GND Media

You may have noticed that all your favourite online spaces are rife with climate denial, skepticism and down right lies about how humans are effecting the globe. What is driving this change?Are these people working as individuals, in networks or backed by the oil and gas industry itself? This week we here from some who's trying to fight back against the tide of disinformation and climate denial. Ads and Andrew are joined by "Tom" a scientist who has been working anonymously to combat climate denial and disinformation. We discuss why "Tom" has had to keep his identity secret and the threats made to him and his colleagues, how the Oil and Gas industry is using influencers and backing politicians to muddy the waters around climate change and what tactics can be used to combat the worst offenders. Shout out Climate Brawl - a community of people debunking climate denial online. Support the show

Support the show https://www.patreon.com/gndmediaukLabour's flagship policy of its election campaign was GB Energy. A phrase that would have pricked the ears of anyone who cared about getting off fossil fuels and combating climate change. With the government keeping its cards close to its chest we put together a crack team of guests who can breakdown what GB Energy could be and how it should develop to really build a just transition. This week Andrew is joined by Melanie Brusseler from Common Wealth, Ellie Radcliffe from Carbon Co-op and Keir Milburn from Abundance to discuss how GB Energy is shaping up. We discuss the current problems with the UK energy system, the resources committed to GB energy and if its a good start,  how the governments response to industrial decline so far will inform their approach to the energy transition and how to keep people in the picture when it comes to energy. LinksGB Energy- Government statement on the organisation  https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/great-british-energyCommonwealth report on GB energyhttps://www.common-wealth.org/publications/the-greatest-generation-how-public-power-can-deliver-net-zero-faster-fairer-and-cheaper Shout outsSummer the catCarbon Co-op team @CarbonCoopGreen Organise @GreensOrganiseClimate and Community institute @cplusciJohanna Bozuwa @johannabozuwaSupport the show

This week is our part two in our mini series on Nuclear Energy. You can listen to part one of this series with M.V Ramana here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/gnd-media/id1501980017Ad's is joined by Mark Nelson (@Energy Bants) founder and managing director of Radiant Energy Group, a organisation that supports low carbon energy transition and keeping nuclear power plants open. They tackle the three big points of contention in the debate around atomic energy. Waste, the link between nuclear energy and nuclear weapons and the timelines it takes to get nuclear power plants completed. Ads and Mark also explore the current reach of nuclear technology around the world, How our perceptions of time play a role in feelings around nuclear waste and Marks thoughts on how political and spiritual thought around nuclear power has lead to its collapse in the last 20 years.  Links Radiant Energy Group: https://www.radiantenergygroup.com/"Into eternity" The documentary Ads was discussing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayLxB9fV2y4Shout outMark's shout out this week is Ursula Von de Leyen @vonderleyen  for stating that Europe needs more nuclear power. Support the show

For the next two episodes Ads is exploring one of the most debated and decisive topics when it comes to climate breakdown. Nuclear power. In recent years many have seen nuclear power as a keystone technology that can help produce bountiful clean energy to get humanity off fossil fuels. For others, when nuclear power is mentioned the images of Fukushima, Chernobyl and the threat of apocalyptic war are front and center and believe that this incredibly powerful energy source should remain a relic of the 20th century, it is too dangerous.  This week we are joined by M.V Ramana, author of "Nuclear is not the solution", and a member of the international nuclear risk assessment group. Ads discusses with Ramana the main arguments against pursuing nuclear power.  Who currently has access to it? Is it a viable technology on our climate timeline? Are Small Modular Reactors a real innovation? Are we aware of all the risks posed? What do we do with the waste? How are different countries approaching nuclear power and where do Nuclear weapons fit into this picture?in Part Two Ads is joined by Mark Nelson to discuss the positive vision for nuclear power. LinksDismantling Sellafield Article https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/dec/15/dismantling-sellafield-epic-task-shutting-down-decomissioned-nuclear-site Get a copy of Ramana's book: Nuclear is not the Solution, from Verso.https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3013-nuclear-is-not-the-solution?_pos=2&_psq=nu&_ss=e&_v=1.0World Nuclear Status Report https://www.worldnuclearreport.org/International Panel on Fissile Materials https://fissilematerials.org/International Nuclear Risk Assessment Grouphttps://www.inrag.org/Pugwash grouphttps://pugwashgroup.ca/Shout out  Ramana's co-authors at the  world nuclear report Mycle SchneiderAntony FroggattJulie HazemannSupport the show

Humans have always moved. long before we started planting grains in the fertile crescent, we moved around the globe in search of food, shelter and other humans for trade and collaboration. If you're moving now without dollar in your pocket, your demonized, shunned and your humanity questioned, just for trying to find a better life.  The climate crisis is going to have millions on the move. How do we bring solidarity and shared understanding to our fellow man? This week on the show Lucy and Ads are joined by Zoe Gardner. Zoe is a migration and asylum policy specialist, researcher, advocate, and writer.We discuss the current hell that migrants go through travelling to and through Europe, how Britain leaving the European Union ramped up the crossings by small boats, The potential danger of Robert Jenerick becoming the new Leader of the Tory party and what a humane asylum system would look like. linksGaia  Vince: Nomad Century: How to survive the climate upheaval https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/444202/nomad-century-by-vince-gaia/9780141997681Shout outsAVID: the Association for Visitors to Immigrant Detainees https://www.aviddetention.org.uk/Manchester Mustard tree https://mustardtree.org.uk/And a shout out to the french left for keeping the far right at bay in the recent elections! hold on! Support the show

The Climate Movements key focus is on the reduction of emissions and stopping humanity from going over the edge into full blown climate breakdown. But by focusing so heavily on the parts per million of CO2 in the atmosphere are we missing ways in which the natural world shapes our existence? Are we being negligent to the lives of other species that make up life on earth, and what affect does that have on humanity in turn?  Returning to the show this is Professor Chris Armstrong, to discuss his new book "Global Justice and the Biodiversity Crisis: Conservation in a World of Inequality". Chris is a Professor in Political Theory in the Department of Politics and International Relations at the University of Southampton @sotonpolitics.  We start by discussing the current state of international nature conservation and how colonial powers still shape biodiversity schemes, how by fixating on carbon we miss the richness that nature provides for humans and how some efforts for conservation embed the structural inequality enforced on the global south. We also discuss how by viewing the world through economics, we make it worse for all living things on the planet. LinksYou can read Chris's latest book here:Global Justice and the Biodiversity Crisis: Conservation in a World of Inequalityhttps://academic.oup.com/book/55992?Ads reccomends some books by James Rebanks when we discuss farming. You can find his catalogue here:https://www.penguin.co.uk/authors/120316/james-rebanksShout outsurvival international https://www.survivalinternational.org/campaigns/conservationSupport the show

The election is in full swing in the UK, with 3 days to go until the polls open. Are the parties rising to the occasion and providing a vision of a world not decimated by the climate crisis? We put in the hard hours to read the manifestos on offer so you don't have to!In this endeavor of analysis or political parities commitments we are joined by comrade of the pod Sam Knights! We discuss what is Labour's GB energy? Why haven't the Tory's mentioned water for the last six weeks, Are the Green's spending plans realistic? and Why are the Lib Dems more serious about climate than you expect? Support the show

This week we are starting at the End. This week on the show myself and lucy are joined by Tad Delay and Ben ware. Tad the author of Future of Denial:The Ideologies of Climate Change. He’s also an assistant Professor of Philosophy at Baltimore City Community College. Ben Ware author of On Extinction: Beginning Again At The End. Ben is the Co-director of the centre for Philosophy and art at Kings College London. I imagine if you’re listening or watching  this you’re probably in some state of shock when it comes to how humanity is responding to the collapse of the planet as we know it. Maybe you’re also finding yourself cringing or at odds with how some of those who are most seemingly committed to stopping climate breakdown go about their business. How are we to understand how humanity is reacting at this moment. Are we in denial about the end of the world? Are some of us enjoying the idea of the end? Is learning more and more facts about climate change actually helping? Or are we finding comfort in being correct about the rolling doom. We decided to bring ben and Tad together to discuss there work as they both draw on psychoanalysis to understand how we’re reacting at the end of the world. We discuss how our relation to time affects our ability to act on climate change, how denial can manifest itself in government action, the joy at the end of the world and how joe biden can be the “best president on climate” while opening oil and gas fields and support a genocide in Gaza. LinksTad has done a great series of podcast discussing his book with varies thinkers and contemporaries. Listen to it herehttps://open.spotify.com/show/64e8AfK6GmHyhztfTVY8sI?si=6c756546bfe94433You can pick up Ben's book On Extinction: Beginning at the end from Verso herehttps://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/2604-on-extinctionAnd you can get Tad's book Future to Denial: The Ideologies of Climate Change from Verso here.https://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/2857-future-of-denialShout outsKairos, a new venue in London exploring radical ideas for social and cultural change in response to the climate and nature crises.  @KairosClubhttps://www.kairos.london/All the staff at Stepping hill hospital in Stockport Richard Seymour @leninologyUnite UCU@UniteUCUSupport the show

Shout outsClass work project https://www.theclassworkproject.com/Trade mark belfastfeminize Politics NowReclaim Acorn tenants union Support the show

When our ethics clash with our work, who wins? and Who should win? Should we adhere to the orders of our mangers, even if we think its bad for the planet? This week on the show Ads and Andrew are joined by Dr. Gianluca Grimaldi, a climate researcher. Gianluca tells his story of being fired from his job as a climate scientist for refusing to fly for work-related travel. He discusses the reasons behind his decision, including the environmental impact of air travel and the need to challenge the culture of excessive flying in academia. Gianluca also talks about the lack of support from his colleagues and the impact on his career. LinksYou can support Gian's research here https://ko-fi.com/ggrimalda Guardian Article about Gian's story https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/oct/12/climate-researcher-who-refused-to-fly-back-from-research-trip-is-sackedCheck out Gian's research work herehttps://www.researchgate.net/profile/Gianluca-GrimaldaShout outsScientist Rebellion  @ScientistRebel1 Support the show

This week on the show we are joined by  Nicole Kleinheisterkamp-González  a PHD candidate at Syracuse University in New York state. Nicole's research is to bring the analysis of Labour and union organising into geography. Her field work has taken her to working in coal mines and car plants to understand the lives of workers in the US and Germany,  and how their political formations are changing with the pressures of climate change. Can workers from carbon heavy industries be the frontline in the just transition? Can the climate movement and workers come together to save the planet? LinksNicole's research paper  https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/03091325231154222Shout OutsSupport those affected by devastating wild fires in ChileFondo Nacional de Reconstrucciónhttps://donaciones.hacienda.gob.cl/english United Auto Workers Union in the USASupport the show

We've spoken to alot of degrowthers on this show, all coming from slightly different angles on the problems facing the planet. This week we are heading to Japan, to hear from one of the most prominent thinkers on Marx, to see how marxism and degrowth are really singing on the same hymn sheet.  This week on the show Ads and Andrew are joined by Philosopher Kohei Saito to discuss Degrowth Communism.  Kohei Saito is an associate professor of philosophy at the University of Tokyo, and the best selling author of "Capital in the Anthropocene" (which sold over 500,00 copies in Japan), Marx in the Anthropocene and his new book "Slow Down: The degrowth Communist Manifesto".Topics discussed The popularity of Kohei's books on Marx in JapanMarx on nature and the metabolic riftHistorical Materialism How Degrowth is an extension of Marx's own work. How to get move on from "Capitalist common sense" to abundance. The Japanese Left.How do we start putting these ideas into practice. LinksYou can get a copy of Kohei's latest book "Slow Down: The Degrowth Communist Manifesto" at the link below.https://www.waterstones.com/book/slow-down/kohei-saito/9781399612975shout out   Kohei's  kids for inspiring him to keep fighting for a better world. Support the show

50% of all new cars are SUV's, which may come as a surprise to you, considering the various noises around the world about moves to green transport. Is this just people with more disposable income wanting bigger cars, is it for the prestige? Or do car companies need you to buy bigger?This week on the show Lucy and Andrew are joined by political economist Dr Tom Haines-Doran, to discuss his recent paper " The financialisation of car consumption". They discuss how the car industry is slowly destroying itself through over production, why fiance and debt companies want you to own a bigger car,  why the majority of cars are pretty much the same and the fall out of the the botched Low Traffic Neighbourhood scheme in Levenshulme.  LinksRead Tom's paper "The financialisation of car consumption" Herehttps://eprints.whiterose.ac.uk/204987/Read " The political economy of car dependence: A systems of provision approach" Herehttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214629620300633Shout outStreets for People-  @s4plbWalk Ride GM-  @WalkRideGMSupport the show

When people think about environmentalists, the next words they probably say are, "Oh, like Extinction Rebellion?" The impact of XR on the the climate movement probably can't be over stated. From ubiquitous association to the effects on organising practice, Extinction Rebellion has been at the forefront of climate action for the last five years.  In the U.K many campaigns and activist are holding their breath, waiting for the Labour Party to take the reins of government, so the question is: what next for XR?This week Ads and Andrew are joined by XR and Just Stop Oil co-founder Roger Hallam.  They discuss how the efffects of climate change spurred Roger into working on building a climate movement, how XR was built, its successes and shortcomings, why revolution is the only answer now as we head past 1.5 degrees and why citzens assemblies can be the mechanism for the revolution. Check out Roger's "The Work We Need to Do" herehttps://drive.google.com/file/d/13UFxnwIEb4afjEzRdZQ72WUtLvvPB0PM/view?ref=rogerhallam.comRoger's Websitehttps://rogerhallam.com/Shout outYou can check out Rogers humanity project and get involved here. https://rogerhallam.com/humanity/Support the show

Support the show on Patreon https://www.patreon.com/gndmediaukTwitter: @gndmediaukInstagram: gndmediauk This week on the show we are joined by the Deputy Leader of the Green Party of England and Wales, Zack Polanski. We discuss how Zack ended up in the Green Party, what makes the party different from Labour, what would a Green Party in Government mean for British industry and how Zack sees personal choices versus systemic change.Shout Out United voices of the worldhttps://www.uvwunion.org.uk/en/ Support the show

If there is any one word that is synonymous with tackling climate change it is “electrification”. Yes, getting off fossil fuels and taking the majority of CO2 out of our economy are the goals of many working on the climate, but if there was one silver bullet for the climate movement its generating more clean electricity.  Renewable forms of energy have sharply decreased in price over the last twenty years, and battery storage solutions are coming on in leaps and bounds, but most of the world is still tied to oil and gas for their electricity use. So our question today is: Why aren't we moving faster on the green energy transition?  luckily we've found a guy who might know. Our guest today is Brett Christophers, Brett is a political economist and economic geographer, and has just published his new book “The Price is Wrong “Why capitalism won’t save the Planet “  on Verso books.  Andrew and Lucy discuss with Brett why the energy sector is so complex, how it favors fossil fuel based energy production , why isn't investment pouring into green energy and how china and India's energy needs should be a focus for the years to come. LinksPick up a copy of Brett's book herehttps://www.versobooks.com/en-gb/products/3069-the-price-is-wrongShout outhttps://heatmap.news/Support the show

It's our yearly stock take, where are we now in the fight to save the planet, and what do we need to do, to make progress faster?  Friend of the show Professor Kevin Anderson joins us to cut through the crap and get the heart of the matter.  Kevin is the chair of  energy and climate change at the School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering (MACE) at the University of Manchester and works at the Tyndall center for climate change research. Ad's and Andrew discuss how much more carbon has been emitted since last year,  Why there is political cowardice at the top of the UK's politics, why inequality and climate change are intrinsically linked and how the framing around "Net Zero" has done more damage than good.   This episode was recorded before the Labour Party dropped their £28bn a year pledge on green investment. Thanks lads. Shout outRena Jones- Notts and Derbyshire councils and all the climate officers at local authorities fighting hard for change with no resources. Support the show

You would be very hard pressed to say 2023 was not an awful year for natural disasters and climate related tragedy. Wildfires in Canada and the US, extreme flooding in Bulgaria and Bangladesh, and record breaking heatwaves in Northern Africa and the Mediterranean. When the science is pointing in this direction, of destruction and chaos and those in power aren't listening, what do you do? This week we are joined by Peter Kalmus, Climate scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California*. Peter is also a member of Science Rebellion and co-founder of Undeniable Network.  We discuss how NASA plays it part in monitoring the changes in the earths climate, how he speaks to his family about climate change,  what is the science behind reversing climate change and what political action needs to take place to do that. Then we discuss the importance of the next US election, and how it affects the global effort get off fossil fuels. *Peter Kalmus speaks on behalf of himself and not NASA. Linksundeniable networkCheck out Peter's book "Live Well and Spark the Climate Revolution" https://peterkalmus.net/books/Shout Out Peter's brothers and sisters in Scientist Rebellion Support the show

To say the modern world is dependent on materials we dig out of the ground is an understatement. From the lithium in your phone battery to the cup you're drinking your tea in, mining and mineral extraction play a vital part of how survive on earth. With the race to get off fossil fuels, and electrify our entire transport network kicking off, dependency on rare earth minerals like lithium  is going to increase, and the conditions of the people mining it brought ever to our attention. This week on the show Lucy and Andrew are  joined by  Thea Riofrancos, Professor at Providence College in the US and the author of "Resource Radicals" and "A Planet to Win".  They discuss how Lithium is a key resource when it comes to the transition away from fossil fuels, how mineral exploitation in South America has shaped the politics of the region and how Unions are now driving the just transition in the Americas.    LinksCheck out Thea's website herehttps://www.theariofrancos.com/The Lithium Problem (interview by Alyssa Battistoni). Dissent, 2023.https://www.dissentmagazine.org/article/the-lithium-problemElectric vehicles alone won’t take us to a decarbonized future. The Hill, 2023https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/3861795-electric-vehicles-alone-wont-take-us-to-a-decarbonized-future/Chile: White Gold Rush. Chatham House’s The World Today, 2022 https://www.chathamhouse.org/publications/the-world-today/2022-06/chile-white-gold-rushShifting Mining from the Global South Misses the Point of Climate Justice. Foreign Policy, 2022 https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/02/07/renewable-energy-transition-critical-minerals-mining-onshoring-lithium-evs-climate-justice/?tpcc=recirc_latest062921ShoutoutFriend of the show Asad Rahman of War on Want, for his stirring speech at COP 28 on Palestine. Support the show

2023 is over and the battle for 2024 is about to begin. It's the end of the year so gather round the wireless to hear Ads, Alex, Lucy and Andrew discuss where we are at a end of 2023 and guess which of us had some very strong one nation Tory opinions as a child.Have a fantastic Christmas and see you in 2024. Support the show