Coming fresh from the Chatham House Energy Transitions Conference, Ruth Townend is joined in the studio by IPCC lead author on demand, Professor Felix Creutzig, Dr Christina Demski, Deputy Director of the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformation, and Toby Park, Principle Advisor and Head of Energy, Environment and Sustainability at the Behavioural Insights Team.

Together they discuss why we need to talk about behaviour change, however uncomfortable the conversation, and explore hot topics such as green lash, heat pumps and the future of cities.

Presented by Ruth Townend. Sound by Matthew Docherty and Jamie Reed.

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Ruth Townend is joined in the studio by Gwynne Dyer, author of Climate Wars, and Chatham House’s own Dr Daniel Quiggin to talk about climate solutions from the magical to the mundane. For his forthcoming book Intervention Earth, Dyer has spoken with more than 50 thinkers, innovators and engineers about how we might cool the planet and avoid catastrophe.

Dyer, Quiggin and Townend explore the potential of unicorns, workhorses, and the odd dark horse technology, discuss the moral hazard of reliance on unproven technology, and consider the role of both technology and governance in meeting the Paris Agreement goals. 

You can find out more about Gwynne Dyer’s work on his website, and read Daniel Quiggin’s work on the role of the aviation industry in reaching net zero on the Chatham House website.

Presented by Ruth Townend. Sound by Alex Moyler.

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In the second of two COP28 takeover episodes, Research Fellow Ruth Townend gathers Chatham House teammates to discuss how the conference went, with a particular focus on the politics and geopolitics that shaped the conference outcome.

Ruth reflects on the global stocktake and loss and damage, while Antony Froggatt and Bernice Lee reflect on how different actors shaped the outcomes, as well as the changing shape of the conference over the years. Glada Lahn discusses the crucial text on fossil fuels, while Professor Tim Benton explores how food and agriculture were dealt with at the conference. The team finish by discussing their hopes for climate action in the year ahead.