EcoDoc Podcast

The healthcare sector is a major contributor of greenhouse gases and plastic waste. GASP (the Greener Anaesthesia and Sustainability Project) is a collaboration between anaesthetists and a range of NHS workers, who want to reduce the environmental impact of surgery and anaesthesia. Working on environmental impact in the health care sector is complex, because of the wide range of different disciplines in the healthcare ecosystem as well as the many financial, political and ethical issues . Dr Groome describes how GASP came into existence as well as some of the many challenges and sucesses of this inspirational group of professionals.

Andy Byfield has a long-standing interest in botany, including the flowering plants traditionally associated with arable farming, some of which have become very scarce due to changes in agricultural practices. He has been involved in botanical research and conservation for many years and helped found the charity Plant Life. Recent years have seen increasing interest in our native flora and measures such as the restoration of  wild flower meadows and changes in the management of roadside verges to allow species to flower and shed seed.Sound engineer: Rob Wynne-Griffiths.

Regenerative Agriculture aims to put soil health and sustainability at the heart of farming practices. John Cherry has spent his career farming in Hertfordshire. He became aware of the importance of looking after soil when he noticed farm production was plateauing despite increasing inputs. After a trip to the USA , John was inspired to learn more about regenerative agriculture and he and his family now run the increasingly popular Groundswell conference for farmers and growers who have come to similar conclusions regarding the need to move to more sustainable farming practices.Sound engineer: Rob Wynne-Griffiths.

Dr Alan Kellas is a psychiatrist with an interest in environmental issues and sutainability. He discusses the current and future impacts of global warming on our mental health and how psychiatry can be made greener with GP Dr Will LIddell.Sound Engineer: Rob Wynne-Griffiths.

Farming is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Farm animals play a big role in these emissions. At the same time we increasingly recognise the importance of animals to soil health and therefore the long term sustainability of food production. Chris Reynolds and his team at Reading University are researching how we can  reduce the environmental impact of meat and dairy production by changing the ways we manage our animals. Chris started his career in the USA and brings a fascinating perspective to this crucial field.

Will Liddell talks to Helen Browning OBE, CEO of the Soil Association, about the origins of the organic movement, her career in farming and campaigning and the role of the Soil Association. Support for the principles of the organic movement has gathered a lot of momentum with increased concern about climate change, the carbon footprint of food production and the challenges we face to persuade people to move from a diet of ultra-proccessed food to one that is healthier and more sustainable.

Will Liddell in conversation with Hendrikus van Hensbergen, the founder of a remarkable charity, Action for Conservation, which has developed a programme for inspiring young environmentalists and equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need to help us save the planet.

Will Liddell talks to Jemma Batten about how a group of farmers on the Marlborough Downs started working together on wildlife conservation at landscape scale.  The collaboration has been a great success and includes restoration of a network of dew ponds, connecting communities with pollinator friendly  Bee Roadzz, restoring chalk grassland habitats and the construction of tree sparrow villages. The project has inspired many 'farm clusters' to forge similar partnerships to restore habitats at scale.Sound engineering by Jacob Jennings.

 GP Will Liddell talks to Dr Sue Stuart Smith, consulant psychiatrist and psychotherapist,  about her best-selling book exploring the links between gardening and our mental and physical health.  There is a long history of gardens as places of healing and spiritual nourishment, while modern research in neuroscience is shedding more light on  how working with soil and caring for plants helps to achieve beneficial changes in our brains. Gardening on prescription please Mr Hancock!Sound engineering by Jacob Jennings.

Will Liddell discusses the science behind plant breeding with Dr Richard Summers . We discuss the origins of wheat as a hybrid of wild grasses, its subsequent domestication by early farmers and the techniques of modern wheat breeding which have shaped modern what varieties. This includes some of the controversies regarding genetic modification (GM) and gene editing and the techniques wghich could transform esistance to pests and diseases.. Sound engineering by Rob Wynne-Griffiths.