Outrage + Optimism

Latest Episodes:

Trump’s War on Climate - and Maggie Baird on food justice and plant-based touring with Billie Eilish Jul 31, 2025

Show notes

As record heat scorches the US, Trump’s government is making things dramatically worse. We break down the devastating implications of the One Big Beautiful Bill, the reversal of the Environmental Protection Agency’s endangerment finding, and a potential US withdrawal from all UN agencies. It’s a full-blown climate backslide with global consequences.

Then, we bring you a conversation with the brilliant Maggie Baird - actor, producer, climate activist, and mother of Billie Eilish and Finneas. Maggie joins us backstage at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, where Billie’s shows are going plant-based, thanks to Maggie’s food justice initiative Support + Feed. We talk food, parenting, the power of culture to shift climate narratives, and how to stay hopeful - even when it feels like the world is falling apart.

Learn more

⛽ ‘How the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ positions US energy to be more costly for consumers and the climate’ in The Conversation

🎶 See Billie Eilish talk about cleaning up the music industry’s environmental practices, or watch the full documentary (for CNN subscribers)

⏳ Listen back to our episodes Momentum vs Perfection, where we explore different theories of change within the climate movement and the tension between urgency, impact, and doing things the ‘right’ way.

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

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Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Assistant Producer: Caillin McDaid

Assistant Producer: Eve Jones

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

*Breaking Planetary News*: The ICJ Climate Opinion Explained Jul 24, 2025

Show notes

“An Existential Problem of Planetary Proportions”

International Court of Justice President Yuji Iwasawa just delivered a landmark advisory opinion on climate change and human rights - one that could transform global climate action and accountability.

A dancing and crying Christiana Figueres is joined by Tom Rivett-Carnac and Paul Dickinson, to react in real-time, and speak with two of the lawyers who helped make it happen.

Fresh from the courtroom, Julian Aguon, the indigenous human rights lawyer who represented Pacific nations, and Jennifer Robinson, barrister for Vanuatu and the Marshall Islands, bring their raw, unfiltered reactions to this history-making ruling (before heading off to celebrate).

As governments, legal teams, and corporate leaders worldwide scramble to interpret its implications, we have everything you need to know about what just happened in The Hague.

The ICJ’s unanimous opinion states:

Climate action is now a legal duty: States are obligated under international law to prevent dangerous climate change.
1.5°C has legal weight: States must pursue their “highest possible ambition” in their Nationally Determined Contributions and ensure collective measures can limit warming to 1.5°C.
Failure to act is unlawful: Granting fossil fuel licenses, providing subsidies, or failing to regulate emissions may constitute an internationally wrongful act.
Reparations are possible: Countries could be required to compensate or remedy the damage caused by their emissions - anywhere in the world.

Could this be the legal tipping point that forces governments to act? Across capitals and boardrooms, the conversations have already started - and what happens next could reshape how nations and companies are held to account. Listen in and join us as this story unfolds.

Learn more

Listen back to our two previous episodes that explore the background to this case:

🌿 Sovereignty and Survival: A Spotlight on Vanuatu, where Christiana reports on Vanuatu’s long fight for climate justice.

✊🏽 The Climate Case of the Century, where Cynthia Houniuhi shares her story of how the landmark ICJ case came to be.

📖 Dive into the full advisory opinion from the ICJ.

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Planes, Protests, Pensions... and have banks given up on saving the planet? Jul 17, 2025

Show notes

Can a pilot really be the change-maker who helps us to holiday nearer home? Why aren’t governments and institutions doing more to help climate activists? And can climate progress happen without sacrificing prosperity, especially in countries like Brazil?

Christiana Figueres, Paul Dickinson and guest host Fiona McRaith (Director of The Climate Pledge at Global Optimism) are back with more of the knottiest and most urgent questions you’ve ever sent us.

Plus: are the world’s biggest financial institutions abandoning climate action? Sue Reid (Climate Finance Advisor at Global Optimism) explains how banks and insurers are reacting to political pressure, why some net zero alliances appear to be fracturing, and why “green hushing” doesn’t mean giving up entirely.

And: from climate visas to sponge cities, adaptation is finally rising on the global agenda - but is it fast or fair enough? Irene Suárez Pérez (Senior Advisor to Groundswell) walks us through some of the global hotspots of climate resilience, and why adaptation isn’t a consolation prize.

Learn more

Listen back to episodes referenced in this Q&A, including:

⏳ Momentum vs Perfection, where Fiona joins Tom to explore different theories of change within the climate movement.

💼 When Business is Political: Climate Commitments in an Age of Backlash, where Tom and Paul speak to Helen Clarkson about the moves of large companies in the context of rising anti-ESG forces.

💰 Learn more about greening pensions and investments: ShareAction, Third Act’s Banking on our Future and Make My Money Matter

🎤 Get your chance to be featured on the show! Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

And follow us on social media for behind the scenes moments and to watch our videos:

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Additional production: Miriam Hall

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From Outrage to Action: Your Questions, Our Answers Jul 10, 2025

Show notes

We’re handing the mic over to you on this week’s Outrage + Optimism: The Climate Podcast.

In this special Q&A episode, Christiana Figueres, Paul Dickinson and guest host Fiona McRaith (Director of The Climate Pledge at Global Optimism) respond to thought-provoking questions from listeners around the world. They consider the future of the COP model, whether the Pacific concept of vā may offer a better way to think about our local and global relationships, what a multipolar world might mean for climate diplomacy, and much more. Plus, friend of the show Nigel Topping (Founder of Ambition Loop) helps to explain why UK electricity prices are tied to gas - and how we can fix it.

From the philosophical to the practical, this is a wide-ranging conversation about where climate progress is stalling, where it’s surging forward, and how global cooperation might evolve in the years ahead.

Learn more

Listen back to episodes referenced in this Q&A, including:

⏳ Momentum vs Perfection, where Fiona joins Tom to explore different theories of change within the climate movement.

✊🏽 The Climate Case of the Century, where Cynthia Houniuhi shares her story of how the landmark ICJ case came to be.

🌿 Sovereignty and Survival: A Spotlight on Vanuatu, where Christiana reports back on her time in the South Pacific.

🤝 COP30: Can Brazil deliver a global breakthrough?, where Tom brings back the latest from Belém ahead of this year's COP.

🌎 Other episodes exploring the shifting geopolitics of climate, including deep dives on China, Australia and Canada

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Additional production: Miriam Hall

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Climate Case of the Century: Inside the story of a youth-led legal movement Jul 03, 2025

Show notes

In a world-first, the International Court of Justice is preparing to deliver an advisory opinion on climate change and human rights - all thanks to a youth-led campaign that began thousands of miles from The Hague, in the Pacific Islands.

This week, we look inside that extraordinary campaign, and hear the story of Cynthia Houniuhi, who - as a young law student from the Solomon Islands - helped launch the movement that would ultimately unite over 130 countries behind a single goal. Now, six years after this idea began in a law classroom, the world’s highest court is set to weigh in on the responsibility of states to protect current and future generations from climate harm.

Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac, and Paul Dickinson reflect on the power of legal activism, the role of youth leadership, and what this landmark case could mean for the future of international climate law.

Learn more

⚖️ Read more information about the ICJ climate case on the Pacific Islands Students Fighting Climate Change website

🛏️ We’ve been told that the platforms QuintoAndar and ZAP Imóveis may be useful for booking accommodation in Belém. Please note that we don’t have any direct experience of them, so we do not and cannot recommend them personally. We encourage you to take the usual precautions when making any arrangements.

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Assistant Producer: Caillin McDaid

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

O+O Recommends: 'When Science Finds A Way' Jul 01, 2025

Show notes

Last episode, we explored the urgent connection between climate and health, and brought you a powerful and timely conversation with Julia Gillard, former Australian Prime Minister and Chair of the Wellcome Trust.

Today, we want to recommend a show that those who enjoyed that episode are likely to love. When Science Finds A Way is a brilliant podcast from the Wellcome Trust that highlights how science is changing lives around the world. In the short clip here, we hear how something as simple as a cool roof - a special reflective paint - is helping communities stay safe from extreme heat.

🎧 Listen to the full episode: Cool roofs: homes fit for a hotter world

🔗 Follow the podcast: on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your shows, and learn more about it here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Health Warning: The Human Cost of Climate Inaction with Julia Gillard Jun 26, 2025

Show notes

Scientists warn that the world could breach its 1.5°C emissions limit within just 2-3 years. It’s a scary thought, but across the globe, many are grappling with an even more immediate and visceral reality: the climate crisis is already a health crisis.

From deadly heatwaves to worsening air pollution and climate-related trauma, the health impacts of climate change are escalating. In this episode, Christiana Figueres and Paul Dickinson explore how growing awareness of these challenges is beginning to reframe the conversation, and ask whether this could be the narrative that finally drives faster, more inclusive climate action.

Christiana is joined by former Australian Prime Minister and Chair of the Wellcome Trust, Julia Gillard, who makes the case for why health must become central to climate communication - and why we should be talking about “lives lost”, rather than simply degrees gained.

Meanwhile, Tom Rivett-Carnac drops in from the launch of London Climate Action Week 2025, where health is rapidly emerging as a defining lens.

Learn more

🌡️ See what the Wellcome Trust is doing at the intersection of climate and health

🩺 Read all about the speakers and events at the Conduit’s Climate and The Future of Health, supported by the Wellcome Trust and held on the first day of LCAW

📅 Browse the full London Climate Action Week events listings, featuring over 500 events across London and online

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Assistant Producer: Caillin McDaid

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Could This Change Your Life?: The Climate Tech Revolution Jun 19, 2025

Show notes

While climate diplomacy grapples with global uncertainty, there’s a quiet revolution happening that may be just as important - thousands of breakthrough technologies and creative applications that are emerging to tackle the climate crisis in new and unexpected ways.

Around the world, figures from business, government and civil society come together at climate weeks to share ideas, showcase solutions, and accelerate action. Ahead of London Climate Action Week, where many of these innovations will be spotlighted, Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac, and Paul Dickinson introduce just a few of the many founders and builders reimagining how we grow, produce, work, and live in a world under pressure.

From bio-based foams to paper-based electronic sensors, and from temperature-sensitive food labels to AI water management devices, this episode dives into the materials, data, and design transforming the climate solutions landscape.

While technology alone won’t solve the crisis, can it offer glimpses of what a livable, low-carbon future might look like? And how might it contribute to reshaping the infrastructure, industries, and incentives that underpin our daily lives?

Learn more

🧶 The Future Fabrics Expo, where Evoco and other makers of sustainably and responsibly produced materials will be sharing their work

♻️ Reset Connect, where Watergate, Hurd, Giki and hundreds of other businesses and speakers will be featured

🧪 The Undaunted Innovation Hub, from the programme that has supported PulpaTronics, Mimica and Cyanoskin

📅 The full London Climate Action Week events listings, featuring over 500 events across London and online

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hope for the High Seas?: Sylvia Earle and Oceans on the World Stage Jun 12, 2025

Show notes

World leaders, scientists and ocean advocates are gathering in Nice for the 3rd UN Ocean Conference (UNOC) and hopes are high that progress can be made on some of the many pressing issues facing our seas - from acidification to pollution, and from biodiversity loss to deep sea mining.

Reporting from the summit, Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac ask: can this moment become a true turning point for ocean governance? Central to the agenda is the High Seas Treaty: a long-awaited international agreement designed to protect marine life in the 64% of the ocean that lies beyond national borders. But with more ratifications needed to get it across the line, can its future be secured while the world’s eyes are on Nice?

Later, Christiana is joined by legendary oceanographer and explorer Dr. Sylvia Earle. Drawing on a lifetime of experience beneath the waves, she shares stories, warnings, and a passionate case for protecting the blue lungs of the planet.

This episode features underwater and ocean recordings taken by sound artist and documentarist Louise Romain.

Learn more

⚓ Get the latest news on UNOC from the official website

🌊 Learn more about the High Seas Treaty and track its progress towards 60 ratifications

🐠 Discover Sylvia Earle’s ocean advocacy initiative Mission Blue

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

COP30: Can Brazil deliver a global breakthrough? Jun 05, 2025

Show notes

This November, Brazil will host COP30 in Belém, on the edge of the Amazon rainforest, in what is bound to be a moment packed with symbolism, high expectations, and global significance. This week, Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac, and Paul Dickinson explore what’s at stake, what Brazil wants to achieve, and whether the world is ready to move from ambition to implementation.

Back from his recent trip to the country, Tom shares conversations with COP CEO Ana Toni and Gustavo Westmann from the office of the Brazilian Presidency, along with insights and impressions he picked up on the ground - from the growing political momentum to the logistical and diplomatic hurdles still to be overcome. Plus, he introduces the team to the concept of mutirão - this COP’s ambition that the path to climate action be built collectively, and through shared effort, cooperation, and solidarity.

With Brazil readying itself to be the focus of the world’s media later this year, we ask: can COP30 be a breakthrough moment for fossil fuel phaseout, nature protection, and delivery on past promises? Or will it risk becoming another high-profile summit weighed down by old divisions and new distractions?

Learn more

🗺️ Get the latest COP30 updates and insights from the official website

💡 Start exploring the Outrage + Optimism archive by listening to our Lifelines VS Deadlines miniseries, co-hosted by Global Optimism’s Fiona Macklin, whom you heard from at the end of this episode

🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe

Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism

Or get in touch with us via this form.

Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Video Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan

Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford

Commissioning Editor: Sarah Thomas

This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.