Stay ConnectedAn occasional series revisiting conversations and ideas from Reasons to be Cheerful (2017-2024), formerly hosted by ex-Labour Party leader Ed Miliband, and Sony Award-winning radio presenter Geoff Lloyd.
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Copyright: © Cheerful
Hello! Britain has amongst the lowest tree coverage of any country in Europe. This week we’re discussing why we should plant more trees for their many benefits including tackling the climate emergency and cooling our cities. Emi Murphy from Friends of the Earth talks about their campaign to double trees in Britain and tree expert Rob MacKenzie explains his ‘sci fi forest’ experiment in Birmingham. Then Felix Finkbeiner tells us the story of how he began advocating for tree planting at just 9 years old and the Trillion Tree Campaign that his organisation now runs.
PLUS
Actor Michael Sheen joins us and talks about the upcoming Homeless World Cup in Wales
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Hello! Households in the UK have a combined £1.6 trillion of personal debt and this is growing. What impact does this debt have and what we should we do about it? We talk to filmmaker Dan Edelstyn, creator of the ‘Bank Job’ - a film/art project to write off local community debt in Walthamstow. Laura Hanna explains the ‘Rolling Jubilee’ campaign in the US and what they’re now doing to mobilise those in debt. Then Johnna Montgomerie, author of ‘Should We Abolish Household Debt?’, discusses her ambitious proposal for government to cancel and write down billions of pounds of harmful debt.
AND
Comedian and Children's Author Olaf Falafel retrains annoying animals, demands free biscuits, feeds his neighbours and votes in a Child PM
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Hello! We’ve got another Cheerful Book Club pilot episode for you. We’re joined by Billy Bragg to chat about his new book, ‘The Three Dimensions of Freedom’. Billy talks about politics in the age of social media, the importance of accountability, and finding principles to guide the kind of society we want.
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Hello! 45% of LGBT young people are bullied in school and 40% say they are never taught anything about LGBT issues. We talk to Stonewall chief executive Ruth Hunt about the importance of LGBT-inclusive education, how we can support trans young people, and the state of LGBT rights more broadly. Then co-founder of the Time for Inclusive Education campaign, Liam Stevenson, explains how they persuaded the Scottish government to adopt the most comprehensive approach in the world - with LGBT education embedded across the whole curriculum.
AND
Comedian Lou Sanders wants quiet sirens, quiet sheds, ball pools and monkeys. Can she convince Ed to become the face of her new merch?
ALSO
We're going to Clapham, come with us! 28th July https://claphamgrand.com/event/reasons-to-be-cheerful-with-ed-miliband-geoff-lloyd/
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Hello! The Women’s World Cup may have captivated the nation, but we are a long way away from gender equality in sport. From media coverage to pay to participation, there is still a large gender gap.The US has just become the first country ever to win the World Cup four times. Does 'Title IX', a US law passed in the 1970s, offer lessons in how to address gender inequality in sport? We talk to Baroness Sue Campbell about her plans for the game in the UK, Kristine Newhall explains the impact of Title IX and then Katee Hui and Kate Nicholson discuss how to tackle the on-going barriers for women in sport.
AND
Comedian Robin Morgan advocates for better male relationships on TV, an Ed Miliband version of Hamilton, a way to put people off hosting and attending "gender reveal parties" and everyone to get a signed brexit jumper
PLUS
Tickets for Clapham show on the 28th July http://wegottickets.com/event/473396
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Hello! One of the biggest challenges of the climate emergency is that we have to take tens of millions of petrol and diesel cars off the road. How do we do it? We look to Norway where nearly 50% of new cars sold are fully electric - in the UK it’s around 1%. Christina Bu, Secretary General of the Norwegian Electric Vehicle Association, explains what we can learn from from their success. Then transport experts Chaitanya Kumar & Jillian Anable discuss how to overcome the obstacles to further electric vehicle ownership and why we also need to reduce car use overall.
AND
Comedian Sarah Keyworth brings us joy rooms, breaking up with friends, the ultimate period get out clause, and an age limit on micro scooters
ALSO
Tickets for the Clapham Live show on the 28th July - https://www.wegottickets.com/event/473396
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Hello! Here’s the second pilot of our new Cheerful Book Club series to see you through the end of the week. Geoff and Ed chat to Reni Eddo-Lodge about her best-selling book, ‘Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race’. They discuss why the book was needed, the impact of structural racism in Britain and what Reni’s learnt since writing it.
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Hello! England is the only country in the world to have a fully privatised water system. Is it time to bring water back into public hands? We talk to Celia Blauel, Deputy Mayor of Paris, about how the city returned its water system to municipal ownership. Then academic David Hall and Anna Birley from the Coop Party talk us through the problems of the water industry and what the alternative would look like.
AND
Comedian Stevie Martin has a plan for making wasps better, ends social media and shakes up dress codes
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Hello! Governments focus on maximising gross domestic product (GDP), but is that really the route to a happy and sustainable economy? This week we talk to New Zealand finance minister Grant Robertson about their new approach: the world’s first ‘wellbeing budget’. Academic Bronwyn Hayward and the New Economics Foundation’s Annie Quick analyse what it means and what the UK can learn. Then GOD himself, former Cabinet Secretary Gus O’Donnell, explains why his experience in government has made him an advocate for wellbeing economics.
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Hello! We’re treating you to the first of our Cheerful Book Club episodes—-a pilot for our new series. Ed speaks to Elizabeth Day about her new book ‘How to Fail’. They talk about our attitudes to failure, how to break the failure taboo in our society and how to
learn to cope with it.
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