Meliora: a podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute

In this student takeover episode  of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton   we discuss the topic of sustainability in zoos – a topic we feel is not discussed enough. We cover the advantages and disadvantages that zoos provide to global sustainability and how they can be improved for more effective sustainability. We navigate this b...

Season 3 of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton  is our Student Takeover Season where we will be shining a light on the amazing work produced by our undergraduate students. The first half of the season will be a series of short 12 minute episodes on a variety of sustainability issues written, presented, recorded and edited by team...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we have a lovely chat with another of our wonderful and most celebrated alumni, the fantastic Joshua Davies, now of Santander.  Our chat covers Joshua's background, how and why he became dedicated to the environment and wider sustainability issues, how he accidentally bec...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we have a great chat with another of our brilliant alumni, the fantastic Gabriel Lemos Finocchio Baraldi where we discuss the challenges of graduating and trying to get that elusive first role.  Our discussion covers Gabriel's background, how and why he became dedicated t...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we have a lovely chat with another of our wonderful alumni, the inspirational Sophie Van Eetvelt where we navigate through her fascinating career journey over the last decade.  Our discussion showcases the diverse nature of career opportunities available in the sustainability...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we have a lovely chat with two of our utterly awesome alumni, Jon Coello and Lucy Marum to discuss their fascinating career routes, the criticality of the circular economy, and how the work of just two (admittedly great) people can make a profound difference. However, that des...

In this episode of the Meliora podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton, we are joined by the excellent Lucy Benson who is studying BSc Environmental Science.  Lucy has spent the last year working on her Undergraduate Individual Research Project by investigating Lionfish population numbers and associated impacts around her home country of Bermuda....

For International Women’s day 2024, the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resillience Insititute (SRI) at the University of Southampton is guest hosted by SRI colleagues Alice Brock and Grace Compton, who wanted to explore the intersection between Gender and Climate Change.  In this episode they discuss the Sustainable Development Goal 5 on Gender Equality, how the impacts and burden o...

In a first for the Meliora podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton, we are discussing an Undergraduate Individual Research Project with the impressive Ben Hunt who is studying BA Geography.  Ben is assessing the sustainability work of some of the most famous sporting organisations in the world, the twenty football clubs that make up the English P...

Our guest on this episode of the Meliora podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton is the impressive Emily Cole.  Emily was one of the lead architects of the recently launched Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) legislation, arguably one of the most ambitious and important sustainability legislative changes of recent times. Emily explains this new mandator...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton we are joined by the brilliant Laurence Cannings for a fascinating discussion around his PhD research titled: " Contrasting Subjective and Objective Wellbeing in the Context of Spatial Environmental Characteristics and Climatic Risk: A comparative case study on the Volta...

In this episode of the Meliora podcast we are joined by Dr Emma Palmer-Cooper from the School of Psychology at the University of Southampton to discuss the Crafting Heritage for Well-being in Iraq (CHeWI) project.  The British Academy funded CHeWI project explores the nexus of crafting, heritage and well-being for survivors of conflict in Iraq, which has one psychiatric hospital for 38 million peo...

In this episode of the Meliora podcast our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Professor Tom Irvine, the Head of Music at the University of Southampton who has a growing interest in all aspects of sustainability in music. During this conversation we address all the sustainability dimensions of the music industry - cultural, social, economic, and environmental. We discuss the topics of the  envi...

In this special episode of the Meliora podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute (SRI) at the University of Southampton we are looking at some of the main outcomes from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of Parties (COP)28. Recorded on the afternoon the gavel came down on COP28, we are joined by Grace Compton SRI Specialist Policy Officer and Publ...

In this episode of the Meliora podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Centre (SRI) at the University of Southampton we are looking at some of the outcomes, discussions, and concerns at the halfway point of COP28. Our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Alice Brock, Sustainable Development Goals Project Officer in the SRI to discuss the latest climate science news releases, loss and da...

In this episode, host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by two PhD students at the University of Southampton, Alice Brock and Molly Simmons, to explore the world of PhDs. Alice Brock’s PhD focuses on personal carbon budgets, while Molly Simmons’ PhD focuses on sustainable diets.   Whether you are a student considering a PhD, a fellow researcher, or simply curious about the world of academic research,...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast from the Sustainability & Resilience Institute (SRI) at the University of Southampton we are discussing everyone's favourite annual global summit, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)  Conference of the Parties (COP), specifically COP28. Our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Professor Craig Hutton, Director of the S...

In this ‘Meliora shorts episode’, Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Vicky Howat and Lea Francastel, from Climate Fresk. The episode highlights the work of Climate Fresk, and how they are running workshops globally to enhance climate change knowledge. Within just 3 hours, the workshop takes you through a journey of the science behind climate change and empowers individuals to take action. This is a...

In this episode of the Meliora podcast we reflect on our experiences at the EAUC annual conference in Bath in June 2023. Our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by the editors of the podcast and undergraduate students Sophie Green and Lily Killner as well as PhD student Molly Simmons who all attended the conference, along with Jasmine Morgan who was unfortunately unavailable at the time of this re...

Back in June 2023 the Meliora Podcast team attended the EAUC annual conference at the University of Bath. The conference focus was  ‘Conversations on Climate Solutions’ which aimed to bring together the UK’s best Higher and Further Education academics, leaders, students and professionals to address the climate and ecological emergency.   In this episode, the team provide an overview of the 2 days...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast we are discussing Personal Carbon Budgets. Our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Alice Brock, Sustainable Development Goals Officer in the Sustainability & Resilience Institute, and PhD student in the School of Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Southampton where she is researching this complex area. Throughout this episode we d...

Food production, transportation, packaging, storage, cooking, consumption and disposal is referred to as one of the largest contributors to anthropogenic climate change and has a vast array of social and health impacts. In this episode, host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by PhD researcher Molly Simmons to explore the sustainability impacts associated with the entire food system.   Sustainable die...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast we are exploring the sustainability impacts of  cryptocurrency. Our host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Dr Larisa Yarovaya, Associate Professor of Finance at the University of Southampton.  This eye-opening episode covers how cryptocurrency is generated, the environmental costs of cryptocurrency from energy demand to electronic waste, and the social conseq...

In this episode of the Meliora Podcast we focus on the new interdisciplinary Sustainability and Resilience Institute (SRI) at the University of Southampton.  The SRI formally launched on Wednesday 1st November, and to support this event host Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Professor Craig Hutton (Director) and Associate Professor Dr Lindsay-Marie Armstrong (Deputy-Director) to discuss all matter...

In this Halloween themed episode, Professor Simon Kemp is joined by Sustainability & Resilience Institute 'Sustainable Development Goals Officer' and PhD researcher Alice Brock to explore the sustainability impacts of the spooky time of year!   However, it is not all doom and gloom! This episode discusses a variety of tips to help everyone enjoy Halloween in a sustainable manner. Lea...