The Climate Question

When a powerful El Niño strikes, it can devastate harvests, flood communities and kill thousands of people. Scientists have been warning for months that this one could become the strongest on record. The question is: are we ready? In this episode of The Climate Question, hosts Graihagh Jackson and Jordan Dunbar find out how communities in Kenya and Peru are preparing for a potentially historic El...

From Mongolia to Texas, record numbers of lithium-ion batteries are being added to the world's electricity grids - helping to provide more reliable power and speeding up the transition to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar. China is installing over half of these new batteries, often in giant battery farms, followed by the United States and Europe. And with prices dropping fast, the tr...

The United Nations says the world will pass its most important climate target within a few years. So can we bring the planet's temperature back down quickly? Or will the damage be irreversible? In 2015, world leaders agreed in Paris to try to keep the global temperature below 1.5 degrees above pre-industrial levels to avoid the worst effects of climate change. But the UN now says what scientists c...

The Philippines and Pakistan are now the world's top solar panel importers. We find out why, and what other countries can learn from the boom! Cheap solar panels, mainly imported from China, are transforming lives and slashing electricity bills across Asia. In the last year, Filipinos have put up five times as many rooftop solar panels as the previous ten years combined. Installation companies are...

Huge construction projects are transforming China - think enormous dams, giant solar power farms and a vast high-speed rail network. Will Beijing's "engineering mindset" help it deal with climate change? China's senior leadership is dominated by engineers, starting with President Xi, who trained as a chemical engineer in the 1970s. They have overseen megaprojects like the 50-kilometre bridge joini...

As shown by the recent flash floods, Nepali mountain communities are on the front line of climate change. Can they adapt? Host Jordan Dunbar talks to two Sherpas who have become climate researchers. They are glaciologist Tenzing Chogyal Sherpa, and Pasang Yangjee Sherpa, who researches how global warming affects indigenous groups in Nepal. This programme was recorded in July 2026. Got a question f...

Europe is reeling from a record-breaking drought which has closed nuclear power stations, stopped river traffic and sent food prices soaring. And there may now be more intense droughts in some parts of the world because of climate change. Our host Graihagh Jackson explores solutions from water usage apps in South Africa to solar irrigation systems in Egypt. She also looks at the challenges of adap...

African forests are vital for food and economic development, as well as for supporting millions of species of animals and plants. We find out how to protect them better with one of Africa’s top environmentalists! From the giant Congo rainforest to the Kenyan highlands and the mangroves of Mozambique, Africa’s forests are some of the most spectacular places on Earth. And these sensitive ecosystems...

Experts say we may now need to spend more on cooling our homes than heating them because of climate change. In fact, the International Energy Agency thinks the equivalent of 10 new air conditioners every second will be installed for the next 30 years! This surge in air con will put strain on the world’s electricity grids, which are still mostly powered by fossil fuels. The units also pump heat int...

Huge wildfires have been sweeping across Southern Europe and North America. Is climate change increasing the risk? And what can we do? Weather experts say the world is starting to see new types of wildfire – including enormous Pyrocumulonimbus fire clouds that spit lightning and black hail. These infernos can burn for more than a year. They can also spawn fire tornadoes, which move at more than 20...

Graihagh Jackson talks to mothers from India, Kenya and the UK about how climate change is affecting women's decisions about whether to have children and how to raise them. Her guests are Bhavreen Kandhari, a clean air campaigner from Delhi; Dr Susan Chomba, a Kenyan forest scientist and environmentalist; and Dr Elizabeth Cripps, a political philosopher specializing in climate justice. This progra...

Climate activists have blocked highways, scaled oil rigs and even thrown soup at master artworks. But have protests ever made a difference? The modern green movement started in the 1970s when Greenpeace sailed a fishing boat towards a nuclear test site in Alaska. It now encompasses everything from bake-ins and marches to Radiohead concerts. A small minority of activists even favour breaking the la...

Scientists are warning that climate change and deforestation increase the risk of outbreaks of deadly diseases. How big is the danger? And what action can we take? Dr Neil Vora is a so-called “disease doctor” - an epidemiologist who has travelled the world to help trace the sources of outbreaks of Ebola, cow pox and rabies. Dr Vora tells The Climate Question hosts Graihagh Jackson and Jordan Dunba...

The acclaimed US sci-fi author Kim Stanley Robinson is also a star in the world of climate activism because his work often features climate change - on Earth and beyond. Robinson has been a guest speaker at the COP climate summit, and novels such as The Ministry For The Future and The Mars Trilogy are admired by everyone from Barack Obama to former UN climate chief Christiana Figueres. Robinson's...

More than seven billion of us are expected to be living in urban areas by 2050. So what are the world’s great cities doing about climate change? Humans are now city creatures – with more than half the world’s population already living in urban environments, and huge growth expected in cities in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa during the rest of the 21st century. So mayors are on the front line of deal...

Scientists say the El Niño weather pattern has started and this one is potentially so strong that it could have devastating effects in many parts of the world. So how does El Niño work exactly? And what’s the connection with climate change? El Niño starts when water temperatures rise near the Pacific coast of South America, but the impact on weather is felt around the globe. Some regions are more...

Parts of India have been facing extreme heat - with temperatures soaring past 46 degrees Celsius. But a less familiar story unfolds after dark. When temperatures stay high after sunset, an essential human need is threatened: sleep. Scientific research suggests that hot nights are leading many of us around the world to lose shut-eye already. Our bodies need to cool down to fall asleep – but hotter...

Insects play a crucial role in food production and the spread of disease, as well as being keystone species in many ecosystems. What does a warmer world mean for them? Climate Question hosts Graihagh Jackson and Jordan Dunbar talk to zoologist Dr Tim Cockerill, Senior Lecturer at Falmouth University. Got a question or comment? You can email the team: theclimatequestion@bbc.com Producers: Diane Ric...

Scorching temperatures are expected at this year’s World Cup in the USA, Mexico, and Canada. How will players and fans cope? And how will it affect the action on the pitch? Scientists are concerned about the impact of extreme heat on the biggest sporting event in history. The organisers, FIFA, is introducing mandatory water breaks to keep players cool, but experts say the hot conditions may slow d...

Corals protect humans and sustain 25% of all marine life. But reefs are under threat from climate change, and mass bleaching events mean that some scientists estimate they could disappear by 2100. In this episode, Graihagh Jackson is joined by BBC CrowdScience presenter, Caroline Steel. We go to Puerto Rico to see how self-duplicating, carnivorous coral could be the solution. We also speak to the...

In the global race for critical minerals - could the seabed provide solutions? Or should we leave these metal-rich environments undisturbed? Governments and mining companies around the world are on the hunt for the critical minerals we need for the green tech transition. And there’s growing interest in an unlikely source – potato-shaped nodules that are found kilometres below the surface of our oc...

Electric vehicle sales are soaring in Thailand and Vietnam. What’s behind the boom? And will it help the climate? Thais and Vietnamese are switching to electric cars in huge numbers – attracted by government subsidies and a more exciting range of EVs. Jobs in the car industry are also up in both countries as a new generation of manufacturers compete for domination of the emerging electric market....

What’s the carbon footprint of streaming your favourite shows or doing an AI search? How vulnerable are river estuaries to climate change? Plus, are you a climate optimist or pessimist? Graihagh Jackson and her panel answer your questions. The panel are Justin Rowlatt, BBC climate editor; Akshat Rathi, senior climate reporter for Bloomberg News and host of Bloomberg's Zero podcast; and Caroline St...

It’s one of the most commonly debated questions in the climate world: Is this weather we’re experiencing natural, or is it linked to man-made climate change? In this episode of The Climate Question, Hosts Graihagh Jackson and Jordan Dunbar are joined by BBC Lead Weather Presenter, Matt Taylor. Matt’s forecasts are seen not just in the UK but around the world. Matt chats to Graihagh and Jordan abou...

In 1986, the Chernobyl nuclear accident devastated the Soviet Union and shocked the world. But, 40 years on, are we now seeing a nuclear renaissance? And what does that mean for the climate? Climate Question host Jordan Dunbar has just visited the most contaminated place in the world for a BBC World Service documentary. He tells co-host Graihagh Jackson about the ghostly atmosphere in the former C...