Transforming Tomorrow

Energy Lancaster Director Professor Alona Armstrong takes Jan and Paul on a wonderful journey into the world of solar power, which continues to outperform predictions for its output and effectiveness. How many solar parks are there in the UK (clue, it’s not seven or 300)? How can solar parks affect biodiversity? How long do solar plants last? How do floating solar farms work? How many homes can a...

Pentland Centre Research Associate Lauren Thornton wants to talk to us about trust. Specifically trust frameworks and trust affordances – explaining how and where people can trust data, and to what extent; why different people will trust different things – and the challenges of building trust with the right audience. How does this all fit with sustainability data – especially given the uncertainty...

Dr Di Wang dials in from Sydney, Australia, to talk to Jan and Paul about his work on sustainability reporting and materiality. Di talks about his experience of interviewing more than 200 businesses on their understanding of materiality – a concept that underpins reporting and which will be explained in the podcast. He explains why companies take part in greenhushing – and explains why he thinks t...

What is leadership? And what makes a good leader? Dr Marian Iszatt-White heads to the studio to talk with Jan and Paul about her perspective on leadership and management – as well as her time working in the oil industry. Marian discusses what authentic leadership is – and why we should or should not be authentic; how leaders address sustainability issues; where stewardship and accountability fit i...

What are wicked problems? How about clumsy solutions? And where does post-normal science fit in? In tackling issues such as climate change, scientists and researchers face complicated scenarios that are not easily explicable, with problems that are not always solvable in a clean fashion. Jan explains the development of post-normal science as a way of addressing huge modern (wicked) problems such a...

Paul’s head is going to explode as another new word to the English language is introduced to the podcast. Law PhD researcher Camilo Cornejo Martinez returns to talk to Jan and Paul about the importance of both local and global attitudes, actions and policies towards climate change. Discover more about Camilo’s work here: https://www.lancaster.ac.uk/law/people/camilo-cornejo-martinez

The law won’t let Jan and Paul get away that easily! Another member of Lancaster University Law School, PhD researcher Camilo Cornejo Martinez, comes into the studio with the unprompted assurance that he is not an accountant. Camilo talks about his background as a practising lawyer in his home country of Chile; the different attitudes and approaches – legal and otherwise – to the environment and s...

The law has caught up with Jan and Paul! Dr Rafael Savva, from Lancaster University’s Law School, promises he won’t sue us, but will recording the podcast turn him into a supervillain? Rafael talks to us about corporate governance legislation; the differences between hard and soft law – and how they apply to corporate responsibility; the potential conflicts between environmental regulation and see...

It’s time to talk politics! And discover the Blue Economy – and how it varies around the world. Dr Celine Germond-Duret steps into the studio to speak with Jan and Paul to discuss how people and business connect to the coast and the sea (including fish and chip shops); why an exact definition of the blue economy is hard to find; the politics and resources of the oceans in different countries; and...

Dr Lucy Wishart returns to tell Jan and Paul about the varied governance and structures within Scottish policy-making bodies when it comes to waste. She reveals the changes she has seen over recent years, how policy debate has evolved and moved away from Westminister, Scotland-specific patterns and approaches – and (almost) answers the perennial question of whether you can recycle a paper envelope...

What is waste? It goes far beyond what we all might think. Dr Lucy Wishart joins Jan and Paul from the University of St Andrews Business School to discuss something that is there in every action we make, but which we rarely think about. We cover everything from discard studies to the circular economy and the difficulties in making it a reality, how we might extend the life of objects and encourage...

How can fairy tales be used help people more easily understand sustainability challenges and pitfalls? Where do mermaids, vampires and witches fit in? Dr Carolynne Lord talks to Jan and Paul about her work in making research more accessible to broader audiences; how green energy generation is like a mermaid luring businesses onto the rocks and distracting from other important issues; and why polic...

How do entrepreneurs approach sustainability? Brian Gregory and Salma Atcha, from the Lancaster University Entrepreneurs in Residence network, join Paul and Jan in the studio to share their experiences. They discuss differing attitudes towards sustainability; how the Sustainable Development Goals help shape business behaviours; when entrepreneurs are no longer entrepreneurs; Find out more about th...

What are universities doing to address sustainability challenges? Dr Georgiana Allison, Head of Sustainability at Lancaster University, joins Jan and Paul to discuss what the home of the Pentland Centre is doing to become more sustainable. They cover everything from Lancaster’s wind and solar farms, carbon impacts, changing attitudes and behaviours, how to make an impact in the classroom and where...

Jan and Paul are joined once more by Dr Jean-Baptiste Jouffray to discuss the fascinating world of sand. Without it, there would be no windows, no buildings, no electronics, no Transforming Tomorrow podcast! But what are the social and ecological impacts of sand extraction? And is our use of it sustainable?

You may have been taught the names of the world’s oceans as a child, but is there really only one? Dr Jean-Baptiste Jouffray, of the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions, speaks to Jan and Paul from his home in Northern California. As well as busting myths on how many oceans we have on Earth, he discusses the many challenges it faces; his work across science, academia and business; the concepts of...

It has been too long since we had an accountant on the show, so it’s time to rectify that! Jan and Paul welcome Dr Mahmoud Gad to talk with them about his important work with the Financial Reporting Council and the UK’s Independent Anti-Slavery Commissioner on companies’ modern slavery reporting. What effects do regulations have? How can we encourage companies to treat modern slavery reporting as...

In the aftermath of COP28 in the United Arab Emirates, Jan drags Paul back from his Christmas break for a special episode. They discuss the agreements made between nations, and the implications for business.

There are almost five million family businesses in the UK alone. They are all around us, and have been for thousands of years. But what do we mean when we talk about family businesses? Dr Allan Discua Cruz, Director of the Centre for Family Business at Lancaster University Management School, speaks to Jan and Paul about his personal experiences growing up in a family business, the issue of success...

Global climate change has local impacts. So, how important is it that local government and the general public have an input into sustainability policies and actions? Dr Jekaterina Rindt joins Jan and Paul to discuss the I-Connect project, which is looking at the future of Lancaster and Morecambe when the Eden Project arrives. How can the journey to Eden be made Eden-like? With a focus on the Net-Z...

Jan and Paul welcome Richard Spencer, Director of Sustainability at the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), to discuss how sustainability and accounting are interlinked, and why it is important for all accountants to embrace the connections. Discover more about Jan’s work with the ICAEW on educating the next generation of accountants on sustainability here: https://doc...

Jan and guest Dr Dasha Smirnow try to convince a sceptical Paul that sustainability benchmarks – rankings based on companies’ performances relating to certain criteria – are actually worthwhile. Find out whether benchmarks have any effect on companies’ actions, if poor performers care that they are not doing well, and whether the World Benchmarking Alliance really is an organisation set up just to...

Professor Adrian Friday joins Jan and Paul to talk about the many ways technology can influence sustainability efforts – both good and bad. We discover how he came to be a Professor of Computing and Sustainability – and just what that means – why having fewer people in offices does not always result in less energy being used, and why Adrian – to Jan’s shock – is not a big fan of the Sustainable De...

Jan and Paul are joined in the studio by Professor Katy Mason to discuss digital infrastructure and inequalities – and why naughty trees and inconsiderate weather affect planning large-scale projects in more isolated areas. Katy discusses two projects – Mobile Access North Yorkshire (MANY) and 5G Rural Integrated Testbed (5GRIT) – that brought digital technologies to rural areas in the North of En...

Jan and Paul welcome Distinguished Professor Linda Hendry to talk about an area that affects tens of millions of people worldwide - modern slavery. Linda's work looks at modern slavery in company supply chains. It takes in the impacts - good and bad - of legislation, how companies are responding to issues, and how businesses work together to improve practice and modern slavery detection. There is...