The Sustainable Futures Report

As I write this on the day after the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II there's little I can bring you in the way of sustainability news from the United Kingdom. The world didn't stop, of course, and we are in the middle of a series of extreme weather events.  

It was only a few weeks ago, on 10th June, that I published an episode entitled "God Save the Queen". It was clearly premature to entitle last week's episode "The Way Ahead".   God Save the King! And as far as the PM is concerned, the jury's still out.

Since my last episode quite a lot has happened. We have a new prime minister in the UK, there's a new green bill in the United States, Russia turns off its gas supplies to Europe and Pakistan turns from drought to catastrophic floods. The new prime minister has promised to sort out the energy crisis within a week and as he leaves office, Boris Johnson appears to have committed the incoming adminis...

In this episode, drought, wildfires and keeping cool. The Environment Agency damns the water companies, the candidates for UK PM display their knowledge of the climate crisis (not much) there's a book review and a new brew from Singapore. You can make your own jokes about that when you've heard the story. And it's goodbye from me until September.

Are we leaving the Goldilocks zone - that part of the universe where life can exist? It's not too hot and it's not too cold; in fact it's just right. How much longer will the Earth be in the Goldilocks zone? And if it's not hot enough already, some politicians seem to be making a bonfire of their principles, while others, notably the so-called Common Sense Group of MPs, are urging people to take t...

Today we look again at how the concerned consumer can be sure that a particular product has come from ethical sources. David Coleman of IOV42 explains how Timberchain uses blockchain to verify sustainable timber.

How corruption promotes the climate crisis, energy problems on their way, how green will the UK's new prime minister be? And my interview on GBNews about the West Cumbria Coal Mine.

Let's have a sensible discussion! The climate crisis is just too important to argue about. We need a mature approach to this crucial issue. Today's guest, Marc Cortez, calls it Climaturity.

Think carbon! I know I've said it before, but everything you choose to eat, use or wear has a direct impact on the size of your carbon footprint. Carbon footprints and carbon emissions determine the future of this planet, our home. Unsurprisingly, this week's episode is concerned directly or indirectly with carbon emissions and carbon footprints.

Food is probably the most important issue of our time. It's the effect on food which will be the most crucial consequence of the climate emergency. Meet a man with a vision. Meet Eddy Badrina of Eden Green Technology

It's possible to make a milk substitute from oats and from many other plants. Today we learn about one plant you may not have thought of, and find out what else it can do for the planet.

Plastic pollution is a perennial problem. The Plasticology Project aims to be part of the solution.

Sunshine? Let's not waste it. Let's install more solar panels and increase the nation's energy security. But wait, amid warnings of a possible food crisis should we be covering agricultural land with solar panels?

How do we manage the message? How do we influence public opinion? This seems to be a recurring theme for the Sustainable Futures Report , which is hardly surprising, because it's important. I spoke to Guy Doza ,  a man whose business is communication. He's a prize-winning speaker and he's recently written a book on rhetoric.

...but I haven't made up my mind about the Prince of Wales yet. Is the Monarchy Sustainable? This week:  monarchy versus republicanism, ownership of land,  agriculture and food production, a UN climate conference, warnings that we should use no excuse to justify expanding fossil fuel production,  warnings of stranded assets, rapidly rising fuel costs, and  is that electric car as clean as you thou...

The Wednesday Interview I talk to Tinia Pina, CEO of Re-Nuble, about how her organisation uses commercial vegetable waste to produce a nutrient feed for hydroponic farmers. They use sea-food waste from fish processors too. It makes a biodegradable substrate to support the hydroponic plants.

The Wednesday Interview  I talk to Shameek Ghosh from Trustrace about building ethical supply chains for the fashion industry.

In Australia there is a new government. Will it reverse the climate scepticism which seems to have been a hallmark of the previous administration? Here in the UK a responsible investment manager at a major financial institution takes an interesting slant on his job and gets suspended as a result. Questions are asked whether a charity with a view on climate science is in fact a charity or could it...

Today I'm talking to Jake and Amee, creators of the S'wheat reusable plant-based water bottle. (Very special thanks to them for going through it all twice, because first time I forgot to turn the recorder on.) We're talking about protecting the environment, in particular protecting it from plastic waste. Incidentally, there's a detailed analysis of the impact of plastic pollution, including the nu...

Today is World Bee Day This week, should the Guardian's Carbon Bombs be defused? There's a new report from the World Meteorological Organisation on the State of the Global Climate 2021, I learn about a country where supermarkets accept Bitcoin while IEMA warns about the energy cost of Bitcoin mining, and there's a prospect of new pandemics.

Blockchain. What is it? Is it important? Is it sustainable? How does it relate to crypto-currency like Bitcoin, and is that just for money-laundering or for wild speculation? I'm hearing more and more about blockchain, so I thought it was time for the Sustainable Futures Report to talk to an expert.   I found one. He's called Anthony Day.

A new report from The Guardian warns that multi-billion expansion plans from the fossil fuel majors will make Net Zero an impossibility with catastrophic consequences. Also greenwash, elections in Australia, retrofitting in Italy, mining the e-waste dumps and looking at the moon.

I suggested to Patron Ian Jarvis  that the Sustainable Futures Report risked becoming repetitive and that it was time to take stock. "Taking Stock" for him would be about a genuine review of the science and politics with nothing being 'off-the-table'. He asks, "Are we on a route of someone else's choosing? What if we're wrong? What then? Would we, all of us, be big enough to accept that and adjust...

...and catching up on good news and bad from the past few days.

In the spirit of working out how to communicate the climate crisis message I'm talking today to Manda Scott. She explains more about what Thrutopia is - and discusses a wide range of other existential issues as well.