17 environmental podcasts you need to hear
Greenhouse
As a certified B Corp specialising in sustainable communications, the Greenhouse team live and breathe within the environmental space every day. Accumulatively, we have listened to and read thousands of pieces of media online, including a huge variety of environmental podcasts. With this in mind, we have compiled our top 17 environmental podcasts, as tried and tested by our knowledgeable team in the UK.
1. Outrage and Optimism
Hosted by Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac and Paul Dickinson, this world-leading climate podcast features influential guests from government, business, activism, religion, and culture. The podcast unpicks the careful balance of outrage and optimism needed in order to tackle the climate crisis. We recommend listening to episodes featuring British broadcaster, David Attenborough, youth leader, Greta Thunberg and a live session with screenwriter Richard Curtis for London Climate Action Week.
2. Mothers of Invention
Mothers of Invention is an inspiring podcast on feminist climate change solutions from (mostly) women around the world. Each episode features the ‘Mothers of Invention’; women driving powerful solutions to climate change, from the grassroots to the courtroom, to the front lines to the boardroom. It’s fantastic to hear people’s stories from all over the world, with an underlying sense of hope and humour alongside it.
3. So Hot Right Now
Join environmental journalist Lucy Siegle and wildlife filmmaker Tom Mustill as they learn how to communicate better, from those who do it best. From former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, singer and activist Ellie Goulding, UN climate negotiator Christiana Figueres and Native American Veteran and Organizer Krystal Two-Bulls, and other master communicators all share their hard-earned insights. This podcast is informal, personal and passionate, and will provide you with amazing tools to communicate about the climate crisis, whether you’re speaking to your parents, or addressing the United Nations.
4. Food Fight – EIT Food
Matt Eastland and Lukxmi Balathasan present the Food Fight, an environmental podcast series from EIT Food examining the biggest challenges facing the food system. They ask some difficult questions including “Can we trust the food we eat?” and “Can we really feed 10 billion people by 2050?” and explore the innovations and entrepreneurs looking to solve them.
5. Force of Nature
In this 9-part series, activist and Founder Clover Hogan sits down with the people who are leading climate change progress: from the woman who started a global movement from her backyard; to the lawyer responsible for the world’s most historic climate agreement; and a three-time Nobel Peace Prize nominee. This podcast will make you feel empowered beyond a reusable coffee cup.
6. Radio 4’s Costing the Earth and Green Originals .
Costing the Earth is an insightful series about how we’re moving forward to a greener and cleaner planet. It explores ideas from a zero-carbon UK, to how man-made noise affects wildlife. Green Originals, similarly, focuses on the work of pioneering scientists and finds out how they have influenced behaviour change and our perceptions of the environment.
7. Yikes
Hosted by Mikaela Loach and Josephine Becker, Yikes is a podcast that facilitates difficult conversations surrounding climate change, human rights and diversity. This podcast is filled with amazing youthful energy, with topics including ecofascism, anti-racism and white-environmentalism.
8. How to Save the Planet
This environmental podcast series by Friends of the Earth brings you inspiring stories from the frontlines of the climate movement. They have frank conversations surrounding climate issues and solutions at play, whilst exploring how anyone can have an impact. A variety green issues are unpicked including Climate Strikes, the successful anti-fracking movement in the UK and how to cope with eco-anxiety.
9. Sustainable(ish)
Sustainable(ish) is a podcast for those with good intentions who want to learn about the ways their actions really affect the planet. Hosted by Jen Gale, this podcast brings on amazing people to talk about the changes they’re making and the businesses and campaigns they’re running. In recent episodes, Jen offers advice on sustainable (ish) parenting, staying away from imported flowers, and fighting food waste. Jen is wonderful at encouraging small steps of progress to make a change, no matter how big or small.
10. How to Survive the End of the World
Hosted by Autumn Brown and Adrienne Maree Brown, this environmental podcast focuses on the question of survival and how to make it out the other side of pressing social problems. Together, they explore what we need to do as a community and what you can do to help. This includes protecting the Earth and working together to survive climate change.
11. Counting the Earth – UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology
Science journalist Sue Nelson and Alice Hope from the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology demystify ecological concepts and explore the numbers behind nature in Counting the Earth. Each episode kicks off with a number and investigates what it really means, covering a range of climate and biodiversity topics, from net zero to river health.
12. The Wild
Hosted by Andy McDonald and Jonathan Carson, The Wild brings you stories from the great outdoors. It details grand adventures, touches on science and conservation and welcomes guest sportspeople, creatives and leaders who find nature inspiring. It is a podcast about celebrating the world we live in and finding a connection with it.
13. Ecosia
Many know Ecosia as the social business who plant trees as we search the internet, but now they have also curated a great environmental podcast. This honest podcast provides updates on Ecosia’s reforestation projects and conversations with environmental leaders, along with facts, climate stories and updates on other important forest projects around the globe.
14. Knepp Wildland Podcast
Penny Green hosts this podcast about her experiences as a Knepp ecologist and details some of her encounters with wildlife as a part of the Knepp Wildland project. In the most recent episode, Penny speaks about a project being carried out at Knepp Wildland, involving the orange-legged furrow bee Halictus rubicundus. An interesting listen for anyone with a love of wildlife!
15. Fully Charged
Fully Charged is the world’s number one clean energy and vehicle channel hosted by writer, broadcaster and actor, Robert Llewellyn. This podcast often focuses on electric vehicles (EVs) and their benefits for you and the environment, but also talk about energy, food and lifestyle and future technology.
16. From What If to What Next
Hosted by writer Rob Hopkins, this is a subscriber-based podcast where listeners can ask the ‘what if’ questions. Rob then explores these questions with guest speakers to move the ‘what if’ to a ‘what next’. In the first episode, Rob explores the questions ‘What if birdsong drowned out the traffic?’ along with guest speakers Sam Lee and Mya-Rose Craig, also known as ‘Birdgirl’. The podcast is as entertaining as it is informative!
17. Good Ancestor
Good ancestor is an interview series which seeks to explore the idea of a ‘good ancestor’. The podcast is hosted by Layla F. Saad, an anti-racism educator, respected speaker, and New York Times bestselling author of Me and White Supremacy. Layla speaks out on topics like sustainable fashion and race and resilience and has been joined by some incredible influencers, like Aja Barber and Leah Vernon.
We also recommend: 10 must-read climate books for 2020
If you are addressing social and climate issues and want to scale your impact, please do get in touch with the Greenhouse team on 0117 214 1250 or email info@greenhousepr.co.uk.
