Reasons Revisited

This week we’re looking at energy storage, and the technologies being developed to improve how we store and use renewable energy. Clean energy storage is vital to decarbonising the economy, so to get to grips with it we have Jillian Ambrose, energy correspondent at the Guardian, Simon Skillings from E3G, and Nina Skorupska from The Association for Renewable Energy and Clean technologies. Plus...

Hello! This week we’re joined by podcasting royalty, as David Runciman, host of Talking Politics, joins Ed and Geoff for his victory lap. After 6 years, David and co-host Helen Thompson are hanging up their headphones on one of the smartest political podcast of our time. Ed and Geoff find out why they’re stopping in the middle of arguably one of the most important political moments of a generation...

Hello! This week we're looking at the legislation passing through parliament which would have British Sign Language recognised as an official language in the UK. Eighty-seven thousand people in the UK say BSL is their preferred language, but they are discriminated against in everyday life, from using essential services to speaking to doctors, their local council or at...

Hello! This week we’re talking about the crisis of fuel poverty as people are hit by rocketing energy bills. Torsten Bell from the Resolution Foundation sets the incoming energy bill rises in context, Adam Scorer from National Energy Action tells us how people are facing the crisis up and down the country, and Dr Elizabeth Blakelock shares some interesting solutions which have been trialled to hel...

Hello! This week we're discussing the impacts of the climate crisis on our mental health, and how we can support ourselves and each other in response.  From the trauma of the effects of extreme weather events like floods and droughts, to worrying about climate change in our every day lives, there’s a growing body of evidence which shows more and more of us are struggling. To help us understan...

Hello! This week we’re looking at the role of Magistrates in our justice system. Little is widely known about the volunteer system which presides over 90% of criminal cases, and as the government launches a campaign to get 4,000 new magistrates to apply, we find out how what more can be done to raise awareness and increase diversity. We’re joined by chair of the Young Magistrates Network, Luke Rig...

Hello! This week we're looking at the circular economy, a system that could transform our lives and contribute mightily towards reducing carbon emissions. In the UK, per person we produce the second highest amount of electronic waste by throwing away our unwanted phones and laptops. In a circular economy, we reduce usage of materials, reuse them and recycle. To help us understand the circular econ...

Hello! This week we’re joined by the wonderful Jon Ronson for a special episode. The acclaimed journalist, documentary maker and author, talks to Ed and Geoff about his new podcast series ‘ Things Fell Apart’ , which explores the extraordinary human stories behind the origins of what have become known as the culture wars. Ed gets into the kitchen, and Geoff develops an  un likely crush. ...

Hello! This week we continue our foray into all things Web 3.0 by taking on NFTs, or Non-Fungible-Tokens. If you’re lost already then don’t worry, so were we, until we spoke to our enlightened guests Anthony Cuthbertson from the Independent, Holly Jean Buck from Buffalo University, and Andrea Baronchelli, from City University and the Turing Institute. We uncover exactly what NFTs are, how they’re...

Hello! This week we head for the peatlands, get in the sea, and go in search of UK's lost rainforests to explore ecosystems beyond the trees. Could restoring these habitats play a significant part in achieving net-zero? And what else needs to be done to tackle the UK's nature crisis? Joining us are Kate Jennings (with a canine cameo), Guy Shrubsole and Richard Unsworth.  Hosted on Acast....

Happy New Year! To start 2022, Ed and Geoff talk to one of the UK’s most acclaimed and prolific scriptwriters, Jack Thorne (Help, Kiri, His Dark Materials, The End of History, This Is England.) Jack is a co-founder of Underlying Health Condition - a pressure group campaigning for proper inclusion and representation of disabled people in the entertainment industry. Jack talks about his own experien...

Hello! Well, what a year 2021 has been... thank you for being with us throughout. Here are some of 2021's very best bits for your delectation. Best wishes from your friends at Reasons to be Cheerful HQ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As last year's Christmas AMA was such a huge success *there were no major repercussions*, we thought we'd do it again. Ed and Geoff answer (and avoid) your questions, from sandwiches of choice in the make-your-own-sandwich shop to which cabinet member Ed would prefer to take on in a royal rumble. (Guess which of those Ed answered, and which he avoided... ) Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo...

In the fourth and final episode about how progressive victories were won, we're taking a look at the introduction of the national minimum wage. It feels unthinkable now that there shouldn't be a minimum rate that workers are paid, but it wasn't too long ago that hourly rates of £1 or £1.50 were commonplace. The road to a national minimum wage was long and winding but campaigning, persuasive leader...

In the latest episode of our series about progressive advances, we're taking a look at the history of the fight for race equality in the UK. It is one that goes back centuries but we want to explore what progress has really been made in modern times and what have been the drivers--the combination of activism, movements, law and cultural change both in the UK and abroad. This week's guests are...

In the second of our episodes about how progressive victories were won, we're looking at gender equality and why the Nordic nations seem to be so far ahead of most of the world. What is it about the culture, society, and politics of the region? What role did women's movements play? And is there something in the water/snow, or can it inspire us to do better? To help us understand the history a...

We're doing a little shimmy, into the past. In the first part of our mini-history series on how progressive victories were won, we're looking at the NHS. How did this complex institution, that's beloved in the UK and revered around the world, manage to even get off the ground? Who were the key players? How did they win over opposition (and why was some of that from doctors)? And what role did the...

Ed's been in Glasgow again this week as COP26 comes to a close. He digs in to get the verdict. He speaks to young Kenyan activist Elizabth Wathuti, then friends of the pod, Pete Betts, multi-hatted climate wonk, and Farhana Yamin, adviser to vulnerable countries, for their takes on the outcome. Plus the revelation that RTBC has hit the big time, featured on a real, mainstream TV quiz sho...

Ed’s spent the week in Glasgow at COP26. He brings you the voices of young activists demanding change, including Anna, a young Glasgow climate striker. Then he talks to Simon Stiel, Minister for Climate Resilience in Grenada and Pete Betts, former top UK civil servant on climate negotiations, now a leading voice on the state of the play. Plus Geoff pitches in with his impressions from the outside...

Hello! As COP26 kicks off, we’re exploring how cities and towns are leading the way on tackling the climate crisis. Mark Watts from C40 Cities talks us through how some of the world’s largest cities — from Milan to Seoul — are taking urgent action to reduce emissions. Polly Billington from UK100 tells us what local leaders are up to in the UK. And deputy mayor of Paris Celia Blauel is back to tell...

Hello! Libraries are about far more than borrowing books. We’re exploring how libraries around the world serve their communities and are adapting to changing needs. Sociologist Eric Klinenberg explains why libraries help build social solidarity and should be a priority for government investment. Marie Østergård tells us about libraries in the Danish city of Aarhus, home of the world-renowned Dokk1...

Hello! We know the UK’s population is getting older, but what should that mean for our towns, villages and cities? We’re talking about ‘age-friendly communities’ — places where people of all ages can live healthy and active lives. Natalie Turner from the Centre for Ageing Better explains the idea. Paul McGarry from Greater Manchester Ageing Hub tells us how the city region has lead the way on putt...

Hello! Millions of homes across Britain need retrofitting with insulation and low carbon heating to meet our climate goals. We chat to Josh Emden from IPPR about the many benefits of a national retrofit programme and how government can make it happen. Then Aneaka Kellay from Carbon Coop explains how they’re piloting a people-powered approach to retrofitting homes in Manchester. 
AND we chat to wri...

Hello! Sociologist Sam Friedman has spent years exploring how class shapes our society. He argues Britain faces a powerful ‘class ceiling’ that affects who can access certain jobs and then progress in them. We chat to Sam about why that is and what we can do about it. Then Isabel Farchy from the Creative Mentor Network tells us how her charity is working to widen access to careers in the creative...

Hello! We’re chatting to incredibly prolific historian Adam Tooze about his new book ‘ Shutdown: How Covid Shook the World’s Economy’ . We talk to Adam about the response to Covid around the world and what it means for everything from the rise of China to the future of the Green New Deal.  PLUS Fiona McIntyre on her mission to open up the wonders of dolphin spotting on the coast of Aberdeen....