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Series:

Earth Matters

Earth Matters covers climate action and environmental campaigning across Northern Ireland. Hosts Lynda Sullivan, Niall Bakewell and Tommy Greene interview activists, experts and community organisers about the issues driving the ecological movement.

Episodes span the Youth Strike 4 Climate and Extinction Rebellion protests of 2019, Jonathon Porritt’s keynote on the climate crisis, and youth activist Anna Kernahan reflecting on how the pandemic affected Fridays for Future. The series explores practical responses too: sustainable food cities, waste reduction with the Belfast Repair Cafe, and a conference on tackling waste through community creativity. International perspectives come from Emma R. Mincks connecting Native American and Irish environmental groups, and Zambian musician‑activist Fumba ‘Pilato’ Chama. Local threats are examined in an episode on Lough Neagh and extractive industries, while wellbeing therapist Aisling Cowan discusses the Active Hope model for supporting campaigners’ emotional health. Most recently, a 2024 episode tackles fossil fuel divestment and corporate greenwashing. Running from March 2019 to March 2024, it’s a record of how Northern Irish communities are responding to planetary emergency.

Lynda Sullivan, Nicola Browne and V’cenza Cirefice discuss campaigns calling for public and private bodies to divest from the fossil fuel industry.
Show added:
22/03/2024
Lynda Sullivan chats to Emma R. Mincks about Making Relatives, a project to connect Native American environmental campaigners with groups involved in similar work across Ireland.
Show added:
11/11/2022
Tommy Greene talks to musician and activist Fumba ‘Pilato’ Chama from Zambia.
Show added:
09/09/2022
Follow on discussion on campaigning with Lynda Sullivan discussing with wellbeing therapist Aisling Cowan about supporting people’s emotional health in dealing with challenges like the Covid-19 pandemic, plus the Active Hope model used by campaigning groups.
Show added:
02/03/2021
James Orr from Friends of the Earth discusses the effects of extractive industries on Lough Neagh, and how the Rights of Nature movement could help in cases like this.
Show added:
10/02/2021
Lynda Sullivan talks to wellbeing therapist Aisling Cowan about supporting people’s emotional health in dealing with challenges like the Covid-19 pandemic.
Show added:
03/12/2020
Lynda Sullivan talks to youth climate activist Anna Kernahan about what Covid has meant for campaigns like Fridays for Future, and some of the issues she has been focusing on in her activism.
Show added:
01/11/2020
Event about the climate crisis held at the Clayton Hotel, Belfast, with keynote speech from Jonathan Porritt, global advocate for sustainable development.
Show added:
27/08/2019
Extinction Rebellion, Belfast. Non violent direct action to highlight the need for urgent action on reducing our carbon footprint and biodiversity loss.
Show added:
10/07/2019
The Sustainable Food Cities approach which recognises the role food plays in dealing with the pressing social, economic and environmental challenges that the world faces today.
Show added:
05/06/2019
A unique conference hosted by The Repair Cafe, on how communities can creatively tackle global issues of waste and economic sustainability.
Show added:
02/05/2019
Niall Bakewell is joined by guests Kavita Thanki of Ulster University and Christine McCartney of the Belfast Repair Cafe to talk about waste.
Show added:
11/03/2019