Show Notes
What do KPop Demon Hunters and Bluey have to do with stories of progress? Well, you’ll hear the answer in this ‘Ask Us Anything’ episode. From controversial opinions on the climate crisis, to our very first News Fix bulletin, Gus and Amy dive into a range of topics and answer some big, burning questions from subscribers. Other topics discussed: Why solar energy is such big news, the role of solutions journalism in Gaza, good humans everywhere, individual action versus systemic change, the question of scale and the launch of our audio documentary about the malaria vaccine, A Shot At History. What did you think of our News Fix? If you want to send us a question, feedback or nominate a potential guest for the podcast, go to our website or email [email protected] This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from Fix The News. Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voice.
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How do you get the world to pay attention to a problem it thinks it's already solved? Around a billion children are exposed to dangerous levels of lead. It can be hiding in cookware, spices and cosmetics, or released through industries like battery recycling. For a child, exposure can mean losing up to six IQ points - irreversible damage that, multiplied across hundreds of millions of children, becomes an enormous drain on human potential. And yet, unlike so many global challenges, we already know how to prevent it. Meet Drew McCartor, President of Pure Earth. For the past 17 years, Drew and his colleagues have been sounding the alarm about lead poisoning: gathering evidence, understanding the scale of the problem and building the playbook for how to solve it. Now, after decades of “yelling into the void”, the world is finally paying attention - and Drew believes we have an opportunity to eliminate lead poisoning altogether. In this episode: Why around a billion children are exposed to dangerous levels of lead The surprising places lead is still hiding - from cookware to spices What losing four to six IQ points means for a child - and an entire country How a Craigslist ad led Drew from unpaid intern to President of Pure Earth Why Pure Earth spent years wondering if they were crazy The young boy in Bangladesh who brought the human cost of lead poisoning home for Drew What changed when the world finally started paying attention Why Drew believes we can eliminate lead poisoning altogether About the title: A Useful Truth comes from a 1786 letter by Benjamin Franklin about lead poisoning: “You will observe with concern how long a useful truth may be known and exist before it's generally received and practiced upon.” Almost 250 years later, it feels remarkably apt.
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