S5 E2: Fair Seas – Climate Change and the Ocean

In this episode, Daithí is joined by Jack O’Donovan Trá: trained marine biologist and Communications Officer for Fair Seas, for a fascinating conversation on the role of our oceans in tackling the climate and biodiversity crises. A natural storyteller, Jack breaks down complex ocean science into relatable insights, from how kelp forests cushion our coasts during storms, to the invaluable ability of the ocean to lock away carbon through life itself. Growing up on Red Strand, outside Clonakilty, Jack’s personal connection to the sea has shaped his life’s mission. He explains how the Fair Seas Coalition is advocating for ambitious, science-based Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) in Irish waters - areas that could rival the Great Barrier Reef in ecological importance and scale. He highlights how Ireland’s current policies lag far behind its commitments, and why local involvement is crucial to real, lasting change. Thanks very much to Sorcha O'Carolan Murphy for support with research, design and promotion. 1. Fair Seas reports: https://fairseas.ie/resources/#all_0-139-reports 2. Fair Seas documentaries: https://fairseas.ie/youtube-videos/ 3. Marine Protected Areas Bill: https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/general-scheme-of-marine protected-areas-bill-2022.pdf 4. Marine Institute Deep Sea rover: https://www.searover.ie/about.php 5. Kerry Tides of Time documentary: https://www.rte.ie/player/series/kerry-tides-of-time/10000923-00-0000?epguid=IP10000924-01-0001 6. EU Natura 2000 Protected Areas Network: https://www.eea.europa.eu/themes/biodiversity/natura-2000/the-natura-2000-protected-areas-network 7. David Attenborough Ocean Film: https://www.oceanfilm.net/

We are delighted to launch the new series by bringing you this conversation with the iconic Kate Raworth! Kate is the renowned creator of Doughnut Economics, a new paradigm of economics which aims to achieve human wellbeing for all within the planet's ecological limits. Kate gives Daithí an overview of how she became disillusioned with mainstream economics as a student, and how taking a step back from academia and getting some hands-on experience in the Global South sowed the seeds for her to literally redraw the model of economics. The model for a new regenerative and distributive economy draws on The UN Sustainable Development Goals and the Planetery Boundaries from The Stockholm Resilience Centre, and Kate describes how the alternatives to GDP for monitoring the prosperity of an economy will vary from one context to another. This is being proven by cities, companies and communities around the world who are finding ways to thrive in balance with support from the Doughnut Economics Action Lab. The conversation is energetic and informative, and Kate is a source of endless wisdom and humility - she is equally inspired by the movement of Doughnut Economics as they were inspired by her! 1. Kate's Website: https://www.kateraworth.com/about/ 2. Doughnut Economics Action Lab: https://doughnuteconomics.org/about-doughnut-economics 3. Kate's Ted Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rhcrbcg8HBw&pp=ygUQa2F0ZSByYXdvcnRoIHRlZA%3D%3D 4. Universal Values wheel by Schwartz: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_basic_human_values 5. UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/ 6. Stockholm Resilience Centre's Planetary Boundaries Study (Rockstrom et al.): https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html 7. Greta Thunberg - 'The Climate Book': https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Climate_Book 8. The Irish Doughnut Economics Network: https://wiki.irishdenetwork.org/Home

For the final episode of the series, Daithí talks to author and rewilder, Eoghan Daltun. They chat about the process Eoghan set in motion in the mid 2000’s to restore healthy native ecosystems on his 73-acre farm on the Beara Peninsula, Cork. Hear about the recovery of the ecosystems, the diversity of native species that he has seen returning to the forest, as well as the harm caused to the woodland regeneration process by alien invasive species, such as Sika deer. A small farmer himself, Eoghan strongly advocates that landowners should be rewarded for protecting ecosystems due to the benefits they provide for society, such as flood prevention and resilience to wildfires. Eoghan also has some very interesting views on the classification of what constitutes a native species and makes a compelling case for the introduction of various species, including Beavers.                                                                           After the interview, musician Brían MacGloinn of Ye Vagabonds closes the episode with his beautiful song 'Cuckoo'. - Links: 1. Eoghan's Instagram: @irishrainforest                              2. Eoghan's 2024 Book - 'The Magic of an Irish Rainforest: A Visual Journey': https://www.kennys.ie/shop/signed-by-the-author-new/the-magic-of-an-irish-rainforest-a-visual-journey-eoghan-daltun-9781399725606                                            3. Eoghan's First book - 'An Irish Atlantic Rainforest': https://www.kennys.ie/shop/an-irish-atlantic-rainforest-eoghan-daltun-9781399705295                                            4. Ecosystem Services: https://www.nature.scot/scotlands-biodiversity/scottish-biodiversity-strategy-and-cop15/ecosystem-approach/ecosystem-services-natures-benefits                                                                                       5. Nature Restoration Law: https://environment.ec.europa.eu/news/nature-restoration-law-enters-force-2024-08-15_en                     6. E. O. Wilson: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edward-O-Wilson                                                                                         7. George Monbiot: https://www.monbiot.com/                 8. IUCN on Rewilding: https://iucn.org/resources/issues-brief/benefits-and-risks-rewilding                                        9. London Natural History Museum Biodiversity Intactness Index: https://tnfd.global/tools-platforms/local-biodiversity-intactness-index/              10. Brían MacGloinn Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grianmacbloinn/

We are delighted to bring you a conversation on the environmental impacts of technology with web designer and digital consultant Gerry McGovern. Daithí and Gerry have a wide-ranging talk about topics such as e-waste and the challenges of recycling most phones and laptops; how to lengthen the life of your devices; the embedded water and material impacts of devices and the huge demand for mining of metals that they create; the amount of unnecessary data that is created every year and the energy required to store it; how you can employ simple strategies to use less data; how to make your website use less energy; the large energy requirements of Artificial Intelligence; how Gerry is heartened by the Right to Repair movement and the potential of community activism to drive change. Music in this episode comes from Samuel Arnold Keane. Links: 1. Gerry McGovern - https://gerrymcgovern.com/world-wide-waste/                 2. Gerry's Podcast 'World Wide Waste' - https://www.thisishcd.com/podcast-category/world-wide-waste-with-gerry-mcgovern                                          3. e-waste toxicity in landfill - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352186421006970#:~:text=1%20(Chen%20et%20al.%2C,70%25%20in%20terms%20of%20toxicity.                               4. Statistics on lifecycle carbon emissions of a phone - https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/story/your-phone-really-smart#:~:text=Yet%2C%20around%2080%20per%20cent,the%20lifespan%20of%20devices%20shrinks   5. Rare earth metals present in phones - https://www.acs.org/education/chemmatters/past-issues/archive-2014-2015/smartphones.html#:~:text=Scandium%20and%20yttrium%20are%20included,the%2017%20rare%20earth%20metals.                                                                                        6. Recycling Rate of e-waste - https://unitar.org/about/news-stories/press/global-e-waste-monitor-2024-electronic-waste-rising-five-times-faster-documented-e-waste-recycling                                   7. Fairphone - https://www.fairphone.com/nl                    8. Energy demand of any website - https://www.websitecarbon.com/                                               9. Data centre energy use in Ireland 2023 - https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/ep/p-dcmec/datacentresmeteredelectricityconsumption2023/keyfindings/#:~:text=The%20percentage%20of%20total%20metered%20electricity%20consumption%20accounted%20for%20by,10%25%20(See%20Infographic).                                                      10. Google's plans to build data centre in Uruguay - https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/article/2024/aug/01/uruguay-anger-environmental-cost-google-datacentre-carbon-emissions-toxic-waste-water                                               11. Lifecycle emissions comparison of EV vs Internal Combustion Engine car - https://www.visualcapitalist.com/life-cycle-emissions-evs-vs-combustion-engine-vehicles/                                  12. Projection for growth in material extraction demand to 2050 https://knowledge4policy.ec.europa.eu/foresight/topic/aggravating-resource-scarcity/raw-materials-non-renewable-resources_en                           13. 10x more energy required for AI search compared to traditional search engines - https://iea.blob.core.windows.net/assets/6b2fd954-2017-408e-bf08-952fdd62118a/Electricity2024-Analysisandforecastto2026.pdf                                          14. Electricity consumption from data centres, AI and the cryptocurrency sector could double by 2026 - https://www.iea.org/reports/electricity-2024/executive-summary                                                                                   15. Right to Repair Directive - https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20240419IPR20590/right-to-repair-making-repair-easier-and-more-appealing-to-consumers 16. Samuel Arnold Keane - https://www.instagram.com/samyelyel/

Daithí is joined by Louise O'Mahony, head of Sustainable Banking at Banking and Payments Federation Ireland (BPFI). Louise gives fascinating insights into all things sustainable finance, including the huge increase in green lending in recent years and why private finance is so essential to meeting our emissions targets; an overview of environmental regulations pertaining to the finance sector and why the European Central bank is so concerned about Climate Change, [food harvest and flooding]; and some policies and tools that would help banks to be more ambitious with their sustainability-linked lending. After the interview, Daithí gives five top tips for greening your own finances. Music in this episode is the stunning Mountain Song, by Anna Mieke. Links 1. Banking and Payments Federation Ireland - https://bpfi.ie                                               2. European Commission on Sustainable Finance - https://finance.ec.europa.eu/sustainable-finance/overview-sustainable-finance_en              3. SEAI Grants - https://www.seai.ie/grants/home-energy-grants/                                              4. ECB has climate risks as second-highest priority: https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/banking/priorities/html/ssm.supervisory_priorities202312~a15d5d36ab.en.html                                         5. EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive: https://finance.ec.europa.eu/capital-markets-union-and-financial-markets/company-reporting-and-auditing/company-reporting/corporate-sustainability-reporting_en                                         6. ECB Climate and Environment Risk Guide: https://www.bankingsupervision.europa.eu/press/pr/date/2020/html/ssm.pr201127~5642b6e68d.en.html       7. Montreal agreement - Taskforce on nature–related financial disclosures: https://tnfd.global/              8. Christine Lagarde ECB president - 70% of banks’ loan portfolios is to high-emitting sectors: https://greencentralbanking.com/2024/01/29/eurozone-banks-face-serious-transition-risks-ecb/               9. Bank Of England research on connection between energy performance and reduced risk of mortgage default: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/-/media/boe/files/working-paper/2023/the-greening-of-lending-mortgage-pricing-of-energy-transition-risk.pdf

In this episode, Daithí talks Sustainable Transport with Brian Caulfield, Professor of Transport in the Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, in Trinity College Dublin. Transport accounts for approximately one fifth of Ireland's Greenhouse Gas Emissions, with the majority coming from road transport. Brian talks about the ambitious target to have 1 million electric vehicles on Irish roads by 2030. He also touches on how urban design and planning can have a huge impact on transport modes, through concepts like the 15-minute city. The important point that all groups don't have equal access to sustainable transport also comes up, through issues like the rural/urban divide in access to public transport, as well as the barriers preventing women and girls from adopting cycling. As always, the other improvements to our lives that improved transport policy and infrastructure could bring about are discussed, from better air quality to more secure employment!   Links Brian’s Twitter: https://x.com/brian_caulfield              Brian’s research profile: https://www.tcd.ie/research/profiles/?profile=caulfib                                Economic cost of congestion in Dublin: https://www.gov.ie/en/publication/3fef5-the-economic-cost-of-congestion-in-the-greater-dublin-area-2022-2040/                                1 million EV’s by 2030 target: https://www.gov.ie/en/press-release/a6a2f-government-approves-electric-vehicle-policy-pathway-report/       WHO guidelines on air quality breached in Ireland: https://www.epa.ie/news-releases/news-releases-2023/irelands-ambition-to-move-towards-the-health-based-who-air-quality-guidelines-will-be-challenging-but-will-have-a-significantly-positive-impact-on-health.php           Electric Vehicle pilot on Inis Mór 2011: https://www.irishtimes.com/news/eight-families-go-electric-in-aran-islands-pilot-project-1.1277786

We are very excited to bring you our first episode featuring the astounding work of our Climate Ambassadors! Daithí talks to Emily Kennedy and Hilda O'Grady about the work they carried out during their time on the Climate Ambassador programme in 2023.            Emily won an outstanding achievement award in 2023 for her work-focused initiatives, which included speaking at the Mary Robinson Climate Conference, connecting her colleagues to nature through facilitating work visits to beehives, and organising swap shops and repair workshops at her workplace in Price Waterhouse Cooper. Emily gives some very credible and actionable steps for achieving gender equality in work.           Hilda also won an outstanding achievement award for her community-focused work, consisting of turbo-charging her Tidy Towns group in Kinvara to focus predominantly on Climate and Biodiversity, planting over 9,000 trees with the Kinvara-Ballinderreen Tree Gang, and working on various other local issues such as facilitating zero waste options at Farmers Market. Hilda provides wise and practical advice for sustaining successful working relationships in a community setting.   Emily’s links: Re-Jingled | Dublin | Facebook https://longgardenbees.ie/ Climate Action Venn Diagrams — Ayana Elizabeth Johnson The sustainable Life School   Hilda’s links: https://kinvara.ie/kinvara-tidy-towns/ ÉireComposites (eirecomposites.com) http://kbtreegang.com/ Miyawaki method shows dense Irish forest can grow rapidly (rte.ie)

The marvelous Easkey Britton joins Daithí for this episode. A pioneer of women’s big wave surfing, a Marine Social Scientist and author. We have a brilliant and inspiring conversation about Easkey’s relationship with Water, and her academic work on the benefits to human health from spending time around bodies of water. Easkey offers a very compelling alternative to how we can appreciate and take better care of water, given the new challenges of ocean warming and changes to seasonal rainfall as a result of Climate Change. Easkey also discusses her experience with the 'Deep Adaptation framework, a method for fostering mutual support and collaboration in the process of anticipating and experiencing societal disruption and even collapse. The spoken word performance in this episode is provided by The Accidental Rapper. -- https://easkeybritton.com/           www.Deepadaptation.info                https://www.instagram.com/easkeysurf/                        'Into the sea' Film about Easkey surfing in Iran: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5950068/                 https://www.instagram.com/theaccidentalrapper/

Dr. Tadhg MacIntyre, Professor of Environmental Psychology at Maynooth University, joins us in this episode. He talks to Daithí about the science behind how people relate to their environments, the relationship between human health and environmental health, and the fascinating ways in which this is influencing the design of our cities. It also has huge implications for achieving behaviour change for sustainability - the evidence shows that the more we are connected to an environment, the more we take action to protect it! They also touch on the fascinating area of "virtual nature", and how this may be deployed to support local environmental initiatives in the future. Episode links: 'Go Green Routes' Research Project: https://gogreenroutes.eu/      'Go Green Next' Research Project: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/101137209             Tahdg's Book - 'Physical Activity in Natural Settings: Green and Blue Exercise': https://www.taylorfrancis.com/books/edit/10.4324/9781315180144/physical-activity-natural-settings-aoife-donnelly-tadhg-macintyre               University of Maynooth Taught MSc. in Environmental Psychology: https://www.maynoothuniversity.ie/study-maynooth/postgraduate-studies/courses/msc-environmental-psychology

Daithí chats to Harrison Gardner, of the brilliant social enterprise Common Knowledge, which delivers practical course in upskilling and self-sufficiency in the Burren, County Clare. We covered a lot in this conversation, from reconnecting to the value of the objects we use every day, to the huge demand for their courses from people who want to be more handy around the house.  Common knowledge is very socially engaged also, providing access courses to some participants who couldn't afford to attend, as well as looking to marginalised communities like LGBTQ+ groups to find new solutions to the climate crisis. At the end of the conversation we feature a reflection on Climate Action and a song from musical artist, Sive. She is a former Climate Ambassador - as well as an amazing songwriter and musician! Links Common Knowledge: http://www.ourcommonknowledge.org/ Harrison's website: https://www.harrisongardner.net/ Rekindle festival of lost skills: https://www.ourcommonknowledge.org/rekindle 'Build Your Own' TV Series: https://www.rte.ie/player/series/build-your-own-home/10000921-00-0000?epguid=IP000066885 Croí Cónaithe Vacant property refurbishment grant: https://www.corkcoco.ie/en/resident/housing/vacant-property-refurbishment-grant-croi-conaithe Earthship Biotecture: https://earthship.com/ Sive links: https://linktr.ee/sivemusic