Migration is top of mind and front of rhetoric in many countries, particularly as elections approach and geopolitical trends of increasing polarisation take hold. Ruth Townend is joined by Professor Ian Goldin, author of ‘The Shortest History of Migration’, and by Shelterbox CEO Sanj Srikanthan to discuss personal histories of migration, global trends, and the future of migration in the face of increasing pressure from climate change.  ..read more

With a UK a general election rapidly approaching, as announced by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in the pouring rain, it seems that the commitment of both main parties to tackling climate change is looking almost as bedraggled as the prime minister himself. Ruth Townend is joined by Rachel Brisley, Ipsos’s Head of Energy and Environment and Olivia O’Sullivan, the director of Chatham House’s UK in the World Programme to discuss what role the environment will play in elections, what the public really think, and whether the UK can still stake a claim to climate leadership ..read more

Ruth Townend is joined by Antony Froggatt, Deputy Director and Glada Lahn, Senior Research Fellow, both of the Chatham House Environment and Society Centre to discuss the challenges and opportunities of the energy transition in key under-attended-to sectors, including non-energy-uses of fossil fuels. The podcast builds upon a series of four Chatham House roundtables kindly supported by AIG. The series explored topics including chemicals, fertilizers and plastics, the impact of the energy transition on the financial sector, rising geopolitical and market concerns about critical materials, and t ..read more

Climate finance is vital to tackling climate change and decarbonising economies. Past pledges, however, have often failed to deliver, especially for developing countries. In the lead-up to COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, climate finance will be a major topic. Ruth Townend is joined by Jamie Ferguson, global director for Climate Business for International Finance Corporation, part of the World Bank Group, and Creon Butler, Director of the Global Economy and Finance program at Chatham House to discuss what action is needed, and from whom ..read more

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 Ma ..read more

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 Pari ..read more

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 ..read more

In the first of two COP28 takeover episodes, Research Fellow Ruth Townend gathers Chatham House Environment and Society Centre teammates to discuss how the conference might go, and what they will be looking out for when they travel to Dubai. This episode is released a week before the start of the conference. Professor Tim Benton discusses agriculture, food, land use and nature. Antony Froggatt talks about  energy transition and how major actors might shape action. Glada Lahn discusses climate finance and the likely wrangle around language on fossil fuels, while Ruth Townend discusses the ..read more

Antony Froggatt is joined in the studio by Ed Mountfield who is Vice President of the World Bank in charge of Operational Policy and Country Service. Finance remains one of the most important and contentious issues in the international climate change negotiations. As COP28 approaches, Antony discusses with Ed the World Bank's ongoing reform initiatives and delves into the degree to which climate change is given priority within these reforms. They explore the implications of this prioritization for other development objectives ..read more

Indigenous peoples make up 5 per cent of the world's population and are responsible for the careful stewardship of land home to much of our planet's biodiversity. International negotiations have recently begun to recognize the important role that indigenous communities have always played for safeguarding the climate and environment. In this episode, we explore how headway has been made on recognizing this role, where there is still work to be done, and importantly, how can this recognition lead to more meaningul engagement and sharing of resources to protect the rights and livelihoods of indig ..read more