm) 

leylaacaroglu.com 

https://www.instagram.com/leylaacaroglu 

https://medium.com/disruptive-design  

My Socials: 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

Sue Pritchard sits on one side of a challenge that has divided all who are aware of it - How to feed everyone fairly on a planet with finite resources? As CEO of the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission, and a farmer herself, she works for a regenerative, smaller-scale agricultural future, and seeks to make radical changes in the way we & all the different industries involved think about our food.  

In PART 1, we discussed agri-tech & the work of the Lincoln Institute for Agri-Food Technology - https://youtu.be/hgKVKizDFGE 

This is PART 2 of this debate.   

0:00 Wizards & Prophets 

7:01 What are the biggest threats of Wizardry side? 

12:01 Can farmers shift between them? 

15:58 Polyculture methods 

22:05 The $1bn Question 

26:27 Is meat-eating still possible? 

34:12 Price & trade 

41:51 Sue's farm 

51:45 Being a steward of the land  

55:15 What's next for Sue & FFCC? 

59:45 Democracy & Agriculture

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Sue's Links: 

Food, Farming and Countryside Commission https://ffcc.co.uk 

https://twitter.com/suepritch  

My Socials: 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth

Dr Mary Menton is a Research Fellow in Environmental Justice at University of Sussex and part of team behind Not1More, a campaign group which supports frontline environmental defenders and investigates the root causes of environmental conflict. Individuals & groups facing up against powerful corporations invading & obliterating their homes for profit are being killed at an increasing rate around the world, and Mary is one of the key people bringing the guilty to justice.    

We talked about Mary's work with the Not1More Campaign - interpreting the data & evidence to map out who is being targeted, where, and what resources & corporations are correlated to these threats. We then looked at the issue on a wider scale - who are the different players (the press, the public, researchers), what impacts are they having, and what are the predictions for what can, should and will be done to protect nature & its Defenders.

0:00 2020 Global Witness Defending Tomorrow Report  

3:43 Interpreting the Data 

6:38 Who are the Environmental Defenders?  

12:07 Strategy & planning 

16:29 Police involvement 

17:39 Indigenous racism 

24:44 Public opinion 

26:36 Press approaches 

29:31 True numbers? 

36:04 Not1More's support for Defenders 

39:11 Perpetual Growth Mindset 

42:35 Impunity & governments 

50:25 International agreements 

57:58 Consumer choices 

01:02:00 Global comparisons 

01:07:10 Mary's research into the SDGs 

01:15:43 Do you ever feel unsafe?

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode now on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/U4FCTQG9_XM

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Mary's Links: Sussex profile: https://profiles.sussex.ac.uk/p453111-mary-menton  

Not1More: https://not1more.org/  

My Socials: 

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

Dr Michel Dugon aka The Bug Doctor is a leading expert in the development and evolution of venom systems, predation strategies and prey detection in venomous invertebrates. He is also at the forefront of research into how venom can be applied in medicine in a multitude of avenues from antimicrobial resistance to anticancer and treating arthritis.    

We talked about the variations of venom across species & families, and their different (but ultimately equal!) paths to venom. We then spoke about Michel's research, and the potential for extracting or synthesising venoms for medicines and antimicrobial uses.   

0:00 What makes venom venom?  

3:30 Predation or Protection?  

6:30 Bee stings 

11:27 Venomous social insects 

14:17 Evolution of venom 

22:11 How does an animal experience producing venom? 

29:11 Variations across venomous species 

30:29 SHOW & TELL! 

38:28 The race to weaponise 

44:18 Environmental factors in producing venom 

49:11 Identifying venomous species 

54:49 Extracting venom for medicine 

58:25 How to put it to use? 

01:00:50 Venom as an anti-microbial 

01:10:00 Michel's hypersensitivity 

01:18:24 Venom to get high

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube now at : https://youtu.be/a4t-2_0ZEvo

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Michel's Links: 

Ted Talk: https://www.ted.com/talks/michel_dugon_the_secrets_of_spider_venom (1.8m views!) 

NUI Galway profile: https://www.nuigalway.ie/our-research/people/natural-sciences/micheldugon/ 

https://twitter.com/michel_dugon  

My Socials:

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth  

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

Dr Les Kaufman is a marine biologist & coral reef expert. He's been at the forefront of trying to understand how these really complex & unique ecosystems can flourish in the colourful, glorious way they do for over 40 years. And now he puts his time & energy into clinging on by the fingernails for their preservation.  

We talked about how and where Corals live, and the ecosystems they host (50% of all fishes!). We then spoke about the anthropological dangers facing them, and differences across cultures' approaches to this, finishing by talking about his latest research into behavioural economics and psychology - predicting the changes to the threats and their deaths.   

0:00 Intro 

3:58 What IS a Coral Reef? 

9:58 Coral Reefs as an ecosystem 

14:06 Kingsman Atoll (nearly human-free) 

17:57 Coexisting with Reefs (Pacific Islanders) 

21:22 Does Les eat fish? 

24:01 Reef-building clams 

27:37 Shifting homes due to climate change? 

33:53 Threats Corals are facing 

36:59 The Great Forgetting 

41:44 Sea-level rise 

43:45 Why is the ocean fundamental to all life? 

45:37 Les's career journey 

49:35 His latest research in Behavioural Economics 

55:58 Applying to fisheries 

59:21 Making predictions in nature (Science of Complexity) 

01:05:48 Our impacts generate more uncertainty 

01:08:11 Restoration Ecology 

01:16:24 Les et al's Pandemic prevention cost paper (in Science Journal)

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode now on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/D82ltIp-uwU 

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

The paper on the cost of zoonotic disease vs preventative efforts, which Les talks about at the end 'Ecology and Economics for Pandemic Prevention' : https://science.sciencemag.org/content/369/6502/379.summary

Les's Links & Orgs he works with: 

Boston University Profile https://www.bu.edu/biology/people/profiles/les-kaufman 

Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future  http://www.bu.edu/pardee Coral 

Restoration Consortium http://crc.reefresilience.org 

Coral Restoration Foundation https://www.coralrestoration.org 

Mote Marine Laboratory https://mote.org 

Herbert W. Hoover Foundation https://www.hwhfoundation.org 

Fragments of Hope (Belize) http://fragmentsofhope.org 

Conservation International https://www.conservation.org  

My Socials: 

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth  

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

Dr Lisa Yon is an expert in captive animal welfare and works to improve the lives of and our understanding of wildlife living in captive & semi-captive homes around the world. She specialises in elephant intelligence & behaviour, and clearly loves them dearly. She serves on the board of many incredible organisations in the conservation world, including Frozen Ark - a global mission to cryogenically preserve endangered and ecosystem-critical species.   

We talked about how elephants navigate and interpret their worlds, and their sophisticated social needs. We talked about what different players in conservation are doing to improve both their lives in captivity and in the wild. And we also talked about Lisa's work with biobanking (cryogenically freezing species for future regeneration projects) and the cooperation across the conservation industry to bring all these hopes to reality.   

0:00 Lisa's career path 

07:16 Wild Bull (male) elephants 

13:16 Social teaching & learning 

15:18 Communicating & infrasound 

22:05 Research in their perception of their world 

25:05 Cohabitation & herds 

27:53 Navigating anthropological change 

31:34 Improving captive wellbeing  

35:30 Lisa's methods for assessing welfare 

43:38 Are elephants getting 'tamer'?  

49:07 Incentivising zoos re: welfare 

54:12 Changing laws on captive welfare 

56:14 Biobanking: Frozen Ark 

01:03:15 Global network of biobanks 

01:08:06 Cooperation in conservation 

01:14:20 Conservation & zoonotic diseases 

01:21:53 Elephants' strong social bonds 

01:27:52 Will megafauna go extinct in the wild? 

01:32:33 Lisa's next research project

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/axBNUeUWnO4

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Lisa's Work: https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/vet/people/lisa.yon  

Frozen Ark:  https://www.frozenark.org  

Laura's Socials:    

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth  

https://twitter.com/llcmahler  

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast  

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler

Thomas Kostigen is an environmental journalist and author of over 10 books on environmental issues. His latest, 'Hacking Earth', the informant of this episode, is a global tour of geoengineering research & technologies (big & small, futuristic & already happening) that might be our only means of survival on this planet as humans continue to destroy ecosystems and warm it over 1.5C.   

We talked about levels and growth of engineering over the millenia of human civilisation, examples of some low-risk and some more extreme technologies and where & how they're being tested and implemented. We then talked about the players involved - scientists, politicians, activists - and what international agreements and movements are taking place. As of 2020, we have 9 years before UN predicts irreversible change and collapse of ecosystems - are these techs our last shot?   

0:00 Intro to Thomas & Hacking Earth 

5:58 What IS Geoengineering? 

9:41 Millenia & levels of Geoengineering 

13:12 Comparing to today's other challenges  

15:43 Analog to extreme techs 

18:37 Biomimicry 

22:48 Masdar City: City Of The Future 

28:48 Creating a community around tech 

31:18 How to 'bring people in'? 

35:10 Industry, politics or people? 

39:04 International agreements 

45:16 AI, testing & modelling 

50:21 9 years left to change our path  

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/EJiS38j7x5w

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Thomas's book:  

Hacking Earth: HOW GEOENGINEERING CAN HELP US REIMAGINE THE FUTURE https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/589023/hacking-planet-earth-by-thomas-m-kostigen/

Laura's Socials: 

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth 

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast/ 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

Dr Jeri Wright is an insect neuroethologist whose lab investigates the interrelationship of plants and bees, and how bees sense and learn about the world around them. She works to understand how bees detect food, and how they know what nutrients they need and seek those out, and how other (sometimes unwanted) compounds affect them.  

We talked first about bee senses and cognition - their memory, their propensity to addiction, and cooperation as a Hive. We then moved on to what anthropological changes are affecting them, and in what ways their incredible way of life and previously misunderstood and underestimated cognitive abilities are being impacted by our degradation of ecosystems.   

0:00 Bees and plants 

3:56 Evolution of insect/plant relationships 

11:51 Diversity in bee diets 

14:30 Bee sense of smell  

16:10 Bee vision 

20:05 Bee memory 

22:45 Flowers or 'crops'?  

26:07 The Waggle Dance & Navigation 

30:33 Generational memory 

34:17 Instinctive or learnt? 

37:50 Anthropological effects on bees 

43:55 Drawing bees away from people 

45:48 Jeri's Lab & research (caffeine) 

53:38 Why do WE like floral scents? 

56:06 Bee communication (pheromones) 

01:00:30 Bee defense 

01:02:45 Can they sense what's bad for them? 

01:06:07 Bee decline 

01:13:42 Queen bees & Hive politics 

01:19:37 Genetics within the Hive 

01:21:05 Jobs within the Hive 

01:25:01 Bees as a Hive vs as individuals 

01:31:10 Future in bee research

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH the episode on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/UCU7R96R8Lk

 We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Jeri's Work: https://www.zoo.ox.ac.uk/people/professor-geraldine-wright#tab-1951261  

Laura's Socials: 

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth  

https://www.instagram.com/earthideas.podcast 

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

Jon Bowermaster is a documentary filmmaker, environmental activist and National Geographic Explorer. He's made environmental films on all 7 continents & the oceans, and his most recent 'Ghost Fleet' looks at human trafficking in the fishing industry, and is just absolutely beautifully captured, shockingly told and memorable.    

We talked about the issues Jon's work (namely, Hudson River Stories & Oceans8) focuses on - threats facing the oceans & waterways, and what people are doing about it. We then spoke about Jon's career path and the different mediums he has worked in, before looking to the future for documentaries & activism.  

0:00 Intro to Jon & his work 

3:04 Choosing a medium for a story 

6:20 4bn people live near the ocean 

09:35 Ocean Acidification 

11:18 Water does not clean itself 

17:43 Sea level rise & coastal cities 

22:08 Dams 

25:42 The changes to come 

28:55 Aquaculture 

32:14 Sourcing locally 

34:18 Jon's new film on Hudson farming 

36:46 Biodiversity is crucial 

38:44 Lessons from a filmmaker 

44:23 From print to film 

47:57 Our films in production

This is a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube at: https://youtu.be/GE9_0ncXbCw

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.  

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Jon's Links: https://www.oceans8films.com 

https://www.instagram.com/jonbowermaster  

Ghost Fleet:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cSUYlY_dhg  

My Socials: 

https://twitter.com/ideas_earth  

https://www.instagram.com/earthideaspodcast

https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Beth Gardiner is a journalist and author of Choked: Life and Breath in the Age of Air Pollution.  It was a real eye opener to talk to Beth given the way COVID-19 has affected our output of air pollution globally, and also how air pollution is affecting our ability to fight the disease. Air pollution is another killer that hangs ferociously in the air for us to breathe in - this time of 7 million people every single year.  

This is part of a series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.   

You can also WATCH this episode on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/M-iqIK19CQc

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

SHARE SUBSCRIBE! 

And come back next week for more.   

Beth's Work: https://www.bethgardiner.com 

Beth's Book: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Choked-Pollution-Fight-Cleaner-Future/dp/1846276454  

My Socials: https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange

If you found this episode valuable, please support me with caffeine to keep them coming https://www.buymeacoffee.com/lauramahler :)

Alan Weisman is an environmental journalist and best-selling author of The World Without Us - and imaginative thought-experiment of what would happen to planet earth if we humans were to all disappear - and Countdown - telling the tale of quite the opposite: at what point will there be just too many of us for the earth to sustain?   It was absolutely brilliant to have Alan as my first guest, especially relating to the current pandemic (recorded before the murder of George Floyd, so it was a little Covid-leaning.)  

A series of in-depth conversations with fascinating people, with loads to say about the current state of the world, everything that came before us, and everything that could be still to come.  

You can WATCH this episode on Youtube too: https://youtu.be/y2vrk1QX1ws

We hope you enjoy.  

Leave us a comment :)  

Subscribe! 

And come back next week for more.   

Alan's Work: https://tinyurl.com/y9pmx92t  

My Socials: https://www.instagram.com/laura.mahler 

https://www.instagram.com/filmthechange