Climate Decoded

Hi there, Climate Decoded listeners, Kim here. Truth is I've been putting off posting this episode, partially because it's hard to say goodbye (for now) to Climate Decoded. We're taking a break to step back and reassess how we want to tackle climate pod-ing in the current landscape, and to take appropriate time to think through the next iteration of Climate Decoded. We intend to be back, we're jus...

I'm this long-form deep dive, Kim and Jamie explore Climates Fiction, or CliFi, through three different storytelling techniques: utopian futures, dystopian futures, and fictional stories closer to our present day reality. Featured writers include: Francesco Verso | Future Fiction editor and author of many climate fiction stories Vajra Chandrasekera | Author of The Saint of Bright Doors  (2023...

Journalist and writer Todd Miller has researched and written about border issues for more than 15 years. He resides in Tucson, Arizona, but also has spent many years living and working in Oaxaca, Mexico. His work has appeared in the New York Times, TomDispatch, The Nation, San Francisco Chronicle, In These Times, Guernica, and Al Jazeera English, among other places. Todd has authored four books:&n...

Vajra Chandrasekera is a writer from Colombo, Sri Lanka. His debut novel The Saint of Bright Doors (2023) won Nebula, Ignyte, Crawford, and Locus awards, and was nominated for the Le Guin, Lammy, and Hugo, among others. His second novel Rakesfall (2024) won the Otherwise Award and is a Nebula and Locus award finalist, and was selected as one of the best books of the year by the New York Times, NPR...

Francesco Verso is the most translated Italian Science Fiction author abroad of the last 20 years. He founded the publishing house Future Fiction with the mission of translating more climate fiction in different languages from around the world. Future Fiction anthologies have featured cli-fi works originally written in Chinese, Hindi, Urdu and more than a dozen others. In this climate chat, France...

FernGully: The Last Rainforest, is a 1992 animated fantasy film and part of the environmental film canon. The story takes place in the magical world of FernGully, where fairies and animals are guardians of the forest. Curious fairy Christer has accidentally shrunk a human logger, and is on a quest to protect the forest from a resurgent fossil fuel driven being called Hexus. Action aside, it’s also...

Susanna Kwan is an artist and writer from San Francisco. Her work has been supported by fellowships from Kundiman, Storyknife, Oak Spring Garden Foundation, The Writers' Grotto, and Vanderbilt University. “Awake in the Floating City” is her first novel. Susanna and I met at her Richmond district home in San Francisco. In this chat, we talk about caregiving relationships in the face of disaster, th...

Ineza Umuhoza Grace and Kevin Mtai work together on the Loss and Damage Youth Coalition, an organisation that advocates for the establishment of new and adequate sources of finance to address loss and damage, the consequences of climate change that go beyond what people can adapt to. Ineza is an eco-feminist from Kigali, Rwanda, a NatGeo explorer, and was a Global Citizen Prize winner in 2023. Kev...

Dr. Jane Lubchenco is an eminent environmental scientist and marine ecologist who was formerly the Administrator of NOAA, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. She is a Distinguished Professor and the Wayne and Gladys Valley Professor of Marine Biology at Oregon State University, and in 2021 was loaned to the White House to serve as Deputy Director for ...

Agustina Bazterrica is an Argentine writer known for her work in the 'feminist horror' genre, particularly her 2017 dystopian novel 'Tender is the Flesh' about industrialized cannibalism. She is the recipient of multiple literary prizes and 'Tender is the Flesh' is now being adapted for the screen. Agustina's most recent novel is 'The Unworthy,' set in a post-apocolytpic world ravaged by the clima...

Madeleine Watts is a writer of novels, stories, and essays. Madeleine's debut novel 'The Inland Sea,' was shortlisted for the 2021 Miles Franklin Literary Award, and her second novel, 'Elegy, Southwest,' was released in February. 'Elegy, Southwest,' follows a young married couple on a road trip, coming to terms with their marriage breakdown in the shadow of environmental collapse. In this chat, we...

Olufunke Grace Bankole is a Nigerian American writer and novelist. A graduate of Harvard Law School, and a recipient of a Soros Justice Advocacy Fellowship, her debut novel 'The Edge of Water' hit shelves in February. 'The Edge of Water' tells the story of a young Nigerian woman navigating hopes, dreams and reconciliation as she arrives in New Orleans amidst a devastating storm. In this chat, we d...

Political scientist and energy expert Dr. Leah Stokes was presented with the 2024 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication by Climate One. In this episode she discusses this award and more with Climate One's host Greg Dalton. Leah Stokes offers ways we can push for systemic change towards clean energy, and what this means for climate communication. Be sure to check...

Emma Pattee is a climate journalist who self describes as 'your friendly neighborhood climate mom.' A writer who has contributed to the likes of The New York Times and The Guardian, she is now releasing her her debut novel 'Tilt.' 'Tilt' explores motherhood in the face of natural disaster, and how the foundations of our lives are built and shaken. The book follows Annie, who is nine months pregnan...

Welcome to Season 3 of Climate Decoded, the podcast that deciphers climate change communication. We untangle how different narratives illuminate or obscure pathways to climate justice.  This season, we have an abundance of climate comms content coming your way!  Moving forward there will be three types of episodes: In our Climate Chats , we speak to experts, authors, and activists from a...

On the final episode of Season 2, we talk with Mary Annaïse Heglar. Mary is a writer with a focus on climate change, climate grief and climate justice. She is author to several books, including the 2024 novel Troubled Waters, which navigates themes of love, family and Black resistance. Mary also co-hosts the popular podcast Spill with Amy Westervelt. We chatted with Mary about her experiences writ...

Dr. M Jackson is a glaciologist, geographer, and National Geographic Explorer, with a number of public talks, award winning books and a Netflix show to her name. She advocates for a nuanced view of the future, embracing both positive and negative aspects, and stresses the need for adaptability and resilience in addressing climate change. In this episode, M talks with Kim about the interconnectedne...

Ahead of COP29 kicking off on November 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan, we're dropping an old favourite episode into the Climate Decoded feed. Attracting tens of thousands of delegates, the Climate COP is the world's biggest climate conference, held annually with the aim of advancing collective decision-making on climate change.  In this two-part episode, producers Greg and Izzie offer an exclusive gl...

Ahead of COP29 kicking off on November 11 in Baku, Azerbaijan, we're dropping an old favourite episode into the Climate Decoded feed. Attracting tens of thousands of delegates, the Climate COP is the world's biggest climate conference, held annually with the aim of advancing collective decision-making on climate change.  In this two-part episode, producers Greg and Izzie offer an exclusive gl...

Ani Kame'enui is the Director for Strategic Initiatives and U.S. Policy and Advocacy at Breakthrough Energy, an organisation founded by Bill Gates with the goal of getting to net-zero emissions by 2050 through equitable access to affordable, reliable energy. Ani has over 15 years of climate, conservation, and advocacy campaign experience and is a policy aficionado. In this climate chat, Kim and An...

Environmental defenders — who work on the frontlines of climate change — face multiple dangers, legal and lethal. In this episode, we investigate the role of communication in their frontline work and how it can both amplify and counter the dangers they face. Follow Climate Decoded on Instagram @climatedecoded and LinkedIn ! Read the transcript and find resources mentioned in the episode at https:/...

In this Climate Chat, Celine Novenario talks about her work in communicating climate adaptation. At the time of recording, Celine was the Senior Communications Manager at the Global Center on Adaptation (GCA). The GCA works to accelerate action on adaptation to climate change, supporting adaptation solutions at the international and the local levels and partnering with the public and the private s...

In this first Climate Chat, Alexis McGivern talks about her work at the last climate COP, reaching for net zero, and the uplifting idea of radical hope. Alexis is the Net Zero Standards Manager at Oxford Net Zero. She works within the engagement team, which bridges academia and practice. She has worked closely with the International Standards Organization (ISO) on creating a set of guidelines whic...

Climate change litigation is increasingly deployed as a tool to hold governments, private entities and corporations legally accountable in their failure to adequately address climate change. Reasons for climate change litigation cases are varied, ranging from a need to advance climate policy to the infringement of human rights. In turn, litigation strategies are also varied, but the goal remains t...

Climate Decoded is back for a second season! This time, we're delving even deeper into the critical climate change issues. We'll explore how structures of power influence climate change and its communication, bringing listeners into spaces to which they otherwise might not have access. We'll cover topics such as climate litigation, the work of environmental defenders, the far-right's co-option of...