Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?

In our penultimate episode of the series, Katy and Babita are joined by the comedian and environmental economist Dr Matt Winning. Matt performs live stand-up comedy about climate change as well as juggling his career as a climate researcher. We find out why he decided comedy was his way forward to take action in the climate crisis. Matt is the author of a book called, Hot Mess: What On Earth Can W...

In this episode, Katy and Babita chat politics with Clive Lewis MP who campaigns to put climate action at the centre of the political agenda. We find out whether it is all blah blah blah as Greta Thunberg said, or if there is hope for concrete change? Clive chatted to us from his constituency of Norwich South in the east of England. 

In this episode we chat to Professor Sarah Bridle who traded in her high profile career as an astrophysicist to focus on food and what we eat. She is now the Professor of Food, Climate and Society at the University of York. Sarah told us how the battle of food in the climate crisis is not about vegans versus farmers, but enabling better food choices to bring about change. Sarah's book - ‘Food &amp...

In today's episode, Katy and Babita are joined by Alistair Griffiths, Director of Science at the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS). Alistair chats to us about the power of gardening for our mental health and the planet, and how plants, nature and people can join forces to accelerate change in the battle against the climate crisis. Some useful links with more info following on from our chat with Al...

In this episode of Mum, Will The Planet Die Before I Do? Babita chats to Britain's youngest MP Nadia Whittome about climate education and her mission to integrate climate change and sustainability into the education curriculum. Nadia explains why she believes if the education system isn't preparing young people to help deal with the impacts of climate change then it is failing them. To read the Cl...

 In this episode, Katy & Babita chat to Guy Singh-Watson, a farmer and the founder of Riverford - a farm collective that has developed into a national organic veg box scheme delivering to around 50,000 customers a week across the UK. He joins us to talk about food, organic farming in the climate crisis, and his passion for truly sustainable agriculture.

This week, Babita and Katy meet poet and former climate activist Emma Must. Emma was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize for her efforts towards land protection, which included a period of detention in Holloway Prison as one of the ‘Twyford Seven’. She explains her decision to stop front-line campaigning and why she has turned to the power of the written word in the battle against the climate...

In this episode, Babita and Katy meet CEO Dan Bates who set up his own energy company - Rebel Energy, to address inequality and the climate crisis. Dan spent over 15 years working at BP before deciding it was time to focus on clean energy. We find out what motivated him to go-it alone and whether big business can mean good business in the effort to battle the climate crisis.

In this episode Babita and Katy talk to Lucy Siegle, author and broadcaster who has spent much of her career helping us understand the perils of fast fashion and what ethical living looks like. Lucy explains that we are not 'consumers' - we are citizens with agency. She also shares her tips on living ethically by sharing resources and plugging back into our communities.  You can follow Lucy o...

In our second series, Babita and Katy meet people taking action against the climate crisis in unique and brilliant ways. In this episode they meet Oli Cook, co-founder of EKKO bank. Oli is tackling the climate crisis in a way Babita and Katy would never had thought of ... through debit cards. Oli talks to them about fatherhood, how he spotted a way to help people make better consumer choices, and...

Welcome back to Series 2 of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' the podcast about parenting in a climate crisis. Journalists Katy Glassborow and Babita Sharma met 25 years ago and remain firm friends, sharing each others highs and lows. They spent their careers investigating news stories, including climate change, but when they both became mums the climate headlines left them in a state of fea...

In this episode Babita and Katy meet Rosamund Adoo-Kissi-Debrah, mum of Ella who died of acute respiratory failure on 15 February 2013, three weeks after her ninth birthday.  Ella made legal history as the first person in the UK to have air pollution recorded on their death certificate.    Rosamund talks to us about motherhood, motivation and her tirele...

In this final episode of the first series of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' journalists Babita Sharma and Katy Glassborow reflect on what they've learnt from their podcast guests and whether or not they have found the answers to parenting in a climate crisis. The poem Babita and Katy refer to in this episode is 'On Children' by Kahlil Gibran. We're very grateful to our partners CUSP, Pare...

In today's episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' Babita and Katy are joined by environmentalist, author and journalist George Monbiot. They discuss the role that parents can play in preparing their kids for the fight against climate change. George talks about the unprecedented time we are facing and what he has learnt about his own emotional denial when coping with the climate challen...

In this episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' Babita and Katy are joined by Mitzi Jonelle Tan, a young climate activist from the Philippines. They discuss the urgency and eco trauma felt by young activists on the front lines of climate change. Mitzi explains how foundational her relationship with her mother is, and how the lessons she learnt about being kind, loving community and stan...

In this episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' Katy is joined by guest presenter Ben McCallan from Zero Carbon Guildford, a charity that focuses on driving community-led climate action. Katy and Ben chat to Miatta Fahnbulleh, Chief Executive of the New Economics Foundation. Miatta has a wealth of experience generating ideas and policies to reshape the economy so that it...

In this episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' Mayor of Freetown Yvonne Aki-Sawyerr talks to Babita and Katy about the difference between climate activism in greenhouse gas emitting countries, and the urgency of dealing with the damage in countries that bear the consequences. Yvonne talks about juggling climate activism with politics and family l...

In this episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' climate activist Elizabeth Wathuti talks to Babita and Katy about bringing news of climate catastrophes from her home country of Kenya to global leaders, who often seem like they're just not listening. Elizabeth describes the disconnect between what is happening on the front line of climate change, and the high-level conferences deciding w...

In this episode of 'Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?' journalist David Shukman talks to Katy and guest presenter Antonia Godber, from Parents for Future UK, about his experience of reporting on catastrophes from the front lines of climate change. He talks about how these experiences effected him as a father, and the lessons he learnt from interviewing children living through climate crises. H...

In this episode of ‘Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?’ international human rights lawyer Tessa Khan talks to Babita and Katy about the challenges she has faced representing parents and individuals who are fighting the climate crisis. She reveals the benefits and limitations of legal recourse and reminds us of the privilege of living in a democracy and how to support the worst affected parents...

In this episode of ‘Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?’ the world-renowned climate scientist Professor Saleemul Huq gives Babita & Katy stark testimony of living through a climate emergency, revealing that today’s climate conversation is not about rich versus poor but parent versus child. He also offers solutions to bridging the intergenerational divide.

In this episode of ‘Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?’ youth activist Clover Hogan speaks passionately to Babita and Katy about what parents need to know and what they are missing when dealing with the climate crisis. She describes the reality of living with eco-anxiety and the frustration young people have towards governments and parents for not moving fast enough.

In this episode of ‘Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?’ Grammy-nominated musician and climate activist Rocky Dawuni tells Babita and Katy how growing up in a tribal village in Ghana has helped him understand and navigate the climate crisis. Rocky also shares coping strategies for dealing with the fear of a climate breakdown.

In this episode of ‘Mum, Will the Planet Die Before I Do?’  the former Executive Secretary of UN Convention on Climate Change, Christiana Figueres, tells Babita and Katy how being a parent has transformed her views on the climate crisis. She also speaks about the pressure of being seen as a ‘Mum’ for a generation who are seeking change and tells us why relentless optimism is every parent’s be...

Journalists Katy Glassborow and Babita Sharma met 25 years ago and remain firm friends, sharing each others highs and lows. They spent their careers investigating news stories, including climate change, but when they both became mums the climate headlines left them in a state of fear. How do you parent in a climate emergency? Katy and Babita decided to consult some of the world’s leading climate t...