Show Notes
Introducing Planet Hope - a new podcast from The Times in partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative. Follow the podcast now to never miss an episode.
Each day we watch as rising temperatures, extreme weather and extinctions are accepted as the new normal. The list of bleak headlines feels endless.
It’s no wonder hope is wavering. But all is not lost.
In this podcast series, Adam Vaughan, Environment Editor for The Times, asks why our planet is changing so rapidly and meets leading experts from around the world who are trying to change the tide.
Through its Perpetual Planet Initiative, Rolex supports individuals and organisations who go above and beyond to safeguard and preserve our planet for the next generation.
The Initiative is rapidly expanding and now has a portfolio of more than 20 partners.
You can listen to new episodes of Planet Hope every Thursday wherever you get your podcasts.
This podcast is advertiser funded. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
More from Planet Hope
Bertie Gregory has spent much of his life bringing people closer to the natural world. From a childhood passion for photographing animals to filming some of the planet’s most extraordinary creatures, he has built a career telling stories from nature’s frontline. In this special episode, recorded to mark World Environment Day, the BAFTA and Emmy-winning filmmaker joins Tom Whipple to talk about his life behind the camera and what it has taught him about our changing planet – and why the stories we tell about it matter more than ever.
Andreia Pawel is co-founder of the Orange River-Karoo Conservation Area, one of the world’s most ambitious rewilding projects. Spanning more than a million hectares in Namibia, and with the support of the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, it aims to restore lost ecosystems, reintroduce species and work with local Nama communities to build a new model for conservation. She tells Adam Vaughan how, with bold ambitions, we can breathe new life into the natural world.
Explorer and Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative partner Steve Boyes has spent decades navigating Africa’s wild rivers. He tells Adam Vaughan how illness and resilience has reshaped his outlook and why protecting rivers, landscapes and communities has become his life’s mission.
In Lausanne, Switzerland, neuroscientist and Rolex Awards Laureate Grégoire Courtine and neurosurgeon Jocelyne Bloch have pioneered a “digital bridge” that translates brain signals into spinal stimulation, giving people with paralysis new ways to regain movement. They tell Tom Whipple about the science behind the technology, the patients leading the way and their hopes for the future of movement recovery after paralysis.
Over a billion people live with preventable vision loss. Eye surgeon and Rolex Awards Laureate Andrew Bastawrous has created a smartphone app that is transforming eyecare, facilitating sight restoration for millions and changing lives. He tells Tom Whipple, how glasses – a 700-year-old invention – have transformed his own life, and why he’s determined no one should lose their sight for lack of access.